EMPIRE TIMBERS.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 20037, 19 September 1930, Page 12

EMPIRE TIMBERS.

INVESTIGATION FOR COMMERCIAL USES. (FKOiJ OTIS, OWS COBSSSPONDJSNT.) LONDON, August 15. An Empire Timbers Committee was set up last August under a scheme of co-operation between the Empire Marketing Board and the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. The committee has now issued a memorandum of information for the guidance of Government Departments overseas and forest officers generally who are co-operating in the task of investigating tho commercial uses of Empire timbers. The memorandum states that the investigations of Empire timbers hitherto carried out at the Imperial Institute will in future be undertaken by the Forest Products Research Laboratory. The Institute will, however, in conjunction with its Advisory Committee on Timbers, continue to deal with questions relating to the commercial utilisation and marketing of Empire timbers, and arrangements have been made for the Institute Committee to report on the commercial possibilities or all Empire timbers tested at Princes Eisborough, and in favourable cases to assist in marketing them in co-operation with the Empire Marketing Board. The Institute will, moreover, continue to carry out investigations of all classes of minor forest products, and to deal with enquiries relating to their preparation, uses, and marketing. The Forest Products Eesearch Laboratory is equipped to undertake a full range of investigations into the physical and mechanical properties as well as the machining and finishing qualities of timbers. The Empire Timbers Committee will advise on all questions of general policy referred to it in connexion with the investigations of Empire timbers' at the laboratory, and decide which of the applications for investigation shall be accepted, and in what priority. The Imperial Forestry Insti-tute-will undertake the critical (microscopic and macroscopic) examination of tho structure of timbers for purposes of debcription, classification, and identification.

MINING. KILDARE REPORT. The report of the directors of tho Kildare Consolidated Gold Mining Company, Ltd., for the six months ended June 80th, 1930, states that the shaft had to be abandoned. It was decided to test the Eildara lead at a lower level by einking the shaft from the then level of 55 feet to 95 feet. This proved an expensive and difficult undertaking, and after getting down to 90 feet, a bad seam of drift sand was encountered, which blew out the bottom of the shaft and forced its way up to a 75 feet level. The result was that the shaft had to be abandoned altogether, as further operations therein v/ore not only unprofitable, but extremely dangerous. It was then decided to recommence sluicing in the vicinity of the shaft and this vfas continued steadily until early in June, when owing to severe frost and snow, work had to be discontinued. This waH most unfortunate in that the result of sluicing operations from March 19th up to the time iof discontinuance was just ready to be realised. It is a matter for conjecture what amount would have been realised, but the directors have every reason to believe that the Bum would have been quite a considerable one. Gold has been won during th« six months to the value of £293 14s 6d, and the greater portion of this amount was won during the period from January Ist, 1980, to February 20th, 1930. With regard to future operations, as soon as the present paddock is worked out, it is intended, in view of the fact that they; are up to the boundary on the'St. Bathans side, to remove the sluicing plant and elevators to the opposite side of the claim. The shifting of vtoeplantr will take a. little time, but as. stiji> j'otfiqn of the claim ie ideal 6)uicing" grdiincl with' very little clay, and' tho over-burden carries .gold in some of the; upper layert as well as in the lead, good returns should result. Good washings have been taken ouWrtKht up to where it is intended to commence operations. Further, the whole of the' company's water will be concentrated, on the one. elevator. This means that a much greater quantity of ground will bo worked than in the past in tho same time Having retrard to all tbo circumstances, the directors hava been curtailing expenditure in every way possible. ■

BIG beA<sh RETURN. "'. '" ; " ' ■ '■ -*—• ■ A report received by the «ecretary of the Donedin' Stock Exchange btates that the return of gold from tho Big Beach mine for tho four weeks ended September 14th amounted to 460z 4dwt. KILDARE WASH-UP. Advice received by the secretary of the Dunedin Stock Exchange on Wednesday fiom the Kildare Gold Mining Company stated that from a wash-up completed yeatwlday a return of 228 ounces of gold had been obtained. PETROL FROM COAL OIL. DEVELOPMENTS IN BRITAIN. The commencement of' production was reported at the annnual' meeting in London last month of Petroleum Refineries, Limited, which claims to have established the most up-to-date refinery and the only one of its kind m Britain. The company's works are at ELillinghohne, on'the River Humber, where it has a site of 53J acres. Thoy are at present working on . imported crude oil, the refining being by the gyro vapour phase cracking process under license from the parent company in Detroft. - Colonel W. A. Bristow said the method adopted by the company was being extensively used in Canada and the United States and extremely satisfactory reeults had been obtained in Canada, where plants had been" in operation for two or three years Ho stated that tho company would shortly undertake the cracking of crude coal oil. This would mean that, for the_ first time in. the history of Britain-r-certainly for the first lime in the history of the low-tempera-ture carbonisation movement—a commercial plant would be in operation converting crude coal. oil into petrol and fuel oil. The Government. recognising the importance of fosterling this business, was allowing the product to-be exempt from the 4d per gallon duty imposed upon imported supplies. NATIONAL JERSEY SALE. (press association iEr.Bo.ttAM.> HAMILTON, September 16. Tho National Jersey Show and sale was continued at Claudelands to-day, wien 77 head averaged over SOgns. Top price was paid by W. Mears, of Walton, 'for Silverley's Regal Mixture sold on account of J. S. Jones, Bell Block. This yearling won the grand championship of the show. Santa ltoaa Combination, offered on account of J. A. Mitchell, Longburn, was passed in at lGOgns, and later sold privately for 175gns. AUSTRALIAN PRODUCE QUOTATIONS.,.' (Received September 18th, 8.5 p.m.) SYDNEY, September 18. Wheat is quiet. Bulked 3a 3d, bagged 33 2d. Flour— £9 6s. Pollard and bran —S3 10s. Potatoes Tasmanian £6 to £B, Victorian £6 10s. Onions—Victorian brown Spanish, £5 10s. Oats—White 4s, Algerian 4s 3d. Maize—4s 3d. DAIRY PRODUCE. The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, Limited, have received tbo following cablegram from London under date 17th inst.: Butter—Choicest salted, 190s; tstored, 127 a to 1295; market steady. Cheese—White, 755; coloured, 74*. Market auiet.