MINING STATISTICS, AND THE MEAGRE INFORMATION TO BE OBTAINED REGARDING THEM.

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

MINING STATISTICS, AND THE MEAGRE INFORMATION TO BE OBTAINED REGARDING THEM.

The Lyttelton Times of the 17th instant devotes a leading article to the above subject. After mentioning the mining statistics of Victoria for the last quarter of 1871, they go on to say that any reliable information regarding the New Zealand Goldfields is not available in a compendious form, and ask why it is that the Registrar-General does not compel Wardens to send in a quarterly report of the districts under their charge, or if the Registrar-General's work is to he meas! v d by the time it takes him to get through it now—the annual volume of strtisii"s for example—another officer would have to he appointed. As a case iii [mint of what information is obtainable at present regarding the Auckland Goldfields, they give a resume of all they do know.

“ The story of the Auckland gold fever is summed up with something like startling brevity in this report. Companies with a nominal capital of £7,1)00,000 were in existence at the beginning of 1870, while, since then, “ through the action of the official agent in liquidation,” Ida companies have been, or are in the coarse, of being wound up. The number of companies is thereby reduced to 1 HU, with a nominal capital of over £3,000,000. During the period referred to in the report —Jan. 12, 1870, to June 30. 1871—as many as 101 companies or chums had crushiugs, and the total result, as far as could be ascertained, was this. The quantify of stone crushed was 103,084 torn;, and the yield was 255,7630z5. gold, “ melted"’ and “ nnmolled,” or on an average of about t wo and three-quarter ounces per ton. This return includes the Coromandel companies and claims. It will he interesting even to those who did not reap any portion of the polden.harvest, if we point out a few of the more prominent companies. The Caledonian crushed 5930 tons of stone, and obtained 134,577 oz. of gold, or on an average of more than 22 ounces per ton. The Golden Crown crushed 8376 tons, and the yield was 2U,«)890z5., or about 2.V ounces per ton. The Ivuranui crushed 10,881 tons of stone, and gol only 14,825 ozs. ol gold. The famous Long Drive crushed 32U2 tons, and the yield was 11,457 ozs. Tiie equally famous Shofnver, hotter known as Hunt’s, crushed 12,129 tons, ami obtained 11,141 ozs. Sumo of the Coromandel claims have yielded almost marvellously. The Little Wonder crushed 57 tons —specimens for tlngmost part wo should imagine—and got llVdOoz. ; the Harbour View yield was 105!) oz. from 202 tons; ami the Tokatea obtained 23180 z. from 450 tons. These examples give the bright side of the picture, ami it may be as well to show a little of the oilier. The Queen of Sheba, the Queen of the Isles, Pretty Nelly, Colleen Bawn, and several others figure as rank duffers compared with some of flic claims we have named before, though in Victoria their yields would be considered veiy good indeed. Out of the 130 companies, only 23 were quoted rs dividendpaying at the date of the return. The nominal capital of these was £1,215,580, and the total amount of dividends paid from May 27. 1870, to Mav, 31, 1871, was i'592,032, of which the Oalcdoniui alone paid £.110,310. The Thames, which is an investment, and not a mining company, paid its sliaicliolders £101,250; the Golden Crown divided £38,592 among 192 shares ; tiie Long Drive paid £18,000; All Nations, £17,(117 ; and (lie Kuranui, 1H(5,510. The inference to he drawn from these figures is, that only one-sixth of the companies were dividend-paying, and that some eight or ten have paid handsomely. But, as we have before observed, there must he a great deal of had management, or the roll of paying companies would not he so circumscribed. If the information conveyed in our telegrams to-day is substantially correct, and there is every reason to believe that it is, the area of the Auckland goldfields will in time be greatly extended. It is to he Imped that the natural impatience of diggers and otle-is will not lead to further misunderstandings with the natives.