WEEK'S MINING" NEWS

Otago Witness, Issue 2813, 12 February 1908, Page 30

WEEK'S MINING" NEWS

February 5. The Hartley and Riley dredgemaster wires: — "Started dredging at 4 o'clock on Monday aiternoon." The return from the Paterson's Freehold No. 2 dredge is 270z lldwt for 133 hours. The following wire from the secretary May Queen Company was posted at the Exchange yesterday:— "Call. Id per share made May Queen Company yesterday." The Mystery Flat Company's dredgemaster reports that the face continued to look fairly ■well at the end of the week, and that there was a good deal more gravel making in the eastern cut.

The jaaster Lady Roxbuigh dredge reports untW^tftife W mst " '• A blight change occurred in the^r'uui.d during the -week, a hard bump «i bottom iurtnuig ae»r the east bank, on

which the gravel is fght and stony. Prospects continue about the same. We are still having good prospects on the west side; the working face is about two and three-quarter chains wide." The Nokomai Hydraulic Sluicing Company secretary reports that at No. 1 s'uicing off of top material has been completed, and , sinking and sluicing commenced Operations j have been greatly hindered by the scarcity of j water. The e\ aporation is very great ; on ' two days of last week 80deg was registered. , The manager fears that unless the weather 1 conditions change he will have to suspend work. No. 2 reports slight showers, but not. ■enough to increase the water supply. He had only four days' work last week, no water from the Lion race being available, all being needed for No. 1. The reef has risen abruptly towe-rds the centre of the paddock. The ground is still heavy and cementy at No. 3. The men have been engaged on the Lion race, and it was expected that the race would be completed this week. February 6. The following letter from the superintendent of the Talisman Consolidated mine was posted at the Stock Exchange yesterday: — "We have received a cablegram from the Talisman Consolidated board of directors authorising the purchase and erection of power plant, which wall be sufficient for all probable requirements. Estimated cost is about £18,500." The Manuherikla dredgeniaster reports, under date February 1, 1908. "I think the return will be small this week, as I have got on to a very shallow bar, and. as the river is so low, it takes me all my time to float over it." The Champion Mines Company has applied for an ad-ditional 225 acres. A 10-stamp battery has been bought, also a 40 horsepower suction gas plant, capable of driving , 20 head of stamp". A contract has been let for the erection of the plant to Mr Spencer, of New Plymouth. The County Council is putting the road, made last year, in order, and it 'is now completed, and every effort is being made to have the batteiy at work this season. The machineiy has arrived in a scow from Auckland. February 7. j The Mystery Flat return is 660z iSSwt for , 137 hours. | The master of the Masterton dredge reports a, wash-up for 48oz 14dwt for 139 hours. The return from the Hessey dredge was 340z Sdwt for 126 hours. The master of the Waikaia dredge wires : — " Return, 50oz 9dwt for 137 hours. Stopped dredging last night for boiler inspection. Will resume to-night.' i TEe return from the Kb Town Creek dredge is 460z for the week. The Roxburgh Amalgamated Company reports a wash-up for 107oz for the month. The masters of the Otago. Company's dredges report 'having -to go through a quantity of ailt at both claims. The ground of I the No. 2 ha 3 been pretty well worked. j The Punt dredgemaster reports: — "We had a fair run this week, getting over a feir j amount of ground. Prospects are about the | same as last week, not improving as much as I expected. I have got a sandstone bottom right across the out now. We opened out a little more on the top side of the cut on Thursday so as to leave the next cut narrower when I drop back.'" The New Trafalgar dredgemaster reports: "We had a -steady -week's run, but got but little gold before Wednesday, and not much in the next two days. I did not clean up, as the return would not be more than lOoz. It will take about another week to get on good bottom, as I have to cut the poor corner of the face up square to get a wide face. The machinery is working well I expect to be on good ground at the -end of the week." The Sandy Point dredgemaster wiites that he started dredging at 4 o'clock on Wednesday week, working on the river side of the cut. It will take pretty well a week to clean the face up of top stuff that has fallen in during the stoppage. The Waikaia master reports : " Dredging was carried on during the last week across the full length of the face. The wash was fairly good, baing composed of drift, with a. fine clay bottom overlaying red clay, and the remainder of the face being red clay. Depths range from 12it to 25ft above water level, with a total length of face of seven chains, two chains of which will be left over this week for the return cut." February 10. The Waikaka United No. 1 dredge was working a poor corner piece all last week. The Golden Gate master reports that the river is fallingThe Enterprise dredgemaster expected to . strike the solid either on Saturday night or to-day. I The Black's Flat dredge at Opihi is rumcured to have struck a rich washFebruary 11. The river height on Monday morning was 6ft above the normal mark at Alexandra. Light rain fell on Sunday. On account of the very low condition of the river at present the directors of the Golden Gem Company have decided to stop dredging until the river rises Witli the river at its present level it would take at least eight weeks to dredge out to the river, but with a decent rise the dredge cou'.d move out in two or three days. The dredgemaeter of the Kura dredge reports under date 6th inst :"We are hardly so far forward as I expected to be by this time. The stay tubes aie now all in tha boiler, which will probably be finished by about Monday. By the time that we get steam and the buckets on and oottared, drop chute altered and adjusted to new position, etc., it will ba the latter end of next week. Work on the boiler was retarded for ' two days through the unfortunate breaking of a stay tap. The weather is extremely dry, and. I am taking the opportunity to do a little race-cutting ta increase the water supply, which is very slack." At Poseidon (Victori«) another large nugget weighing 650z was unearthed a fortnight a^o at M'Kenzie and Harvey's claim. Tasmanian minerals are to be fairly repre* I sented at , the forthcoming Franco- British ' exhibition. Mr Inspector Harrison and the director of the Zeehan School of Mines (Mr j D. V. Allen) recently made a good collection , of mineral samples from the West C«»st 1

districts. These are to be shortly forwarded to London. The Rising Sun dredgemaster reports for the week ending February 8- "Dredged 123 hours, worked ahead 16ft The bottom and prospects continue the same As the river is very low and still falling, I am dioppmg the dredge down to work up the river portion of the cut as it is necessary to have the current into the cut I am leaving to carry away the silt. Machinery running well." The return from the Slab Hut dredge for week 13 19oz. The low level of -the Clutha river is seriously handicapping the Rising Sun dredge in working the low flat on the east side. As it is imperative that a good channel be left to enable the dredge to bring up another cut, the dredgemaster dropped her down on Saturday to where the river portion of the I cut was left through floods and travelling drift and a start has been made to clean out the paddock. As only one corner has ' to be worked out, it will not take long to bring the cut up level to the beach one and it then will be over 150 yards wide, and the usual good returns can be confidently looked foiward to. The dividend just declared makes 11s now returned to shareholders, a 2s one having been paid.