OUR MINERAL WEALTH.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 316, 14 November 1888, Page 2

OUR MINERAL WEALTH.

Referring to the arrival in Australia of Mr Juhn Howell, who came over a few months ago from America, in connection with the erection of the Mount Aroha G. and S. M. Co's plant, the Sydney Daily Telegraph says that there is hardly a district through all the mining States in America where Mr Howell has not had something to do with the progress and success of gold and silver mining, more especially that department that has to do with the treatment of base ores. lie has a customs reducing works of his own at Reno — the junction of three lines of railway at Nevada. On an average 90 per cent of the assay value of all ores is paid to the vendors. It is tested in bulk by automatic samplers, and there is no difficulty in determining the exact value of each consignment. In spite of the high per centage paid, there is still a handsome profit left, 97 per cent being extracted in the process. This is not reached by guesswork or by carrying on indefinitely the experimental system, but by knowing exactly what process is suited to the various kinds of ores delivered at the works. There is hardly a time that fair specimens of the princinal ores to be found over the States could not be found passing through these works. Hence ifc may easily be inferred that when Mr Howell is shown the gold and silver ores I in these colonies he is meeting with old | acquaintances every time. He knows exactly where he met with the same ore before, and how it was treated, and if anything peculiar or singular arises a little investigation will usually devise moans for coping with the difficulty. Speaking to a representative of the Telegraph of the great difficulties which have often to be encountered in America, he mentioned places where, in addition to the immense distances from railway communication, they had no timber, and where the only substitute found was the rootb of a cieeper I that grew in the sandhills of the desert. In order to obtain these small roots the pick and shovel had to be used, and the difficulty of keeping up steam, or firing roasting furnaces with small f uol of this description, can be imagined. Since starting facts were elicited regarding what is considered payable ore. One reef was mentioned, the highest average valuo of i which did not exceed 9dwts of gold per ton. This property has paid L 7500 a month in dividends for the past twelve years without variation. Another reef was referred to where only ldwt was made to pay both dividends ami tribute — the advantage in this case being water power to drive a Pelton wheel. The only failure to obtain similar brilliant results in these colonies must be laid to the account of inefficient machinery and management, but chiefly the latter. He was emphatically of opinion that the mines in New Zealand and Australia, which he had visited, were very much larger and richer than those with which he had been familiar in the States, the mineral belts being there comparatively narrow, and he , was' quite sure that if American capitalists had seen what he himself had seen during the last few months "there would be quite a rush of speculators, and an influx of American capital. All that was needed was skilled mining officers and efficient appliances. — Thames Star.

ADunedin firm has contracted with the Henley Dairy Factory Company for the ■supply of 2000lbs of butter per month for twelve months from Out. 1 j in 71b 1 tins at Is Id ,per lb net cash/ delivered in Dunedin. The same fiim/also offers this factory 1 s per lb for any/ surplus butter they may have after delivery of the foregoing 2000 ibs per month'.— -Tuiori Advo* cate,