Dredging and Mining.

Cromwell Argus, Volume XXXIV, Issue 1798, 2 September 1902, Page 5

Dredging and Mining.

The Point D’or is still idle. Two loads of machinery for the Rising Sun arrived last week. The Junction 11 is still under repair and will not be able to stare work for a while.

Messrs Quick and Smith, sharebrokers, Dunedin, insert a card in this issue. This firm is well and favourably known In dredging circles. The Royal Maori started work yesterday. We understand that arrangements are being made for the dredge to test a claim at the foot of the Five Mile. The Maori Creek Gold Dredging Company (West Coast) declared a dividend of is on Saturday week. This is the fourteenth dividend this fine property has paid.

The Bannockburn Collieries are now turning oat a splendid sample of household coal, and the universal comment is that no such high>class coal has heretofore been delivered in Cromwell.

The mortgagee has foreslosed Jon the Upper Magnetic dredge. At present negotiations are in progress between him and the holders of the Annie Qneen re purchase by him of part of the claim. At the extraordinary meeting of the Gibbston Geld Dredging Co. laat;woek, it was ascertained that an elevator would cost £SOO, a levy of Is 6d per share, carrying interest at 100 per cent, was struck and carried.

It appears that the {New J Half-way-. Bouse Co. is going to give the dredge another ran after all. At a meeting held last week, it was decided to raise a levy of Is per share and make a trial of the top half of the claim, which has not yet been touched.

The Teviot dredge has been stopped this week to allow of a new tumbler shaft being put iu. A considerable amount of difficulty is being experienced in getting the old shaft out, which is causing greater delay than was anticipated*— ‘Benger Mail.’ We ‘Benger Mail’ understand that Messrs Pringle and Party, who have Just purchased the Excelsior dredge, intend placing her on their claim at Miller’s Plat, and with such an up'tosdate machine some splendid returns should be obtained from this excellent property. The Central Electric is still idle, awaiting the bushes from Dunedin for the bottom tumbler. A lot of work has been involved in the making ready for the delivery of the bushes, which are expected here about the end of the week. The work is under the competent direction ef Mr Hall, the Company’s engineer. A new clause added to the Mining Act Amendment Bill by he Goldfields] Com-, mittee proposes that the Board may issue a certificate of service as dredgemaster without examination, to any person of good repute, who, prior to December 31st next, applies for and produces a testimonial from his former employer o f having beeng actually employed as a dredgemaster *m charge of a dredge on a deep ur swift flowing stream for not less than » waive months during the proceeding five years.

The balance sheet of the Central Electric Gold Mining Co., shows that at the beginning of the financial year, April 30, 390J, the (profit and loss account showed a debit balance of £745 3s 2d, and during the ensuing 12 months the expenses, in' eluding £6OO for interest on the debentures, amounted to £2,197 Os Od, or a total of £2,942 3s Bd. The dredge won 2600za Odwts 12gra of gold, valued at £964 2s 2d, so that there was a debit balance of £1,988 la fid to be carried forward. The liabilities comprise £SOO, the accrued interest on the debentures, and £2of 10s Id owing to sundry creditors, while, in addition to the plant, there was a bank balance of £6 12s 2d. The material for the extension of the ladder of the New Alpine Consols dredge will leave Dunedin this morning, and on arrival at Ida Valley will be sent on by special conveyance to the claim. Everything will be in readiness to allow the work of fitting up to be proceeded with at daylight on Monday morning, and the dredge is expected to be ready for work again by Monday week. The dredgemaster (Mr Goodger), who has been in Dunedin (supervising the manufacture of the material, states that he will be able to work to a depth of about 48ft or 50ft, which will enable the dredge to work all the year round, with the exception of flood times. —‘ Times.’

CLYDE.

(From Our Clyde Correspondent). August 31. An effort is being made to induce shareholders in the -Halfway.house Co to subscribe a shilling per share in order to give the upper half of the claim a trial. This is undoubtedly the best looking part of the claim, but as it will require a high

river to enable the dredge to be shifted to the upper portion of the claim, there will be little prospect of getting a run out of the dredge till next winter. The Kelly and Casey dredge resumed work on Thursday night. Owing to the depth of the river preventing justice being done to the ground, the dredge was dropped back to shallower ground lower down. The Monte Christo dredge having lost the run of gold near the Chair has been palled ahead to a point kuown to old minersjaa ‘ Foley’s Bay,’ some distance below ‘ Whittaker’s Beach.’ Dredging was resumed on Thursday, but up till Friday no gold was mot with. The dredge commenced work close to the west bank,

aud on Saturday morning had worked out to mid stream, where very good prospects were obtained. The ground is about 39ft deep, and a considerable amount of stuff has to be shifted, but it is anticipated a

good return will be obtained for the weeks’ work. From the fact of gold

being obtained in the present position it would appear that the fabled wealth of Whittaker’s Beach is more than legendary. The Leaning Rock dredgemaster ia still awaiting the arrival of buckets. When these come to hand and are fitted up, dredging will be commenced. "V 'hie Old Dunstan return of 22o*s was not up to expectations, but is still very encouraging. 1 understand the moat of the gold was obtained early in the week, aud that about the middle of the week a hard bar of reef was met with. The dredge is now about over this, and will '.4( probably have a favorable run this week. »Th* wash which is very tight, is about IBin.lhdepth and contains a good quantity of Maoris.

The Davis Bend dredge is working • fairly steady, and the return of ilozt for the week is very satisfactory. The Ngapara Co, have no intention of giving the Vincent Extended claim a further trial, and are now having the dredge removed to their own claim. Mr Sohauman, under whose directions the dredge is being shifted, wishes to gat below the Clyde bridge before the river rises, In order that the necessity for removing / the poppet heads will be obviated. I f understand that none of the tenders ; received for the purchase of the claim ■ were considered high enough, and that it bai not been sold*

The Vincent dtedge it a till working on very rough ground, and is obtaining satisfactory returns. The Unity obtained 63ozs for last week’s work, and is understood to be still on good wash. There is a prospect of another dividend from this company yet. The Matau dredge washed npfor49oa», and has a likihood of continuing with good returns till the end of the season.

SHARE QUOTATIONS Monday’s Salks. The secretary of the Dnnedia Stock Exchange wires : Bendigo.— 13s 9d, 13s 9d, 14s. Gold King.—ls. Golden River.—ls 9d (4). Great Woodstock. —6s 6d. Monte Christo, —12s 6d, 13s, 14s, 14a 6d, 16s. Meg and Annie.—9s (2). Old Dnnstac. —4s 3d (2). Riley Beach.-—3ls, 32a,325. Unity.—l2a (2). The river is 2ft 9in above normal.

DREDGING RETURNS.

University of Otago.

We have received a circular from a committee consisting of Messrs Bell, Cameron, Chapman, Fenwick and Col quhon, requesting us to bring under the notice of our readers the exigencies of the University of Otago, and asking us to place the matter before our readers. The financial position of the Uni* vetsity is verv bad and the Council have appealed to the people of Otago to sub* scribo funds so as to place the institution in a position to carry out its duties in a proper manner. Unless the finances improve, the Mining and Medical Schools must go. Figures are given to show tha l , owing to the decrease in its revenue caused by the depreciation in the value of pastoral property of which its endowments consist the University has, since the fall in the price of wool, sustained a loss of £2,276 per year, In revenue.

As the work of the Mining and Medical Schools is very important to the Colony at large, and in Otago in particular, we have no hesitation whatever in appealing to out readers for subscriptions in aid of the University Funds. The value of the Mining School is well known on the goldfields and graduates of the Otago, School of Mines have taken leading positions all over the colonies and in South Africa, There are, no doubt, in this district, some former students of the University who will rally round their Alma Mater in her distress, and repay with cheerfulness part of the debt they owe her. To these we look with confidence for donations. Any donations sent in will be acknowledged in the columns of the Annua and when our list is closed tht amount will be forwardel to the general committee.

Electric <. oz dwt 231 6 Alexandra Lead • •• 204 15 New Roxburgh Jubilee 182 11 Riley Beach ... 137 0 Manuherikia ... 105 15 Bendigo 102 0 Vlolyneux Hydra* be,.. 98 16 Hartley-Riley ... 95 3 Alpine 11 91 6 First Chinee IM 83 0 Gold King ... 81 6 Meg and Annie 80 8 Earnscleugh 11 77 0 Golden Gale lM 72 9 Rise and Shine 65 0 Waimumu ... 63 3 Unity 63 0 Golden Run... ... 61 0 Cromwell 52 18 Macau ... 52 0 Enterprise No. I 48 2 New Golden Grave’ 43 6 Olrig 42 8 Moa 42 0 Davis Bend • • 41 0 Perseverance I • •• 39 6 Empire ... 38 13 Dunatan Lead ... 36 0 Enterprise No 11 35 8 Upper Waipori 32 4 Royal Waimumu 31 10 Majestic ... 30 5 Perseverance If ... 30 0 Alexandra Eureka , M 30 0 Earnscleugh No 1 ... 29 7 Molyneux Kohinoor ... 29 6 Waikaka 26 0 Central Mataura 28 3 Eftrick 24 2 Central Charlton ... 23 9 Success ( Waiporii 22 3 Old Dii'istan ... 22 0 Reliance 21 7 Inchdale 21 2 Coal Creek Flat ... 21 2 Sailors’ Bend 21 0 J unction Eieclricil r ... 20 12 Otago ... 20 0 Enfield ... 19 15 Charlton Creek 19 5 Mystery Flat ... 17 9 Endeavor ... 16 16 Inch Nfalley ... 16 16 Gabriel "in 16 15 Globe ... 16 9 Prince Arhtur] 15 0 Spec Gully ... ’".J J4 5 Lawrence ... 14 0 Waimumu Central 13 10 Island Block 13 10 Waimumu Extended 13 10 Charlton Valle} 12 6 Happy Valley 11 10 Evan’s Flat ... 11 4 .Tuapeka 11 2 Central Electric ... 10 11 Kelly and Casey ... 10 0 Golden Treasure 10 0 New River ... ... 6 0 Total ...| 12,859 12 12 ;WEST COAST. Nelson Creek 59 0 Mosquito ... |40 7 Erickson's Reward ... 33 0 North Beach ... 31 7 Woodstock 30 0 Greenstone Junction ... 26 10 Greenstone Three-mile 23 12 Rocklands ... ... 22 15 Greenstone Creek ... 21 14 Rod Jack’s ... 19 18 "Stafford Waimea •*« 16 18 Trafalgar ... 16 17 Kohikohl • •• 16 10 Reeves Proprietory ... 15 13 Aldinga* ... 14 15 Cornwall ... 12 5 Victory ... 11 13 Leviathan ... ... 11 0 Leviathan Fr'ieb'ald ... 8 8 M.vriGury 5 0 Total ... 403 2