MINING NEWS. The Broken Hill Silver Mines. SOME INTERESTING FACTS.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 242, 18 February 1888, Page 1 (Supplement)

MINING NEWS. The Broken Hill Silver Mines. SOME INTERESTING FACTS.

A letter has been received by Mr W. H . Metcalfe, of this city, from his brother, dated from Young, New South Wales, February Ist, in which the writer gives some interesting information with reference to the Broken Hill mines. Having just returned from a visit to the mine, he describes it [as the most wonderful silver mine In the word. The rail* j way now reaches Broken Hill, where all is life art bustle. The telegraph office, with shteen operators employed, is kept going nijht and day. The original proprietory mine is at present employing 900 men. Thire are 16,000 shares in the mine. The locb they are working on varies in width from'4s to 200 feet. The proprietors are »nly at present working two 40-acre Bases, but they have two more similar J acres in their hands, one of whim is to be floated as a separate cotapany, with a capital of a million sterling, in 100,000 shares of £10 each. Of thqse shares 96,000 are to be divided amongst the shareholders of the Proprietor} Caapany in the proportion of six shares foe every one they hold at present-, and 4,00| shares are to be sold to the public, as mdiey is required to develop the mine. Tne general opinion in Melbourne is, says Mr Metcalfe, that the shares will [reach £800 each before they stop rping in value. He says it must oe Understood that the Broken Hill Proprietary Company's shares are not being ' boomed, but only the shares in sur winding mines. The mine itself is generally admitted to be the richest silver mine tbi world has. ever seen, not excepting the fa -famed Comstock mine. The extraction of ilver in increasing quantities is only a mater of sufficient plant. Tho average weeny returns now from the mine are 50,000ozrf of silver and 250 tons of lead. It is estimated that the output of ore next month will/be 70,0000z5. silver, and in three months' time 120,0000z5. silver per week. In six months' time the Company anticipate putting up a concentrating plant which will treat 300 tons a day, and then it is reckoned that the yield of the mine will be trebled, or reach 300,0000z5. of silver per week. Within one month the number t>f men employed will probably be betwten 2,000 and 3,000. The head smelter gets a salary of .£3,000 a year, aud he paid his salary in six weeks' working in the return of silver he gofc from slags which had been discarded by his predecessor as valueless. The general manager, who was formerly manager in the Comstock American mine, gets £4,000 a year, and has already saved the Company many thousands in expenses, "So you see, says the letter, 1 ' it pays to get the best men atgood salaries. " This manager says it will take 28 years to extract the ore in sight now. The writer believes there is but little doubt that within twelve months the population at Broken Hill will number 30,000, for there are new mineß fast developing, nearly all very rich in both silver and lead.