THE BRUNNER MINE.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5051, 1 June 1877, Page 7

THE BRUNNER MINE.

THE PIONEER TPJP OF THE LUNA. (EV OCII SPECIAL COI'.V.EtPOXDZXT.) j'All who are posted up in current local events ' arje aware that the Brunner Coal Mining Com- 1 pAny recently purchased the steamer Luna for ' the pnrpo.se of shipping coal from their eele- • brated mine in the Grey Valley, on the western ] coast of the Middle Island, for the "Wellington * market, and also for carrying pa33enser.it to : and from, the capital and Greyrnouth, for both < which purposes the Luna is admirably adapted. s The recent alterations and improvements which 1 have been lately made to this favorite steamer ' have been already fully described in the columns l of the New Zn.it.vxi) Times, and need not be ' repeated ; but the problem how the=e altera- < tions as affecting hm- seagoing qualifications ' would be satisfactory remained to be decided ] after a voyage to Greymouth and back. This \ has now been accomplished most satisfactorily, - and the result cannot be otherwise than must ' gratifying to all interested in the Bruuner ( nor devoid of interest to the general a public. J Pursuant to instructions from the editor of ' the TlJI£3 I proceeded on the evening of * Saturday, the sth iu3tant, on board the Luna, ' which left the breastwork at midnight, and J encountered a heavy tide rip in Cook ' Strait. This somewhat retarded the ves- , sel's progress; otherwise she made good ' way and behaved admirably. After a ' night sufficiently rough to prevent much sleep, f it was a pleasant change to find the sea calmer i next morning,; and the vessel steaming along ' at the rate of'. some nine knots an hour. At I 9 a.m. Stephens Island was passed, and Cape t Farewell rounded at 3.30 the same afternoon. <' From this point beautiful weather was experi- £ enced as far as We3tport, off which place the c steamer arrived at 3 o'clock on Monday morn- J in>'. Crossed the bar at daylight, and a few ' rninute3 afterwards wai brought alongside the * upper wharf,, where she discharged some cargo, including a quantity of iron rails, which are c to be laid down at the Wellington Company's coal mine, which is to be connected by 3 shori * branch with the railway line from Westport ' to Mount Koch'fort. '

A stroll over the tow a. of Westport gives one the idea that it has seen better days. It consists mainly of one long street, built for the most part on one side only, the other being chiefly in its primitive state of bush. The number of public-houses (and they did not appear to be doing a large business) to the remainder of the buildings is very great, and reminds one of what Shoiiland was soon after the breaking out of the Thames goldfield, when almost every other house had a license to sell fermented and spirituous liquors. Of the houses other than public-houses at Westport, I noticed that a good many were "to let or for sale," and altogether the appearance of things in genera', to one just come from the busy city of Wellington, was rather dull. If such, however, be the actual fact, there is nevertheless good reason to believe that with the further extension of the local railway and development of the coal mines in the vicinity, the prospects of Westport will be again in the ascendant. One sign of progress may be instanced by stating that a coach is about to be started, so that through overland communication for passengers may be had with Greymouth, via Eeefton.

At 5 o'clock the same evening (Monday) a start was made for Greymouth. Soon after crossing the bar, and passing the ugly-look-ing rocks hard by, the weather changed for the worse. The sky wm the color of lead, and the wind blew strong from the north, with a heavy and confused sea. In fact, it was about as dirty a night as I have seen for a long tio:e. The steamer, however, behaved well, and at G o'clock oejrt monrng (Tuesday'* we found ourselves oVrthe Greymouth bar, which we crossed about an hour afterwards, and anchored at the wharf.

The chief object of my journey was, of course, a visit to the far-famed Brunner coal mine, and I lost no time in setting about it. Under ordinary circumstances this was an occasion on which business and pleasure might be intermingled, such as seldom presents itself to a newspaper reporter ; but the weather was such as to render <;oing out of doors anything but enjoyment. It literally rained " heaven's hard" nearly all day, and when there was no rain there was sleet, accompanied by a bitterly cold wind blowing dowj the Gorge, which made one's teeth chatter. It was what the good people of the Grey call genuine West Coast winter weather. Prior to that day I was told it' had been delightful for many weeks ; and in fine weather I am sure Greymouth must be a pleasant place. In winter, however, it is not exactly the spot many people wou'd choose to dwell in who could live elsewhere. So much for the weather, and now for the Brunner mine'. Leaving by the train at noon, the Brunner terminus is reached in half an hour. The railway follows the valley of the Grey liiver on its left bank throughout the entire distance, some seven miles, aud runs for the most part through thick bush. Here and there a glimpse of fine mountain and forest scenery, with the rapid river, its current darkened by the heavy rain, may be descried as the train rushes by. In summer the prospect must be a very charming one, and to the tourist and artist it abounds with attractions. Alighting from the train at Brunnerton, close to the suspension bridge across the Grey River, which is here 300 ft. wide, the Bruuuer mine is immediately before us, on the opposite side. This bridge, as may be remembered, is the successor of a previous one, which fell just as it was completed. The new construction appears a very suitable one for the chief purpose for which it was intended, viz., to convey coal from the mine to the railway, and it does not look likely to follow its predecessor for many a long year. Having crossed the bridge, and presented a letter of introduction from Mr. Kennedy, the company's manager, to Mr. Elliott, the manager of the mine, I was courteously received, furnished with all the information asked, and conducted over the mine, which exceeds in size and importance anything I have soen of the kind before in these colonics, and not a few of those I have visited in the old country; and as a man born and bred in a coal county of England, one ought to know a little about coal mines. Under Mr. Elliott's guidance, and armed with a long tallow candle, the tunnel which burrows deep into the side of the mountain is entered, and in a few seconds

almost total darkness succeeds, the light of the candle just enabling one to see that one's feet keep the right track, and don't stumble over the tramway rails laid along the floor of the tunnel, on which the trucks are drawn up and down bv a wire rope wound over a large drum, which we presently come to as we proceed along the tunnel ; and as one gets accustomed to the absence of daylight the objects around us become more distinct. On either side of us is a thick wall of coal, and over our head

and bc-math our feet is coal, and there are some miles of tunnel drives, and workings which are all coal also, and coal of a splendid quality too. Mr. Elliott escorted me into some of the drives, where the men are at work hewing out the coal from the surface of_ the seam, "whilst others close at hand place it in the trucks. After proceeding sonic seven hundred yards hi a straight direction from the entrance of the tunnel into the heart of the mountain, a barrier of rock is reached, which runs through the company's lease at about the middle of it. This is technically known as a " fault," and the mine has so iar only been worked between it and the river ; but it is the opinion of competent authorities, Dr. Hector araou" the number, that the seam of coal will be found again on the other side of this " fault," at a lower level, and it is intended to test the que-tiou ; but should it turn out to be the case that coal does not exist beyond the " fault," —a seemingly improbable contingency, —there is yet a vast quantity of black diamonds to be brought to the earth from the other part of the mine before it is exhausted. The company's lease comprises about 1300 acres, and since it was first worked upwards of 150,000 tons of coal have been taken out, and it is said that as much more could be obtained from the present workings alone, without trenching upon the large extent of coal country not yet touched in that portion of the mine between the "fault" and the river. Br. Hector, in his report of this mine in 1572, . sa y s : _"The coal seam is 16ft. thick, and has been proved bv underground working to be of a uniform gravity, without admixture of slack or other foreign matter through.ut an area of SO acres, in addition to which rile surface indications lead me to estimate the quantity of

coal which is available without sinking at at least -1,000,000 tons, the area of undisturbed coal above water level being move than half a square mile. In addition to this, a much larger quantity of coal can be obtained by sinking." Notwithstanding Dr. Hector's favorable report, founded undoubtedly on correct data, the mine, from all I can learn, was not a success until 1874, when the Brunner Company purchased the property, from which time its career has been one of prosperity; and at the present time it is flourishing, and likely to flourish for many years to come. Now that the Luna is a regular trader to and from the Grey, the people of Wellington will have frequent opportunities of judging of the . qualities of the Erunner_ coal. Nor is this coal mine th- onlv one iu the rich mineral district of the Grey Valley. The Coalpit Heath and the Greymouth companies are at work on the opposite side of the river, with the most encouraging prospects ; and

there is a very large area of country known to be coal-bearing in the immediate neighborhood. The manufacture of firebricks and ret arts also promises to be a leading industry on the Grey. I saw a large quantity ready for use at the. works attached to the Brunner mine, where the clay is admirably suit .-d for the purpose, and I was informed that the retorts now in use at the Greymouth Gasworks were supplied from this source, and have proved to be all that could be desired. To say nothing of the

goldfields, therefore, there is ample evidence that the resources of this part of the colony are great and almost inexhaustible. The township of Greymouth is now connected by road and tramway with Kumara Goldfield, fifteen miles distant, and I believe it is ultimately intended to convert the existing wooden tramway into a railway. This I imagine would place Greymouth in a favorable position compared with Kokitika, as the port from which the diggers would chiefly draw their supplies. From what I could learn, there has been no very exciting news from Kumara for the past few weeks; but the rain, which was so unpleasant to the traveller whilst I was in the locality, was hailed with joy by many of the miners, who looked forward to a " good washing up" as almost a certainty. A new rush has just broken out on the Greymouth side of the Teremakau Paver, where a considerable number of miners had set to work at the face of the hill, and were said to have a good prospect before them. It is very clear that a population of several thousand perssus, principally engaged in mining, is gathered together in and around Kumara, and that the exodus from the place is very small, which looks well for the future of the district. From Eeefton the news lately to hand is very encouraging, the returns from many of the claims being highly satisfactory. People who invested here so far back as. 1870, and

have patiently waited ever since, are now beginning to get satisfactory returns. On the whole, a stranger visiting this portion of the West Coast cannot fail to be struck with the evident signs of prosperity before him, nor can he well help believing that a great future is before the district.

That the Luna is the pioneer of a fleet of steam colliers, destined to develop the trade and resources of the Grey Districts, and to bring them into more immediate connection with the capital, is evident, and is so felt by many of the residents at Greymouth. Soon after the vessel's arrival alongside the railway wharf in front of the main street, there was quite a levee

on board of the leading business people who came to give a welcome to the Luna and her commander, Captain Bascand, who formerly was master of the Waipara, and whose name is " familiar as a household word" on the Coast, Hishealth, and success to theErunnerCompany, were moet cordially drunk in champagne, and every good -a ish expressed for the success of th(*present undertaking, of which indeed there can be very little doubt; aud the company at all events may be congratulated on the capital speculation they have made in purchasing the Luna so cheaply and putting her on between Greymouth and Wellington. Many capitalists whoknew that thesteamer was in the market, and neglected the opportunity of purchasing her, must now think they have made a mistake. It is no disparagement to the boats now nmnmg between Wellington and Wanganui or Napier, to say that the Luna is decidedly superior, both in accommodation and carrying capacity. There can be no hesitation in saying that she is sure to be a favorite passenger boat on the West Coast. Her cabins are very comfortable : there is good accommodation for ladies, to whom is devoted the cabin formerly reserved for the Governor when the Luna was a Government steamer and carried her Majesty's representative for the time being to all parts of the colony. The table U as good as can be desired by the most fastidious, and last, but certainly not least, she lias a captain who is deservedly popular, and has a long experience on the Coast. A voyage to and from Grcymouth in tho Luna, provided the weather be

line, which it certainly was not on the present occasion, is about as pleasant a marine excursion as could well be imagined. Owing to bad weather the Luna was detained at Greymouth until Saturday, the 12th inst., when a start was made on the return journey at ten o'clock in the morning, with a cargo of 200 tons coals and a ton of fireclay. At nine o'clock in the evening a heavy northerly gale was experienced, and the Luna was " hove-to" for nine hours, and had all her fore-and-aft canvas carried away, but sustained no other damage,, and indeed proved herself a first-rate sea boat.

On passing The Brothers on Monday I observed that the lighthouse now in course of erection is nearing completion. This will be amongst the most useful lights in New Zealand, and will supply a \vaut that has long been felt by mariners. The Government steamer Stella was passed a short distance from here. She was said to bo waiting for a favorable opportunity for landing the lantern and other lighthouse appliances. On passing Worser Bay on Monday afternoon several small craft were lyingat anchor, waiting for morepropitious weather before venturing out to sea. At 4 o'clock Evans Bay was passed, and before us once more lay the .Empire City, which was reached about a quarter of an hour afterwards, when the good ship Luna was made fast alongside the breastwork. She is advertised to leave

again for the West Coast on Thursday evenin.' next, and may she have as prosperous a voyage, but with better weather, on this and all future occasions as on the voyage just completed—her pioneer trip in the Brunner