THE WARDEN ON SPECIAL CLAIMS.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 263, 12 May 1888, Page 7

THE WARDEN ON SPECIAL CLAIMS.

The following remaiks uttered by tho Warden on Tuesday last with reference to the granting of Special Claims, will be read with interest by those connected with our goldfield. The first application was that of James Don for a Special Claim of 45 acreß at Tui, to be called tho Golden Crown. The Wai den addressing Mr Don, said ; — I have leceived your letter and rofeired it to Mr Wil&on, Mining Inspector. Theie was nothing in it howevei for me to report upon to the Minister of Mines, who has instructed me to to ba very careful with lespeet to applications for Special Claims. I intend to have tracings made in connection v.uh all Mich applications, showing what iee£> are known to exist in the giound applied for, their supposed coulee etc , etc. The H-lth section of. tho Mining Act of ISR6, sijs, Hie Waiden may the consent of the Mini.stei of Minen, giant etc , Special Claims, under eiicumstances of extiaoidinaiy diaractei, etc. Theie is nothing in your leport to show that your application should come under 'that section. The lepuit states the «.rea is 4.") acres-, 1 i00d,21 peiches; that the giound is bioken, hilly, and pait bush and \ ait fein land, that theie is no Kami tui'b i theieon. and no cieek likely to be icquiied. That is tie -inn total of joui icpott Ho fai as your lepoit goos, theie tnigl t be no cold within f)o'> miles of the oicund D<> }ou think theie is anything m the ler-oit \ou have sent in tome hk' ly to induce the* Mitu>tei of Mines to giant \nu a Special Claim? You see the position I f.nd the Ministei aie placed in. We want to pi event any land being t-ianted f.M loq-ns pui poses. If a nuinbei of bona fide inn ing claims are floated, it Ivj .i one.d thing fwi (lw whole of this Peninsula ; if the le^eise is the c.^e, wheiliU the / <ipit.il mv.'st. di- iVieitrn oi Iltnio, tho v ftVi t must 1 c \< i v b.'d. It \\ i.'l i< ijiii!' 1 i ] ot nmo t \pl«matie>n be- { {ll( . [ f ,, n piain M»m application i'oi n S] oci.d <A urn. I ha\e had to \i^t ntid iepoit on .ill th'> S),.m K'i < i.urns g.antcd m mv [nedccts^oi Mi \V.'iid<n bliatfoid's time. Mi Don in irply t'"> ti c Y. a>d< n, statid tli.it h" us not aw aio he should lequne ti.'einzs, etc., but w mild have them r^ady bvnt\tCfM\it diy. Ilc.mi'g luljoutncd til! next Coiut day. A]>;>!uaUon by Me^sis 11. McLiver and '{' (I i\in, for Speci.il Claim at Waiomngomui, .")0 acres, to be stvlcd the Day Dawn. The W.iiclf n to Mi Ga^in, appealed In suppoit of the application : — Youi application appeals to bo in exactly the siune position as the last one. Your report states that the giound is broken, there is bush land, but no kauii timbei, and that theie isastieam of considerable size which might be used in connection with mining opeiations, etc But so far as the^epoit goes theie is no mention of any reel. Mi Gavin. — It was the niling of the late Warden, Mr Stutfoid, that no work must be done on tho giound applied for until j the title wns granted ; as if Btich was done, it amounted to trespassing on Crown Lands. Of my own knowledge theie is one, and 1 believe two, leefs on the ground. The Warden.— -If I were to send on your application just as it lies before me now to the Minister of Mines, he would say— why this is simply nn application for a special claim for bush land. They want to know at Wellington why the land applied for should be granted as Special Claims, why it could not have been applied for as licensed holdings, It is the desiro of tho Ministers, so far as. they can, that none but bona fide mining pioperties bo floated. Nothing is stated in your application legaiding the amount of capital to be invested, or respecting any circumstances of extiaordinary difficulty that have to be contended against. Ml Gavin* — I was not aware that it was necessary to have tiacings made showing the line of reef, or would have had it done. The Wardon.— Part of my instmctions in dealing with applications of this kind aio, to ;-,ee, :>ot only that there is capital, and that not fictitious capital, merely on paper ; but that theic is a reasonable probability of its being expended on the giound. Mr Gavin : The gieat difficulty experienced in these paits with icgard to the intioduction of foreign capital to work the mines has been that tho areas arc too small, capitalists must haVo laigc areas as a iulo to work upon before they will invest. The Wai den : 1 have been over the goldfield, and over Marototo, and am -willing to grant licensed holdings up to thirty ncies, and in borne cases special claims v.hen there arc special circumstances to win i ant my doing so. Mi Gavin : Will you tell us i£ our application foi the giound as a special claim is refused, 'what position we shall then bo in? In our case theic is no doubt whatever as to the icef, the main north and south reof, running right through the giound. The Waiden : If that is shown to be the case, and circumstances of special difficulty aic proved to exist with respect to working the giound, I should be inclined to grant your application for a special claim. If "that is not shown, however, jou deserve that the ground should be again tliK,\vn f.perj to the public. f';isp fidjciiiiK d nl! next comt day.