MINING NEWS.

Te Aroha News, Volume I, Issue 28, 15 December 1883, Page 2

MINING NEWS.

Owing to the breakage of the pininnwheel, fifteen head of stampers at the battery have not been working during the greater part of the week. The breakage whs repaired yesterday morning and crushing resumed. A new departure has been decided en in the matter of announcing the amalgam return once a week only. In accordance with this rule the returns for the four preceding days were published on Wednesday last, and they will be announced every Wednesday. This rule we are inclined to give our fullest concurrence with. The daily publication of amalgam returns has a tendency to cause unwarrantable fluctuations in the sharemurket. The merest accident, such as the temporary stoppage of a pass or shoot in a mine is sufficient to decrease a day's yield of amalgam," and the public, not being aware of the cause of the diminution, might be led to I infer that thu quartz was crushing poorlj r . There is trouble brewing, we hear, on tha berdan question. It would appear that the directors representing the companies in the negotiations with the B ittery ' Company, very foolishly, we think, agreed that mines crushing with ten head should only have the use of two berduns. In making this agreement they displayed a lamentable lack of practical knowledge — knowledge they should have possessed before proceeding to discuss such a question. On other goldfields it is a well established fact that the blanketings accumulating from the work of ton head of stampers will require at least five berdans for their efficient treatment. Two berdans are therefore ridiculously inadequate. | Through the shortsightedness of the ! arranging directors the companies find ! themselves on the horns of a dilemna, the only apparent loophole of escape being an offer from the Battery Company to supply the additional number of berdans if the companies will pay for their use at the rate of 10s per diem for 6ach berdan. This one-sided agreement gives them a legal right to take advantage of the folly of the mine directors, and they will doubtlessly have their M pound of flesh." On other goldfields in the colony the treatment of the blanketings is a part and parcel of "the crushing, and when a miner pays so many shillings per ton for the treatment of his quartz, he understands that the berdaning of hi* blanketings is included in the charge. An a Iditional charge for the use of the h M'dirns is a thing unheard of elsewhere, b it, as their own directors brought this a >out f we suppose the shareholders will h we to bear it. 1

CLEANING UP. The first cleaning- up at the battery since the monthly retorting eventuated on Wednesday afternoon hist. All the amalgam waB hot water squeezed, and we have heen assured by one of the mine managers that the New Find amalgam at any rate will go one-third. The returns are : —

Werahiko. — We. are glad to be in a position to chronicle an improvement in the prospects of this mine, inasmuch as the* quartz at present going through the mill isofamuch better quality than that sent down last month. Indeed, about the time of the battery banquet it had been decided to stop crushing. The quartz is now coming from stopes on the main reef at-ijitp.rniediate level. It is from four to . sixifeet thick, and the manager estimates thai the stuff now going through the mill is \yorth about an ounce per load. It will be remembered that the operations on the main reef at the surface level included two, driv.es, each 20 feet long ? north and south oh the lode. In the northern drive the Uode divided, and no' gold was got paa£ the junction. The block below is to the [southward of tihe junction, and the bulk of it is expected to bo payable. Waitoki.— 'All handshake been knocked' off >vith the exception of two men, who are .prospecting the- big; reef.; it'is five feet| thick, and in places some nice looking gold has been seen. Waitoki .ExTßNDßp.—Tlje prospecting drive is in 100 foet, and it is expecW) that 'the. reef will becut.in the course of a duyov two.

ARMVI^MIn .mjn^whichMjsy^he-, way, haß.the f^fth fi«l!i|tp the ||!|%y r prospecting operations ar|>J|tilJ tftej|ir<ie?-of-the'clay*^.BhV'Manager'H^pes torrid- a test crushing to the battery soon. > ! PH(ENIX. — The manager reports cutting, a npw leader.; Itis a foot thick showing ,gold through the stone. This i* the third leader intersected in this Company's ground tfrcw Find. — Tliere is no change of any great importance to notice in *this mine. The reef going towa.ds the Canadian is looking splendid. " The metal " can be freely and the stuff crushes rernsirkahiv wall. The yield of three hundred and odd ounces of amalgam from four days crushing with fifteen lr>«d; shows ; that the stuff is shaping at least, for a] return as good as last month's. There j seems to be an impression tli'it th? ' Arizona will get the New Find lode.; 'Phis opinion is grounded on. the belief : that the New Find reef carries through 1 the buck Inde. The probabilities appear to us to be quite the other wny — that the buck reef will carry the smaller body of quartz away with it on its wall. Arizona. — The low level is in 125 feet, and has intersected several reefs and leader of a gold bearing character. The best of these is a reef five or six feet through which shows gold when broken. Inverness. — The manager has not intersected the reef in the low level, and a survey-made on Wednesday shows that it is still 25 feet from the face of the drive. The channel of country through which the drive goes is excellent, and will be much surprised if payable gold is not obtained in this lode when cut. Welcome. — Mr Quinn reports that there is nothing new of interest since our last. The stope continues to prod ice really excellent golden utone. * Lucky Hit. — The trial parcel of nine tons from this mine will be crushed at the Thames. It will be sent down by the steamer on Monday. Som.3 of ths stuff is already at the landing, nn I a portion of it is Rtill at the Waiorongomai battery. Waiorongomai. Preparations are being mnde to sink a winze. Phosnix.— Tlie three leaders cut in cross^it have joined together and some good picked stone came to hand yesterayd. Emily. — Some nice gold was obtained in the drive pesterday.

ozs. dwts, 'renrier ... lolonist ... [ew Find... ... 141 118 312 7 2 15