OUR MINES.

Thames Star, Volume XIII, Issue 4333, 20 November 1882, Page 2

OUR MINES.

NEW PRINCE IMPERIAL,

The manager reported on Saturday night as follows:—"According to instructions received, I commenced breaking down lead in the drive and leading stope No. 2 section west at 12 o'clock last night, with the result which you bare already been advised of. The whole of the lead in the drive right up to the face has been broken down. The specimens obtained came from show left in the face from last breaking down, and from a point 10 feet back from the face. The lead in the face at present looks as well as erer, and con* tinues much about the same si«e.- The face of the drive at present is about 25 feet from the Southern Cross boundary. Only a portion of the lead stripped in leading stope has beerri broken down. There is still a rich show of^gold left here, from which I expect to get same more good stone during they coming- week. There bas been 60 loads of quartz passed through the battery during the week for return of 6340zs amalgam, making the total quantity of amalgam now in hand from the general dirt 16640z5« I may mention that nearly all the quartz sent to the battery during the week came from the eastern side of the shaft, there being none of the lead on the run of gold in No 2 section west broken down linoe Saturday last, thus proving .ttiat £ the general dirt on the eastern side of shaft ia almost equal to that on the western side. I will commence crushing specimens on Monday morning, and 'will kesp the single stamper going on the day shift only, which, will reduce the lot by the end of-the month—G. S. Clabk.'' No breaking down took place to-day, when gold is showing.

SOUTHERN CROSS

A start has been made to take to piecei „ - the hopper alongside Tookey's shaft, andv.. in a few days it will be removed and re*V »"*/ erected at the New Prince Imperial mine,'^V on the southern side of shaft, and inside V-,; the small one now being put up by Mr \, Maxwell. As there would not be room to put up the whole of the hopper, it will be made about the same size as the one erected by Mr Clark. As soon as the drive holes through to the winae Mr Coutts will start driving westward,'arid if the cross reef maintains the underlie it has at No. 3 level, there will be a length of 90ft on No. 2 reef here.

QUEEN OF-JB&tTTY. The pumps were stoppetf from 8 to 10 o'clock this morning to enable the men to put in the cistern at No. 9. Since two o clock the men had been employed getting everything in readiness, so it did not take long to complete the work. The cistern is fixed about 2ft below the flatsheet, and all the drainage from No. 9 is directed into it. The circular wind-bore which formerly went to the bottom of the shaft was taken out, and a flat one put in the cistern, from which the water is being lifted. As the shaft will probably not make mii!s water, for the present at any rate, no pipj has been put below the aistern. The pump started at 7 double strokes per. minute, and appeared to work smoothly.

MOANATAIRI. The manager reported on Saturday,as follows :—" Heldt's secfion, 132 ft level : No. 9 reef (which is 2 feet in width in stopes) and the leaders which junction v-ith it at this point, looks promising for something Very good at present. Strong colors are frequently found in the general staff from No. 9 itself, and we hare obtained about 351bs of picked stone, from it and branch leaders since my last. Some of the stone will yield over an onnce to the pound. Tunnel level: The winze on No. 2 reef was continued until we got the hangingwall of the main slide at a depth of 22 feet from tunnel lerel. \ : As the slide is making a little water here, I thought it best, to open out and prjve the reef at this depth, rather than sink deeper and run the risk of getting more water than we could well manage with. We have commenced to drive towards No 1 reef, affd on the course of .No." 2, which has the same course as that of the slide, on which the reef is laying. It is . a very likely position for gold. We hare about three feet of reef in the drive, much of which contains very good mineral indications. AH Nations, 80 feet level: The leadvra iv the 'stupes are yielding • little

picked stono occasionally, and colors are often seen in tin- general stuff*. Redan section, 80 feet level: Tbe lead in footwall of? No. 9, and nn which we are driving easterly, has - been taken down . daring the week. It will average 16 inchea in width, and strong colors of gold were seen in some of ihe stone when the lead was broken down. It would be a , very important discovery should we be ' fortunate enough to pick up a run of gold in this quarter, as 1 only a little work has ever.been done on this goid-bearing leader. We have stoped from about 40 feet: below the 80 feet level, and about the same in length, the result ot which has < been very encouraging, and speaks well for the block, which is intact or nearly so from the SO feet below tunnel level to the surface. There is no change to report in Morning Star stopes; the'stuff still continues to be payable. . Nonpareil 215 ft level: The leaders ure . looking very well in face of drive; we obtained a few pounds, of picked stone yesterday from a small portion which I had broken so as to advise you of its nature. Another small lead, has been intersected at the 260 ft level; it carries very good minerals for gold. As the Don < Pedro' tributera have driven up to our ( southern boundary, I purpose to com- . mence driving next week from their : workings on the course of what is sup posed to be a porsion of the" footwjill of , \No. 3 reef. There is an immense block of unproved ground both above and ' below tunnel level in this locality, which is considered to be very congenial for gold.—J. G Vivian." NEW COLUMRIA. This claim and the Fairy Queen, " which adjoined it on the western boun,- ■ dary, has been formed into a strong com- j pinny, which will certainly have every , advantage except that of cheap crushing , '. power. The main reef, Dixpn's, was cut , by the promoters, after a considerable amount of dead work, and has been driven on both east and west.. When cut at the flat sbees, it was three feet wide, and in order to make sure oi its identity, tbe cross'CUl; was pushed on a distance of 10 or 12 feet, when the hard bar of rock which lies at the beck of this reef was come upon. The drivs west was then pushed ahead, and soon after leaving the flatsbeet tbe quartz gave place to a seam of clay, which was followed for 15 feet, when the reef made solid again. The face is now in about 40 feet, the reef averaging a icot in width for that dis tance. It is composed of white and blue : quartz, is vuggy, and the mineral in which the gold is reen is in patches all through it. Gold bas been frequently seen in breaking, and 7or 81bs of nice stone have . been bagged. This drive will be pushed on as speedily as possible, as the manager wishes to reach the junction of a leader which yielded good specimens in the level above. This he reckons to be about 25 feet ahead. At the junction payable ground is pretty sure to be met with, and i the manager will probably rise on it to the i Papakura level, 60ft. above, in order to '. ensure better ventilation. Westward the ] drive is only in about 16ft, and the reef, which is a foot wide, seems to be turning to the left. In this direction, but 300 ft. ahead of the present face, is the Nil l)esperandum shaft, sunk to a depth of 70ft, and from which some very rich stone was taken in the early days. Good gold is reported to have been left in the floor, as the shaft could not be sunk deeper, on account of the large quantity of water which accumulated. The drive now being advanced would give a height < of 90 feet of backs to the bottom of this > shaft. On the Fapakura level also, at a ] point about 50 feet ahead of the last drive, a good run of gold was met with, 1 but this was not followed down on account ; of the water. With these encouraging ' prospects, the manager is confident that , before long he will be able to get on , payable gold. In putting in the crosscut two or three leaders, all striking towards the reef eastward were passed through, and at their junction with the main body of quartz a little gold at any rate should be met with. The manager's plan of operations is to push on the drives at present in progress, and also to work on the reef wbere cut in the Buby tunnel 75 feet below. By this means he would be able, after connecting tbe two levels with a winze, to carry tbe quartz out to the level of the County road, and would also at the same time open up a large block on the reef. The cost of carting is a great drawback both to this and other mines at the head of the Waiotahi. Every load of quartz treated costs £1, so it takes ounce stuff to give any balance over working expenses. PINAFOEE. At a meeting of the directors of this Company, held on Friday at the company's office, the resignation -of Mr Robert Comer, manager of the company's mine, was accepted, and Mr D. E. O'Sullivan, lately one of the proprietors of tbe mine, was appointed in Mr Comer's place. GOLD RETURNS. Caledonian. —Paltridge and party have crushed 3 loads general dirt for the return of 6ozs 2dwts gold.