OUR MINES.

Thames Star, Volume XIV, Issue 4643, 21 November 1883, Page 3

OUR MINES.

NEW PRINCE IMPEBIAL

The eastern drive on the No. 2 reef at No. 5 level was re-commenced on Monday last, since wheu only one breaking down has taken place. The country is of an excellent class for gold, and the quartz carries good minerals The reef has split into two branches ; the footwall one is about a foot wide, and is carrying on the course of the drive, while the hangingwall portion strikes off abruptly to the left. The men are stripping it to see what it is like. The slopes over this drive continue to prodace payable dirt. On the western side of the winze there are only two stopes in progress at present. No. 10 has been carried up to the boundary. No. 11 has some 40ft yet to go. The reef here is looking well, and a capital show of rich. gold is visible along the roof a fewfeet back from the face. No. 12 is still on the Bhaft side of the break. The lead here has come together, and now forms a body of quartz about a foot thick. Tiere is still, however, one leader on the foot wall, in which gold is freely seen, but this is Striking towards the main portion. No. 4 level: The.stopes here on No. 1 reef are lookiDg about the same as usual, the way in which the battery returns of amalgam show up every week proving the payable character of the lode. No. 3 level: In the western drive here the No. 1 reef is smaller, but looks better than.it did hst week. Eastward of the crosscut the lode is still split up, the hangingwall branch being about a foot wide, ard the foritwall two feet in the roof, though smaller near the floor. The quartz is well mineralised, and has showed gold so far. The drive has been carried in very large lately, in order to include all the reef, but the dig will now be put in between the two branches, which will facilitate progress, I DEEP LEVEL CROSS. Operations in this mine are almost exclusively confined to stoping, and as the output of quartz is now larger, the manager hopes to be able to keep 15 head of atamps employed full time, which is being done at present. The general dirt is shaping payably, and as a few pounds of specimens are obtained each time the footwall branch of No. 2 reef is broken, there should be a nice parcel on band by the end of the month. Three stopes are in progress on the footwall branch of the crossreef, and two on the 'same lode northward of where the hangingwall branch junctions. The reef all through averages about 2 feet in width, aad colors of gold are seen in breaking. The hangingwall branch of No. 2 reef is in hand, and a few nice picked stone were obtained from it last night near thejunction with the crossj^f. The contractors in the winze to connect with the 640 ft. level are making good progress, the present depth being over 100 feet below No. 5 level. r : HAND OF FRIENDSHIP. The contractors in the crosscut at No. 5 level have met with very hard ground, and consequently have only driven about 9ft since starting. This bar should not, however, prove of large size. The chamber for the winze on No. 1 reef from the Imperial No. 4 level has been cutout, and. sinking wilL be. started to-morrow. A branch of the reef fully three feet wide has been found striking westward in the hangingwall of the drive.east of the break last cut, but whether this is only the reef beared by the break into the hangingwall or ft separate branch can only be discovered by driving. GOLD RETURNS. Kubaktji HilL.-rJames and party, ,39ozs ldwt; Grubb stad party, Bozs 12dwts ; Le Manquais and party (141bs specimens), 21ozs 14dwts. Moanatairi.—Waiteand party banked 12ozs 19dwts.

Caledokian. — Mclnnes and party banked 13ozs Bdwts.