IMPORTANT MINERAL DISCOVERY. Nelson, October 17.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 309, 20 October 1888, Page 5

IMPORTANT MINERAL DISCOVERY. Nelson, October 17.

At various times during the last twenty years good galena and silver ores have been discovered in the Wangapeka River» but no lode until lately. A small' piospscting party have from time to time during the past 3 years been trying to come upon the lode, and some months ago they disco veied an outcrop in tb' 1 aver. The winter weather, however, inteuered with work being done, bub in June the prospectors were again teni, up to open up the discovery. The counciy is partly bush and the ground is thickly covered with muss, which makes prospecting difficult. However, the prospectors, in tracing the line of the lode came upon an old di-used drive pub in on a gold quartz reef. After clearing out the drive it was discovered that the lode of the leef was about three or four feet wide, and that the whole of the stone was ca-rying bands of galena and silver ores with a large quantity of iron pyrites. This lode had been apparently driven on for gold, and the disappointment of the original prospectors for gold can well be imagined on this silver load being disco* eied. A syndicate in Christchurch took the matter in hand and applied for two leases, the Mangapeka and Nug^ety Creek. They had two cwt of .stone sent to Christchui eh and several assays for silver, lead, and. gold were made by Professor Bickerton. The return was \e y satisfactory — the average being 750z of silver, over Bdwt of gold and nearly 20 percent, of lead. In some assays the return was much higher. The prospects are very encouraging and Messrs Cuff and Graham of Christchurch have let a contract for sinking 50 feet in the lode, and from a message received it appears that the contractois are already on rich ore.