OUR MINES.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4631, 7 November 1883, Page 2

OUR MINES.

NEW PKINCE IMPERIAL

At present only three stopes are in progress on No. 2 reef west of the winze, above No. 5 level, and it is not the mana* ger's intention to keep more than this number going. The back of the highest stope, No. 11, is about 26 feet below No. 4 level, so there are fully fire stopes yet to come out, while the three in progress have also to be carried home. No. 9is within about 15 feet of the boundary, and here the two branches of the lode are being worked. The footwall branch is of a good size, and shows gold when broken. In No. 10 slope a fine strong reef is showing, in breaking which gold is seen freely.. No. 11 stope has been carried through the dead ground at the break, and the men at the time of my visit were stripping the reef on the seaward side. It will be broken down either to-night or to morrow. Tyro faces are kept going in the stopes on the eastern side of the winze, and the reef here has improved lately, being larger and showing more gold. At No. 4 level, the drive on No. 1 reef is in some 40ft. past where the break was intersected. The reef in the face is a good strong body of quartz about 2^ft. wide, and is encased in favorable sandstone. The stone carries good minerals, and has shown a few colors of gold* The mana-. ger is not sure of the distance yet to drive before reaching the Hand of Friendship boundary, but will have a survey made as soon as possible. There are eight stopes in hand on this reef, and all of,them yield a good supply of crushing dirt. The impression yet made on the large block from No. 4 to No. 3 level is very slight. No. 4 level: The eastern drive on the No. 1. reef here is in 40ft; the quartz is 85ft. wide, and has shown gold freely so far as broken. The manager started yesterday to drive westward here, but has not yet shot down thexeef.

DEEP LEVEL CEOSS. At present there is only one drive in progress at No. 5 level, that on the crossreef, approaching the Prince Imperial boundary. The reef here was small for several feet, but is making larger behiud a clay seam, which crossed it close to the face, but which did not throw it out of its course. The manager estimates that he has still 20 or 30 feet to drive before reaching the boundary. A leading stope is also being carried along this drive, and two other stopes are in progress on the footwall branch. A stope has just been started from the winze on the hangingwall branch of No. 2 reef. The loader is small here, but shows colors of gold. The footwall leader of No. 2 reef is looking well in the stope on it, and shows I gold freely, yielding a few pounds of picked stove occasionally. The contractor's winze on the boundary at No. 5 level is down 85 feet, and is stillbeing sunk in the sandstone, though it will be carried down on a similar underlie to that of the reef. There is nothing fresh to report from the south crosscut at the 640 feet level, which continues in-good country. Fifteen head of stampers are employed 16 hours per day at the Herald mill, and the general dirt is shaping for an ounce the load.

DAET, The No, 2 reef was again broken down yesterday and last night in the western drive at No. 3 level. The quartz was from a foot to eighteen inches wide, but near the face it widened out to two feet. A break has crossed the drive, and beyond this the load appears to be better defined, though only a small portion has yet been broken. Ctoloura of gold were seen yes-

t'rdssy in shooting down, and the quartz also contaius more favorable mineral than before. The winze from No. 2 level will come down about 50 feet ahead of the present face of the No. 3 drive. It is now 10 feet deep, and the reef, which is three feet wide and well mineralised, shows colors of gold each breaking. The battery has not yet started crushing.