MINING NEWS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 151, 29 June 1931, Page 4

MINING NEWS.

PROGRESS AT KING SOLOMON. The following report on work done at King Solomon Deep Lead for the week ended June 19 has been received by the Dunedin Stock Exchange:— The drive east was extended 18ft, mnking the total drive 31ft. At this point driving north was started, driving' in this direction being completed for 25ft. Both drives were in wash for the distance driven. Driving north from station 7 was continued for 31ft; the total distance of this drive being 85ft. Driving west from this drive was started at two points, the total driving being respectively 12 and 26ft. Crossdriving connecting two of the drives which are being produced north was done, the completed cross-driving being 46ft. The wash in the above drives averaged from lft 6in to 2ft, The total dirt treated was 260 yards. The gold return for the above

period was 2050z 17dwt. Considerable work has been done in dismantling the Stoney Creek buildings, with a view to having them transported and re-erected at the mine. Another Good Return. The wash up for last week at King Solomon Deep Lead mines returned lOOoz of gold. NEW GUINEA GOLD. . While gold production is proceeding apace in New Guinea, and there is every hope of an increasing output, working expenses are very heavy, according to Mr. James Burns, chairman of directors of Burns, Philp, and Co., Ltd., who returned to Sydney recently after spending a month in New Guinea. The copra trade was hardly payable, he said. Prospectors were numerous, he said, but fortunately there was a great deal of pold spread over' a wide area. The existing claims were very rich, and even if no oiher finds were made would provide a steady output. Work on the Bulolo field had recently been accelerated by the installation of a dredge by the Bulolo Gold Dredging Company, for which a second dredge was now under construction in Sydoey. The small prospector was frequently deterred when he learned that it required a capital of from £500 to £1000 to establish and work a claim. Transport caused the bulk of the expense. Owing to the ruggedness of the country, supplies ■'and equipment had to be carried inland by i aeroplane or by large contingents of native I carriers. \