MINING NEWS.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 11153, 20 December 1901, Page 3

MINING NEWS.

The secretary (Mr F. H. Labatt) of the Greenstone Creek Company reports a return for laat week of 17oz 7dwi fox 95 hours' work. The Lord Nelson Company has, decided not to entertain the proposal from the Duke ot I Wellington Company. ' A Dunedin message states that the Nokomai Hydraulio Sluicing Company's return ia 3040£ lldnrt sgr. for November. ■ • In Cflarpibera yesterday, before Mr Justice Denniston, in the matter of the Marsden No. 1 Gold Dredging Company against Donald 'McLean (Mr Fieaber appearing for the ; Company), .an order was made staying proceedings on- the part of Donald McLean in the Magistrate's Ck»urt at Greymotrth, and ordering the bailiff of, that Court to withdraw, and deliver possession to the liquidator. The directors of the A.l. Company met yes-. terday, and deokred a dividend of Is pet share, payable immediately. Thk is. the first looally-m'anaged gold dredging company to declare a dividend. Afterthe~ payment of the dividend tie company will bave on h-and a good reserve ,fun<tl xhe dredge has not yet worked three acres of tho claim. The dredgeziHuiter has been intttruoled not 1.0 wseh up till Tuesday. The master of the Grejr River Extended Company's dredge has been instructed not to wash up till Tuesday, when, the dredge will close down for the holid&ye, Mr George King, a director of the Weli coxae Company, .who returned from a;ri»it •to the -West Ooaei on Wednesday night, state* tbM there is now'little doubt that the company's dredge will start during the first week in January. A specimen of the gold obtained by the River Company's dredge te«t week is in, the posseedion of the chairman of directors, Mr G. King. It is flaky in nature, and is in fairly large pieces. Mr King staitee that seveatentas ot last, week's yield of 58oz.8dwt waa similar in character. . , CJANTEKBUBY STOCK EXCtmddSTGE. - The following are yesterday's quotations, subject to the usual brokerage: — A.1.. seilere 29s paid. Buller Junction, setlere Is paid. > Ford's Creek, sellers 10s paid. Greenstone Junction, sellers 26s 6d paid. ' Grey River Extended, sellers par. , Hokftpoa River,, sellers par. ' Junction Electric, sellers 23e paid. Leviathan, burets le 3d paid, sellers Is 6d paid. 'Nelson Creek, sellers 82s paid. Pactolus, sellers 31e p. ■ Red Jacks, sellers 31s paid. Trafalgar, sellers 16s paid. Welcome, buyers 15s 6d paid, sellezsASs paid. THE DtTNBDIN~iHARB MiABJKET. (FUESS ASSOOrATION TELKGBAM.) DUNBDIN, December 19. Dunedin Stock Exchange - sales—AhauTa River, 3s; Cromwell, 635; First Chance, 8s; Golden River, 7s, 7s ljd, Junction Electric, '235; Leaning Rock, 16s; Meeand Annie, 19s 9d; Monte Chrieto, 31s; No Town Creek, 17e 6d, 17s, 17s 6dj Point dOr, Iβ 9d die.; Rise and Shine, 15a; Koyal Maori, 20s 6d, 20s 3d, 20s. 19s 3d; Upper Magnetic, 2s 4Jd. Otago Stock Exchange sales:—Boundary Creek. ss; Leaning Book, 15s 3d; Trafalgar, 18e 9cL WEST COAST NOTES. (SFJECIAi TO "THE PRESS.") G-REVTISIoUTJSij December 19. The Stafford-Waimea Company's dredge was hampered last week through want of room in ihe dam. Tho Great Lead-K*pai Company's dredge is about -completed. Thds company a ground is below where the alluvial gold crosses the river. From ihe many things in its favour I look to this dredge giving good returns. The Wasuna. dreage is lying idle, while next to her €ac Golden Banner Company's dredge ia being dismaiftled and carted away. Thus about two miles of- the river is considered not payable. I am sure it will later on, with heavier machinery and more goldsaving appliances, be worked profitably. The Mosquito Company's dredge is now at work. Mr Fleming hae taken the position of dredgemaster. Everything vboui the dredge seems to be done in an admirable manner.

DUNECDIN, Decemiber 19. The No Town Creek Company's dredge has had « run of her machinery, and is expected to start on Monday. The Ford's Creek dredgemaster advisee:— "Paddock not Badly s&t&i. .In Greyrnonth getting crew etart dredging to-morrow.". The maeter of the MoKoia Company's dredge stdriaea:—"Biver up 10ft; dredge stopped."

OTAGO NOTES. (spzczjll to ,**tbus press.**) PUNEDIN, December 13. The Coal Greek Company will not start until after the holidays. . There was a considerable improvement in He volume of business transuded on 'Change to-day. Royal Maoris steadied at 204 6d, and Junction Eleotrica took a move at ket, a large parcel changing hands at 235. The latter dredge ia ■ in for a good return thia With the river now at IDit, and the -weather more settled up country, there is a. more hopeful prospect of the early resumption of dredgThe Voltaic Company have their eye on the Second Magnetic Company's dredge, which Company is going into liquidation An offer of £1500 has been made, subject to ratification by the Toltaic shareholders, who will decide the matter on Friday night. Th* Inspector of Mine* for Otago and South-

land has compiled a statement concerning the dredges m these provinces, which may give an idea of the magnitude of the business. The figures would require to be slightly altered to bring them, up to date, but as a record of what is concerned in the industry this matters little. On September 15th, 1901, we had 143 dredges at work (public and private), 52 were in process of construction in different stages, 23 were standing idle, and three, were undergoing removal. This gives a total of 220 dredges built or building, which averaged at, say, £7000 a piece, involves actual out-of-pocket in hard cash capital of £1,500,000 in Otago and Southland The number of pri-vately-owned dredges was nineteen, most of them being located at Waipori, Waikaka, and Waimumu. In Weatland the total number of machines built or, building was 58. Of tSese 22 were at -work, 30 -were under construction, and four were standing idle. .The total capital, therefore, at stake in the \Ve3t Coast neefc may be set down at £350*000, -which, it added to £1,500.000, concerned ia Otago, gives the respectable total of £1,850,000 as the amount of capital to which dredging shareholders in the colony are committed. Probably & good many of the Aredgeß described as building will never be finished, and so the figures caa be reduced to, say, £1,500,000 for the whole industry. THE WAIPUXii CREEK GOLD DREDGING COMPANY. The annual meeting of the shareholders of the Waipuna Creek Company waa held yesterday, when 2725 shares were represented, personally or by proxy. Mx J. Cunningham, Chairman of Directors, presided. The annual report of the directors (a precis of which has already been published in this column) was read, and, with the baianc&sheet, was adopted. Measr3 J. Cunningham and T. A. Arrowsmith were re-elected directors, and Mi C. L. Russell was re-appointed auditor. Letters were read from a number of shareholders in response to the request in a circular addressed to them on the subject of acquiring a dredge at once or of further prospecting the claim. In the majority of cases further prospecting by shafts was suggested. One shareholder wrote that he would not contribute a shilling towards prospecting by boring, and also recommended that the Company should bs registered under ihe Mining Companies Act, instead of the Companies Act. Another shareholder stated that after the failure of the dredges in the Upper Grey he was very doubtful of the payableness of the Company's claim. The Chairman said tfrat p.fier seeing how the Grey River Consolidated and Waipuna Companies had got on he had little faith in the ground in tie vicinity of their claims Those who had put money into dredging now found there was little encouragement to launch out further. Hβ thought there were only two courses open—either to come to some arrangement with the owners of the Waipuna dredge to work the Waipuna Creek Company's claim on tribute, or for the Company to liquidate. Most of the shareholders he had spoken to considered it wonld be useless to go on. Mr Arrowsmith said he waa certainly of the same opinion. Hβ did not think they wonld be able to get further calls in; there wffs no Heart in the thing at all. It was ultimately decided that the S«creI^t??? 11 * ,1 com «iunicate with, the owners of the Waipuna dredge offering them the Company s claim to work on tribute ,and asking them what tribute they were prepared to pay. • The Company's solicitor (Mr T. S. Wesion) suggested that in the meantime an effort should be made to get in all outstanding calls. * ,••■■■