MINING MATTERS.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VII, Issue 1783, 8 April 1874, Page 3

MINING MATTERS.

Golden Calf.—lt was intended that the cleaning up and retorting for this company should have taken' place yesterday, but in consequence of the rich appearance of the stuff then going through it was determined to continue crushing until to-day. No doubt the manager was in some measure influenced in this decision by the faefc that the single stamper battery of the Prince Alfred machine, where the company's crushing is going on, was occupied yesterday, and the picked stuff could not bo treated iu time for a cleaning up yesterday. The result of the crushing will on the 'whole be a satisfactory one, although occasionally the stuff mide but a poor show on the plates. Generally, however, the show indicated a good quality of stuff. In the mine the rise from ,the 260-feet level to meet the winze sunk from the 200feefc level is making good progress and in all likelihood the communication will be effected by Thursday evening. This will, by opening up extensive blocks of the lode, give increased facilities for breaking out stuff, and in future there will bo 10 head of stampers employed instead of five, which will make a material difference in the gold return. Obstbah Itait.—The picked stuff and specimens which had accumulated on hand since the last crushing for tho■'. Central Italy Company, amounting in all to about dowt, was treated yesterday in the single stamper battery of tho Prince Alfred mill, and made a very good show. The crushing was not completed in sufficient tiins to admit of a general cleaning up taking place, but to-day the amalgam obtained from the specimens, and that resulting from about 250 tons of generalstuff will all be retorted, and the return will no doubt be a very handsome one. It is expected to amount to diOOozs gold. ItussEM Battery.—Cleaning up and rotortingfor two of-the tribute parties who are working sections of the Eussoll Battery Company's ground took place yesterday. One lot for tho Ladybird party yielded 9ozs 2dwfcs melted gold, which was equal to an average of odwts to the ton. Tho other parcel was from the old Hoyal Charter, but this only amounted to 2ozs 6dwts when melted.

Albiok—Poverty Tbibutb.—A splendid orusking of 50 tous of stone was completed yesterday at tko Prince Alfred

battery for Northy and party, tributers of the Albion Company, who are working the old Poverty mine. Throughout the crushing made a very fine show on the plates, and after cleaning up last evening it was found that there were 581ozs of hard amalgam and hand, and several ounces to come from the final cleaning up. This will be retorted this morning, and will make another of those handsome returns obtained recently by the same party of tributers.

Watchman.—Operations in this mine were resumed yesterday under the management of Mr John Goldsworfchy, formerly of the Eureka and Nonpareil. Of course nothing like a fair start could be made yesterday on any portion of the reef, and the men were chiefly employed cleaning out the drives and passes. It is satisfactory, however, to learn that a little gold was found in some stone broken out of one of the stopes. Aiburnu,—ln consequence of the wane of waters the company's crushing mill is at a standstill, although the paddocks and machine house are full of quartz, of which there is sufficient avail* able to koep the mill in full operation on quartz of good payable character. In consequence, however, of the stoppage of the battery, there is now little stone being broken out. A fair start has been made by the manager in the Dixon's No. 1 tunnel, which he is now continuing through the corner of the Alburnia mine on the course of the reef towards the rich run of gold of tho Old Whau mine. There will be stone ready for crushing from this section of the mine very soon, and no doubt the Ballarat and Chines battery will be started to. work when a rainfall of sufficient quantity to provide tho necessary water for the battery occurs. Manigers of this and other mines and batteries in the Upper Moanataiari district have studied the weather for signs of rain for some time past with considerable assiduity, and the indications in. the sky last night.were considered encouraging. Old Whatj.-There was nothing of importance to report from the Old Whau mine yesterday. The rich appearance of the reefs was as encouraging as over, and a further addition to the picked stuff on hand was made. The company's mill, which last week was reduced to a force of 5 _ head of stampers for want of water is this week brought to a total standstill in consequence of a further falling off in the creek supply. ... BiED-itr-HAND.-Stone of good rich quality was met with yesterday in the Bird-in-Hand urine at the bottom level, where a small section of tho reef which had been stripped in the drive broke away. The gold is of a oharacter similar to that formerly found in the winzes, of a flossy, rich-looking description, and chiefly 'held in the cavities of the quartz, where crystalizalion occurs. It is noli altogether confined to this class of stone, however, for in some of the solid quartz there was a good show of gold, and amongst the gritty fine stuff also there was a fine show of free gold. Altogether the indication is a most encouraging one, and speaks highly for the future value of the important section of the lode which is now being opened up. The manager expects to be in a position to comoieuce perminent crushing next week with ten head of stampers at the Imperial Crown battery, for the reef, which is now opened in the face, is fully two feet thick, and the country surrounding it is of good practicable description. The fact of gold showing so freely through the lode at this level whenever it ha 3 been broken down, a3 well as its quality in tho winzes sunk from the 150-feet level," makes its payable character a certainty. Cuown Pbinoe.—General work on the reefs is suspended in the Crown Prince mine, pending the sinking of the main shaft to the necessary depth for a new level, and in the meantime operations are confinod to sinking the shaft and two winzes-one on the No. I'reef, and the other on the No. %. Judging from the rapid'progress which has been made in sinking the engine shaft already, it is unlikely that the delay will be for any great length of time, for it is only a fortnight since the shaft was started, and it is nosv down 50 feet. The winze on the No. 2 reef hasonlybeenstarted, or rather it is not yet started, for the men were only cutting out a chamber for it yesterday. This winze is being sunk as much with a view of securing perfect ventilation as for opening up a seotion of the reef, for it is to be put down to a point which will be intersected by the drive from the engine-shaft, and when the connection is made the ventilation will be complete. The new winze on the No. 1 reef, in whioh work is going on, is down 20 feet, and although in the level-the reef was little better than a foot thick at the bottom of the winze, it is i feet wide, and composed of excellent quartz, through which gold has been visible.

iYUtrtJKAU.—The new reef ia this mine, which has for the last few days beea the subject of general conversation and com-' ment, is certainly one of the most remarkable disooveries ever made at the Thames for many months, and one which is likely to materially improve the feeliug of confidence in the district which has been generated by recent discoveries in other mines. The lode, which is about 18 feet thick, is a splendid mass of stone, >aad yesterday showed gold more freely than at any time since it was cut, not in any particular portion of the lode, for the gold is not confined to hangingwall, foot-wall, or body of the reef, but appears to be woll distributed through the whole mass, This is shown by the remarkable regularity with which the general stuff is producing amalgam. Testerday there was a particularly nice show of gold in the foot-wall portion of the lode in both faces of the drive, and a few rich stones, which might fairly be classed as specimens, were taken out of it. From the oentre of the lode also some splendid blocks of stone, which showed gold freely, eame to baud yesterday, and one large block weighing about 701bs, which came out of the seotion of the lode, looked very rich. There were in all upwards of lcwt of fair picked stuff to hand yesterday. The face of the reef already driven on is about 10 feet in width, but the manager returnod to the cross-cut yesterday in order to carry the remainder of the lode in the face. The total length driven on the lodo is about 20 faefc, or a little better, so that notwithstanding the large amount of stone taken out already, the space from which it has been taken is very small. The reef is in all respects a splendid mass of stone, which will furnish quartz for a very large number of stampers. The quantity of amalgam obtained yesterday after 2d hours' crushing with 6 head of stauipors, was 89ozs.