Prospecting Deep Levels.

Thames Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2897, 29 May 1878, Page 2

Prospecting Deep Levels.

The following is the report of the experis .appo'lied by the County Council and t'e Unit-d Pumping Association to exaxnin" ibei-ofa in the Souther 1 crosstut of ''.8 64.0 feet lovel, United Pumping A._ocL.\. '. shait, r.- laid bafore a meeting cf direr rs *n Auckland yes erday, for a copy of which we are indebted to the Coun!,y Cha'.r rm :—

" To the di; 3clo:s ofthe United Pumping Associr ;o' Auckland.—Genilemen, —Accorc t you • r :]uest, having exam'» d the leofs in t':e south c; fc :- cut of i'je 6dO-i"eefc level of ike United Pj-npir'T 'Association, we beg to submit the follow'ig repori:—Up to the present da'e the cross-cat hr sb \i driven a distant aa* 848 03t in from the chamber. In the fi.&t 300 feei from tbe shaft the level is < at.t'irou^h a sf-rong belt of limesioJie comlry, showing no indications of lode channels, and therefore offers no inducement for us to recommend the companies wbo~e ground this potion of the level iilersec-s to spend money in crossea. ing, as we believe no gold would be found. Iv the reuaiaing distance, v:z., 543 feei, six rcefss' Jave b^ei cut, varying from nine injb.es. to four feet: in thic'inesi. The *fiist vein tbat ivas cut, aid., mprkett-ott the plan A, is 313 feet in from tbe chmber, and is 9 inches tb/ck.; tMs vein is 35 feet inside of the Cal:'lonian boundary, beaming N. by S.; a'lowing it fo k- .p it" present course it wou'u rvi 100 feet through tbe Caledonian claim, and then go in'o Too Ley's south-east boundary. This vein doe^ not possess any features to warrant driving upon. The second reef cut is in 102 feet, pest No. ,1, or 415 feet in from the chamber, and is m -krd on the plan JS. Tlr.s r ?f is 4 feet thick between tb.9 wplls, which are well defined, and on t'ae fooi-wall sido the coniiry r hanges :_i'o fine wovk'zg ground, and could be drive i upon at less cost than any other reef in the crosscut. The position of this reef is 25 feet south from the west corner of <be_..Golden Grown clr'm. It has a bearing of N. by W., and supposing it to keep that course it would traverse, the Imperial Crown claim 25 feet, the Golden Crown 75 feet, Caledonian 150 feet, and go into Tookey's. However, we are of opinion that this r~ef will make more east thai at present shown in the crosscut. The features of this reef are sufficiently promising to wa •- rant us in reco nmending it to be. driven upon. The I hbd r~ef cit is in 61 feet past the reef ma k H B, or 476 first 'n from the chamber. This i"?ef is 5 Tat thick, be:.r----i lg N.E. by E., and is marked C on plan.. This re" would traverse ICD feet in the Imperial Crowa claim, a»)d enter the south bouadary of tbe Goldea Crowa about the centre of 'he boundary line. Th 9 two following reefs that are cut in the cross-cut going south would junction with this reef (C), one 50 feet from the cross-rat, a'ail. the other about 80 feet. The :-of doe 1 not possess such good features r.i tbe reef marked B, but, owinsr to the ju^ciion of the adjoining r~ ,fs beinp in clo~3 < -roxitnity, and the bearing ot this r-*h eading to the goldon strike of country, we are of opinion that this reef should be driven upon- as it will in all likelihood become a main lode going ecst,! after the junction of the before-mentioned reefs. The-.r^efs mark>d D and Eon plan do not require any sp3cial menti'j, as tl: sy have only a short distance to' run before joining the last mentioned reef. The reef marked F on plan is the last reef cat in the cross-rut; it is four feet thick, composed of solid quartz. The course of the reef is.-N.E., and it has an underlie of 2 feet horizontal to 1 foot vertical. The immense^quantity of wa'er which has been discharged from this body of stone since it was cut, combined with the'great underlie, would lead us to suppose that theie. is another body of stone close at hand benind the reef cut; and we would advise that the cross-cut be exiended for the purpose ofv determining whether this is the main portion of the reef or-not. In the event of another body of quartz being cut near to this reef, having less underlie, and the came characteristics, we would recommend tlut it be driven upon, both on ar cant of the bearing oftlie r^cf and tn3 change that has taken plac in the cbarac'or of the country, fenould there not bd another r e" in close proximity to the above lode, we would recommend this reaf to be driven upon. We are decidedly of opinion ike.', the cross-cut, as it makes sou !i, gets mo a better class of country for auriferous quarts, and upon that a count, and also being aware of the. rich reefs that have brea worked towards the sou^h ii 'he several clrimsi v'z., the Piiace Imper'c 1, Crown

Princess, and Waio-Karaka mines, we would strongly recomim id the ex« tension of the south cross-cut, as we firmly believe Aafc it 1 the main cross-cut is continued ahead gckl wil 1 be fou-'.d in the d 3p ftiound of the above companies' mines. In conclurion, we a'"c of opinion that if the s'tme energy had been displayed by the .several eompraies adjacent to tie south crosscut as the Kuranui and Imperial Crown have done north, by this time a great portion of the auriferous country '.iwards the east would have b~en explored, and in all likelihood nay> able gold would before now have been obtained.—We are, &c, Gjorge Black, John P. Hall, Thomas B. Hicks."