OUR MINERAL RESOURCES

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 224, 15 June 1908, Page 8

OUR MINERAL RESOURCES

—4 PRESENT CONDITION AND FUTURE PROSPECTS. HOW TO FOSTER THEIR DEVELOPMENT. ' The following interesting paper by Mr. Ewing (Dunedin) was read at tho final mooting of tho Chemists' Confcrenco on Friday. "In Neiv Zealand, we have a country Ticli in mineral wealth, the development of which is at present only in its infancy. Apart from gold, silver, and coal, which certainly show a larger and increasing output, there are no other minerals that have been mined to any great extent, although thero aro quantities of almost all tho principal miners that oxist. Now Zealand, being a young country, cannot provide the capital necessary to develop mining in all its branches, and consequently the minerals already mined aro those which are easiest worked, and which require the least capital in their initial stages. Theso aro mainly gold, silver, and coal. "The present condition of tho mining industries, such as they are, may bo said to bo very satisfactory. Gold. "Gold occupies the first place amongst Now Zealand minerals, and | its production/ has been steadily increasing for somo timo.' Tho increase in gold production is very satisfactory, but much moro could be effected. Various methods could be used, namely, by the enlargement of existing plants, by the discovery of new goldfields, by tho discovery of new deposits in old districts, by tho development of mines discovered in tho past, and not worked owing to high cost, but which could now bo profitably worked by means of better and cheaper processes, cheaper means of transportation, by the working of alluvial flats with improved steam dredges, and by hydraulic sluicing. Silver. ' " The production of silver will show a corresponding increase with gold, all _ the silver at present being from quartz associated with gold. Here again the output might be materially increased, especially so wero tho cyanido process moro generally used, a larger percentage, of gold and silver has been recovered froin old workings, tailings, etc., that havo been thrown away. The Government, having placed this process at tho disposal of those engaged in mining throughout the Dominion, it should now be more freely availed of than has hitherto been tho case.

"The amount of coal consumed and exported shows an increasing quantity owing to tho opening up and working of new fields. As the industrial prosperity of tho Dominion .advances, the consumption of coal will be augmented.: "Tho other, .minerals at present mined, with the exception .of sheelite and phosphate rock, are of little consequence, tho total production born"-only a fow thousands pounds por anuum. This is not attributable to lack of material, but rather to want of capital. Scientific knowledge is also a great essential to the development of the various mineral resources.. "Mention may bo made of a _fow_ of the minorals that are known to exist in New Zealand, . and" which could be profitably worked under more favourable circumstances. Manganese Ore. ; "At present only a small quantity of manganese orb is mined in Now Zealand, but it exists in large, quantities. It is a very profitable ore to mine, as it is easily won_ and : ■requires -little treatment to convert it'into a marketable commodity. The principal consumption of manganese ore is in the manufacture of ferro-manganose and spicgeleisen, which utilises at least nine-tenths of tho world's supply.: We liavo no iron reducing works to utilise this important ore, but. with the establishment of iron works there would bo a steady and. increasing demand for manganese ore, a demand that could easily bo met by New Zealand's production alone... As showing tho valuable naturo of this mineral, it might be pointed out,that,in Brazil, from which country large quantities are_ exported, the principal mines are situated _in ■ the. interior and mountainous regions, distant from the sea-board from 250 to 350 miles, but tho ore is transported to the coast at such a small cost as to make, it,one of tho most profitable of Brazilian oxports. Now in New Zealand, a.t whatever point manganeso is found, it would not be anything approaching 200 miles, and yet the cost of transport would in all probability bo double that charged by the Brazilian Government.

"Iron is one of the most abundant and ono of tho most widely distributed of our metals, and it is found everywhere. From its use in all tra.des it is of the greatest importance in the industrial progress of .1 nation. Tho question of tho establishment of iron furnaces in the. Dominion is really one of national importance. In Now Zealand we have 110 iron-reducing -works, although wo have mountains of the oro and also valuable deposits of black ironsand distributed throughout the country. Efforts have been made to establish smelting .works at Taranaki, but so far without success, duo largely to tho lack of assistance from the Government of. the timo. Tho developmeiit of this mineral would bo of great importance to tho community, both in the way of Opening up our mineral wealth and providing' remunerative employment for our increasing population. The establishment of .iron/works would mark the' commencement of a period of industrial progress and bring us into closer touch with the producing nations of the world. Aluminium: "The principal ore from which aluminium is extracted 1 is: bauxite. This mineral is distributed throughout the country, and could be profitably .mined and worked, • provided ■it,wore so situated that tho cost of, transportation to a seaport or reducing station were not too great. This mineral is worthy of ■ much greater attention than it has hithorto received hore. Its reduction to the metal is effected by nn electrical process, and' now that electrical power is being established at; the various centres tho reduction of aluminium would bo an industry worth. fostering. It has been stated that the nijiin reason for the high price of aluminium is owing to the fact that in no part of the world does a bauxite deposit oc T cur contiguous ,to a natural power from which the necessary electricity can be generated, but in all cases it. has to be carried over-long distances to the electrical works. The cost of such carriage naturally adds considerably to tho cost of tho reduced metal... If deposits of bauxito were discovered convenient to a water power, from which electricity could be generated, wo would be | able to produce the metallic aluminium at prices that would command the markets of the world. Copper. - "Copper is sometimes ■ met with in ;the pure state, as in tho Nelson province, but the principal ■ oro from which the metal is obtained is sulphite of copper, which has been unsuccessfully mined both in Nelson and in Otago. The increased price of copper should,- however, stimulate further efforts in working these deposits, also in-tho direction of searching for other lodes which no doubt exist in many parts of New Zealand. Sulphur. "Sulphur is mainly utilised in tho chemical industries in tho manufacture of sulphuric acid.- In New Zealand we havo some very good deposits of native sulphur in tho Auckland province. Thoro are also abundant deposits of sulphur in combination with metals,; notably bi-sulphido of iron and I sulphido of copper. This form of sulphur is tho ono that should bo fostered, for 1 by its use sulphuric acid can bo produced 1 much cheaper than when manufactured from the native sulphur, as the largest consump--1 tion of, sulphuric acid is in the ! manufacture ■ of super-phosphate of limo ! "for fertilising purposes, and in the refining ' of pertroleum, both of which are now being [ oxploited here. It is patent that the ro°~ ducing of tho cost of sulphuric acid will place the'other industries dependent 011 it on a much' bettor footing, and enablo them to compete successfully in tho markets of the world. As already stated, wo have many deposits rich in sutohur which await do-.

velopment, but which cannot at present ,bo utilised owing to tlio high railway rates charged for the oarriago of this material. Petroleum and Phosphate Rock. "Potroleum has, after many years of prospecting, been successfully tapped in the 'i'aranaki district. This discovory should prove of immense value to this country. Jt'hosphato rock is used entirely in the manufacture of fertilisers for agricultural purposes, and Now Zealand, being mainly an agricultural country, consumes enormous quantities of phosphato in one form or another. This phosphato lias been discovered in Otago, and is at present being worked on a small scale. Phosphates are imported into the Dominion, but they could bo equally as woll manufactured here from the local material."' Antimony and Arsenic. "Antimony has been mined and exported in the crude state, the quantity for 1894-97 being 140 tons, valued at about £3000. Arscnic, for which there is more outlet in the Dominion,- has never beon commercially worked, although it has frequently been found by miners, and no doubt exists in fair quantities. Wero copper to be successfully mined, a certain production of arsenic would be assured. Other Minerals. "Of the other minerals known to exist, there aro quick-silver, which occurs 'as cinnabar, both in the North and South Islands. Tungsten occurs as slieelite, and zinc has been found as silicate in the South Island, tin is found as stream tin in Stewart Island, platinum is found in Southland and Palmerston North, and asbestos and mica on tlio West Coast of South Island. All these minerals are capablo of development into successful mining industries. The question of the best means of fostering this development, is one that may bo answered in various ways, but without assistance in same form or other from the Government, many of our minerals will remain undiscovered and valueless. The Future.

"Now, as it is mainly through the Government that assistance will be derived to further mineral development, metioii may be made of four means to that end: —First, by increased Customs duties; second, by bonuses; third, by preferential transportation rates on the railway's; fourth, by subsidies in the initial expenditure and production. Protective duties are really of little u-so.. They are only of valuo for local.consumption, and are of no use to tho miner or manufacturer if' he wishes- to export his materials and compete in the open market. Bonuses, on tho other hand, assist tho prospector, the miner, and the manufacturer in the initial stages of their enterprises. They should certainly be offeerd by tho Government for all discoveries of minerals capable of being profitably mined. Take a typical case of a prospector who, after following up a lead for many months, finds a'valuable doposit 011 freehold land, and has not the necessary capital to acquire the freehold or equity of redemption of this land, and thereby the benefit of his knowledge goes to tho owner of ; tho land, and he gets nothing for his work! It is in . cases such as this that a bonus for discovery should bo . given. This bonus could bomado as a just charge on the owner of tho land if he took advantago of tho discovery,' and went to work the deposits. ' ■ ' Preferential Railway Tariff. "But for the real true means of fostering tho development of our mineral resources, there is nothing more effective than preferential railway tariff. Under existing railway rates tho working of many of our mineral deposits is absolutely prohibitive, while, wero they assisted by liberal concessions for transportation, would soon merge into profitable sources of employment. This applico particularly to tho railway .tariff on minorals for exportation. In Germany the Government, to encourago an increasing exportation of minerals and native productions, subsidises all material sent on her railways, and it is this that our Government should do to stimulate activity in this direction. AVero a differential railway 'rate put on all our raw products, in a very short time a great development would take place. If tho initial expenditure, in tho production of a . newlydiscoverod mineral were to be subsidised, then many a new industry, would spring up, bringing to tho Colony a revenue that m a short timo would not only repay the outlay but bo a source of increasing profit. The Assistanco of Sctenco. /'The practical miner, however, must be assisted by the scientist, and tho co-operation of science and practice with assistanco and sympathy from tho Government will go a long way to aid in the development of our mineral wealth. This wealth . hew Zealand is: pos-' sosod of, and ! were everyone concerned to, assist in its development, then there is little doubt that our country would take its placo amongst tho producing and manufacturing countries of tho world."