PIAKO.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2573, 6 April 1877, Page 2

PIAKO.

Driving and sloping is proceeding on the No. 2 reef in the bottom level, and the quartz floor of the large battery is now nearly as full of quartz as it will hold. There is no change visible in the faces of eiffiefof thei"drT?^s7and;?thou|irnb golcfuf seen yet the stone looks well. The crosscut from the north-west aide of the shaft, .also in.the-bottom level is now,: in J. 6 ?fe.eiand is proceeding slowly through solid basaltic rock. } Of coursei this is all shooting ground, and the fortnightly progress is from 8 to 10 feet - This cross-cut has been'put in to intersect the No. Treef,' and it is expected that after driving six feet more'it will be come upon. In the first two or threejevels this lode was a first-class- one, .but the last time i£ was seen in the, No. 6 level it had dwindled down to a poor little leader two or three inches through. It will be remembered that when the shaft was being sunk for putting in the low level a leader, several inches thick, carrying good gold, was sunk throughat a point about 40 feet above the" low level flat-sheet. From the under-lie it is expected that this leader will junction with the JNo. 1 lode, and it may make it something worth workiog. It is possible, however, that this leader will be shoved out of- its course by the hard country referred to above if not cut off-altogether. The great drawback to working iv the low level is the incessant flow of water, and this will not be obviated until the shaft U considerably deepened'to' allow ihVwater to drain off. After driving 160 feet from'the engine shaft the Bird-in-Hand reef has .at^last been cut, and the manager started men to drive on' it to-day. At present it looks poor, but.at is expected to impiove on driving proceeding I.' '