PIAKO.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2598, 5 May 1877, Page 2

PIAKO.

' The crushing at th« company's battery has been showing a slight improvement of late, a fair quantity of amalgam being taken off the plates. The show justifies the belief that there may be an improvement in the yield of thfe next retorting over that of the last one. I paid a visit to the low level wordings of the mine this morning, and on proceeding to the large face found that the aspect of the lode had improved since my last visit some days ago. The lode has increased in si/ie to an appreciable extent, it being now fully 26 feet wide from wall to wall, and it has the appearance of still increasing in size.' The course of the lode is slightly altered to the left, where the increase in size began to take place. The face is rather dangerous to work in owing to its size, it being impossible to get the timbers within 12 or 11 feet of it. It is a great wonder that the ground stands as it does, considering the damp nature of the country and the shakings it gets from shots fired in other parts of the mine. The quality of the lode does not seem to have decreased with the increase in the quantity, and the stone looks as well as ever, a little gold being often seen in different places, but chiefly in the footwall side. -As driving proceeds the lode appears to be making more, quartz, and casting out the mullock, which gave it a rather unpromising appearance some days back. Two contracts have been let for stoping in this end of the low level, but both parties noc being able to make their contracts pay have given them up. The manager has therefore resolved to start stoping with wages men' on Monday, and it is hoped that this very important work will proceed without further delay. In the northern drive the reef is now eight.feet in thickness, and this morning some nice looking stones were obtained while breaking down. The reef appears well defined, and is evidently improving in quality a* it nears the Queen of Beauty boundary, Stoping in the No. 5 is proceeding with moderate results. The drive on the Bird in Hand reef is now in about 40 feet, and

about 25 feet yet remains to be driven before the drive i 3 on the edge of the shot of gold.

Wilton and party, the tributers, are crushing at Bull's mill with prospects of a moderate result, and Noonan and party and another batch, will be crushing next week or the week after that.