COAL PROSPECTING.

Southland Times, Issue 1550, 12 March 1872, Page 3

COAL PROSPECTING.

Sis, — I am glad to see that your ! correspondent, Mr T. J. Thompson, begins to understand me, and as our object j seems to be the same, some little good may possibly arise to the community generally from our letters fro and con on the subject of coal prospecting. Mr Thompson need not have informed me that as good coal can be got by drivI ing a few yards into the face as by sinking, for of this I was already quite aware ; but I am very glad to hear that Mr T. haß tested both the Nightcap and Morley coal, and inferentially to hear that Mr 1 T. pronounces them both to be of good quality. The question to be asked, it seems to me, still remains as stated in my first letter, viz., cannot a good steam coal be got by sinking somewhat nearer our railways made and contemplated, viz., either in the basin of the Makarewa River, or on the sandstone ridges of the Waihopai and Seaward Downs ? In many of these localities many beds of lignite are known to exist, and from the lie of the country, and its general geological strata, as far as surface appearances go, even Mr T. will, I fancy, admit it looks like a coal-bearing country. I am not, like Mr T., afraid that the expense of sinking, and the windage, &c, need delay the working of a good deep seam coal till labor gets cheaper, as I believe such expense would not amount to the cost of freight for any over-sea brought coal ; nay, lam disposed to go a little further, and argue that deep [ sinking mines will probably pay best, because they would necessitate the employment of bred colliers, wbo would adopt coal-mining as a permanent industry, and stick by the mines as long as they were fairly remunerated for their labor ; whilst coal wrought comparatively on the surface would probably be mined by a less skilful class of workmen, whose labor would in all probability be less steady, and not in any sense likely to be permanent. The employment of bred miners would likely ensure permanency and constancy of supply, which, as well as quantity and quality, are, as Mr T. is doubtless aware, of very great consequence in the trade in Black Diamonds. Invercargill, March 9th, 1872.