MINING.

Thames Guardian and Mining Record, Volume I, Issue 172, 27 April 1872, Page 3

MINING.

Red Queen. —The crushing going on for this company is still looking well, and from the quantity of specimens on hand the yield will be a heavy one. The leader in the mine looks well, and holds out well below the level of the drive, having increased in size as it was sunk on. At the main level the leader has broken up ami all but run out, but there is little doubt that by driving on it, it will come in again all right. It seems inclined to slew to the north more, and consequently that would give them a much larger run of it in the ground. It is a great pity that the directors do not see fit to put their shaft down to the depth required to open out and work this lode from below, in place of hauling all the stuff up through the winze by hand. The country through which the shaft runs is certainly very hard, and the sinking would be expensive, but if the leader is as good as it at present shows, this would be by far the most economical way of working in the long run. The large reef in the mine, which is from 15 to 20 feet wide, lias only been opened on in two places—that is where the main drive goes through it, and again about 40 fuel away, a cross-cut is now being put through it. At this spot the colour was seen close to the hanging wall, but nothing of any consequence has since been found. This lode is the No. 2 reef, and strange to say, the No. I cannot he found at all in the mine at this level, though the Otago shaft passed through it at only twenty feet below the level worked in the Red Queen. What has become of it has yet to be proved. The specimens which arc on hand are in the office of the company, ami look most excellent stone, the gold being very heavy in them, and more are got now nearly every shift.

Ballarat and Rising Sun.— A crushing is going on at the Criterion Battery for this company. About 25 tons will be put through altogether. The plate show is not rich, but we are told that all the gold seen in the reef is very coarse, so that if such is the case, the boxes may be expected to turn out well. An entire change has been made ’in the method of working the mine, and this lias not happened a moment tub soon. Mr Rawdon is now in charge, and his first work has been to secure the ground at the middle level, where the reef has been worked on for a distance of about thirty feet. The ground before Mr Rawdon took charge, was in a most insecure state, the timbers of which very few were used at all, being anything but first-class stuff. It was at this level tiiat the man lost half of his foot a few days since, through the falling of a piece of stone from the side of the drive. The timbers now going up are all good, and work is to be carried on in proper style for the future. The manager is, first of all, going to work out the block of the reef between this level and the upper one, which gives him backs of about fifty feel or more, and the block may be expected to yield weli. The reef, at about thirty feet from the winze, has become greatly disarranged, and seems to have been turned completely over, the vein novr in hand at that spot striking away from the old course of the lode at an angle of about forty-five de-

grees, and nothing is to bo seen on what ought to be the proper course blit a few very insignificant stringers of quartz. The block of ground from this level totlu lower one will be worked on also. It is about fifty feet in height, and the reef looks to be about eighteen inches wide, on an average. Properly and systematically worked, this lode will, we feel sure, pay well for being worked, now that the ground is so well opened up, and the battery close at baud.

Criterion Battery. —At this machine, the Waiteinata have five head going, and the stuff is shaping very well for a good return. Five head are at work on the West Coast tribute stone, taken from tho upper-level workings of the mine. There is a parcel of about fifteen tons to go through, and a payable return is expected. The Ballarat and Rising Btin occupy live head, as stated above, and a trial lot from the ShamiocK tribute is going through at the two-stamp battery. Oriental. —The old drive is being cleaned out, aud everything put in order to work on the reef. Breaking down stone will be commenced on Monday. The manager yesterday showed us some stone broken out of the reef just where work is to be commenced, and gold was plainly visible in several places in it. The lode is a large one, and this is very satisfactory, as a large quantity of stone could Lo easily sent to the mill at a trilling cost, and the company have got a large block of the reef in their ground.

Colonial. —This is the name given lo the company just formed, whose property consists of what \vas known as the Golden Lion claim. Work has been commenced already on what was originally Kennedy’s Claim, a shaft having been cleaned out and put in order for starting lo work on a lode known to exist there. City of London. —Yesterday afternoon the mine manager, Mr Hicks, gave a report to the legal manager of the company concerning the reels in the ground, tlie purport of which was as jollows : —it seems that the manager had doubts as lo whether the Queen of Beauty lode and the City lode were identical, and for the purpose of being better able to judge, he yesterday morning visited tin; Queen of Beauty workings. From what he saw lie lias come to the conclusion that the lodes are not the same. lie states that the appearances of the Jodies arc iml at all similar, nor is the strike anything like the same. At thirty feet from the boundary of their ground the Queen of Beauty men arc driving towards the north-east, whilst in the City giouml, some eighty clone hundred feet away, the manager is driving due west. It may be remembered that a short time since in the City mine a leader was met with running from the main lode, and this was driven on for a distance of about ten feet in a northeasterly direction, and gold was seen the whole way. Up to yesterday the manager was of opinion that this was merely a feeder ol: the main reef, but lie now- states that lie believes it to be the Queen of Beauty lode which crosses the lode lie has been working on. The stone, lie says, is exactly similar as well ns the surrounding country, and the strike identical with the Queen of Beauty reef. The size is also the same (or near about it), as it is at the same level where worked on by the Queen of Beauty men. Assuming that the opinion of Mr Hicks is correct, it shows that the City of London have got two lodes in their mine in place of only one: but it yet remains lobe proved whether they arc both rich or not. Gold has been found in the cross vein for a distance of ten feet, but it remains to lo proved whether the lode is auriferous throughout. It may he that it is the Queen of Beauty lode, but at the same time the large lode may have robbed it of the gold where the junction takes place. At present we cannot hazard an opinion, but will make an inspection of the ground to-day, and see what is to lie made out of it.

I .vverxess. —The manager lias started to crush at the Pr.uce Allred battery with the seven bead of stampers vacated by (lie Bright Smile. lie lias about 70 tons to put through, the principal part of which, if indeed not all of it, has been taken from the stupes on the main vein.

Golden Spur.—The No. 2 tribute have just completed a crushing of about sixteen tons of stone, which has given a return of nine. oz. two dwt. eighteen gr. of melted gold. \VaDE. —A crushing lias been finished at the Criterion Battery lor the Wade claim, the result being nine oz. fourteen dwt. fifteen gr. from about twenty tons of stone.

Courier. —This claim lias mid a small trial crushing at Weston’s, which gave one oz. two dwt. six gr. of melted gold.

Victory.--Another return is to hand from this mine, the amount being sixteen oz. one dwt. twelve gr. of molted gold from about twenty tons of stone. Caledonian. —A collide of bags of stuff from the specimen patch was sent down to the battery to be crushed towards this week's return, which is expected to bo a good average one. Alrurnia. —A clean-up will take place to-day at the company’s battery, winch lias been working by day for the hist: four weeks. This may, therefore, be called a furl night’s crushing, and a return of close on 3 lOoz. may be looked lor. The specimen leader will have given the principal part of this return, the other stulf not having been very rich. A contract lias been let to drive on the large lod ; lately met- with for a distance of ten feet along the vein in the hanging wall in which gold was got, the driving to cost £1 per foot. The main shaft is being sunk on the lode, and a good show is to be seen in the bottom. Fourteen l'ect more sinking will carry them down to the low level tunnel, and this will greatly facilitate the working of the mine in the upper levels. Central Italy. —Yesterday quartz was met with in the bottom of the shall, at a depth of three hundred and fifty-live Ject from the surface. It is supposed to he the lode sought for. To-day it will he pricked into, and we shall then he able to form some opinion as to its value, hut at present nothing can he said as to wluit it is like, or, indeed, whether it he really the lode or not. Siiotoyer. —A leader has been cut at the low level in the drive going from the shaft towards the Long Drive boundary. It measures about, eight inches on the noitli side of the drive, that is towards the company’s own ground, and is nipped out to about two inches on the other side. It is about thirty-five feet from the boundary of the mine, and underlies very flatly into the Shotover claim, which would lead to the idea that, it is perhaps an ofl’slmot from one of the Long Drive leaders. When cut no great increase took glace in the quantity of water, hut now that limy are driving ahead, the ground has become much wetter, indicating in fact the probability that a reef is close at hand. The stone is full of mineral and looks very 1 well, and we fully expect that the manager j will test it as soon as he possibly can do so.

Mary Ann. —Work was resumed in this mine o:i Monday last, and they arc now driving along the Mary Ann lode in hopes of meeting with the Red Queen leader, which they expect to catch in about 50 feet of driving. ;