MINING MATTERS. OTAGO NOTES.

Evening Post, Volume LXVII, Issue LXVII, 30 January 1904, Page 12

MINING MATTERS. OTAGO NOTES.

The annual leport of the Nugent Wood Gold Dredging Company states that since the lir&t wash up was made in October, the leliirns havo aveiii^ed 240z per wtek/ .tnd in the courie of a few weeks the directors expect to be in a position to i declare their first, dividend, and are sanguine that theieafter dividends of a substantial character wiit be declined at legulur intervals. When tho books weie i closed 218oz 3dwt ot go.d, valued at £'oi>d 17s Ad, had been won, the company had a balance at the bank of £69 18a, ■ while there wcic sundry debts amounting I to £444 9a lid. Tho report of tho Central Mataura stales that, for the twelve months ending | 30th Novemoer, 19U3, 6300z of gold, j valued at £2360, were obtained at a coht I of £2994 11s yd, showing a deficit of £664 ' 9s. This deficit brings the debit of piofit and loss account up to £4207. As mutters stand, it will it-quire tho payment of the oul&tanding calls and the italnation of the company's assets to discharge the liabilities. The disappointing return*, for the year were dua to the fact thnt it was necessary to do a large amount of dead work in order to prevent the farms adjoining the company's claim from dam.ige by the river. This poilion of the Kiound vim very poor, nnd the dredge will shortly be moved to where the best icturns have been obtained. If the&e expectations are not realised the shareholders will take tho financial position of the company into consideration. Tho directors of tho New Fairdown Gold-dredging Company, whose dredge sank on Chriblma.s Day, have issued a circular stating that Iho causo of sinking was that tho water in the paddock was allowed to fall too low. The water had beon pumped out of the paddock, and it was found that one of the pontoons of the drodge had suffered considerable damago, ana that repairs would cost a considerable sum. A' tender from Messrs. M'Gregor and Co. for raising and repairing the dredge and handing it over fit for work for £795 had been received, and the directors had issued 200 debentures of £5 each, bearing interest at the rate of 25 per cent, for a term. o( six months, and renewable, if necessary, for a further term of six months at tho same rate of interest. The Wniknin shareholders have agieed to take up £500 worth of debentures, and as the return just prior to the finking of the dredge was equivalent to 360z of gold per week, and the paddock when pumped out showed a splendid face of wiush, the directois believe that Iherc ia every prospect of the dredge yielding Aandiiomo icturns to shareholders. NORTHERN. MINING. A find is leported at Whnrekawa, between. Tairua and Whangamnta. It nppears that rich gold was obtained by breaking out stone, in the river bed of tho old Phoenix claim, which is situated north of the Goldwator claim. It is btated that the ore is rich in sulphides, showing free gold. The find has caused some excitement in the district. The prospector, Tilsley, has pegged out v mining area. Details of the business to be brought before tlio annual meeting of the Kura-nui-Culcdonian Gold-mining Company at Home aio to hand. In the report just issued for the yoar ending 30th September, 1903 (including the New Zealand accounts for the same period ending 31st August, 1903), the directors state that during that period tho number of tributers ,hus averaged iiity-two, and they havo won gold to tho total value of £3715.104. Of this the company's thare for royalty nnd winding was £466 7s sd. The New Zealand Government had been approached with a view to obtaining a subsidy for the purpose of testing the reefs at a depth by means of boreholes. The Government eventually agreed to grant a subsidy, and a contract was entered into with the Diamond Drilling Company to put down a borehole on this company's ground. This borehole had reached a depth of 972 ft at tho end of September, but although small quartz leaders had been passed through nothing of value had been met with. Since then the directois have been ndvi&cd by cable message that in consequence, of some misunderstanding with tlio Drilling Company boring had been suspended, but the manager states that the difficulties aro only temporary. As the funds of the company aie now' nearly oxhausted, the directors Invito an expression of opinion from the shareholders as to the advisableness of reconstructing the company or entering into negotiations for the j,ale of the property or amalgamation with anobher company. Any such negotiations would bo' subject to confirmation by the shareholder at a meeting specially cnlled for the purpose. To keep pace with the demands of the mill, the Waihi Company has not only fouud it necessary to put down about five shafts. (One of them to be a main pumping shaft, equipped with some of tho biggest machinery jet seen in the colony), but it now finds it desirable to erect nt these shafts winding engines of increased capacity, to that the ore may be tho more quickly brought to tho surface. A start hns been mado with the original shaft, tho No. 1. Tho new engine will bo capable of raising nearly ono thousand tons per cjay ; tho present power of tho winding engines are capable of raising just ov^er 400 tons each per day. The shafts are nt present overtnxed, and tho new winding engine, when it is installed, will ennble the Company to easily cope with the demand of the batteries for ore. Mr. H. H. Adams, whose luck commenced with the Tairua Broken Hills, and was continued in the Mahara Royal, Eclip.se, and Old Albumin, is indeed taking his tide at its flood, having rocently added the May Queen (Thames) nnd tho Royal Oak (Coromandol) to his list." Buying on a slump market, he is getting things cheap. But ir nny case, it takes a pretty courageous man to be n buyer considering the low .ebb which the Northern goldflelds (outside of Waihi, Karangahake, and Tnirua) havo reached. Of j course, if Mr. Adatns continues to get ] gold, a'l will bo well ; if not, his now j companies will have to weather the # gen- | ernl blunip with little prospect of outside help. So far, however, the efforts of their mimnger-promotor have been very lucky. When an English company had lot the Miihura-Roynl (Tapu) drop, Mr. Adams induced the directors of the Tairua Bioken Hills (which mino, also enst off by nn jlSnglish company, he had brought to great prosperity) to help to put tho Mahara on its legs asrftin. linme-, diately they took il up a chute of gold was struck, and tht result was that the Mnhnra-Royal was refloated, and Tamiti Broken Hills mnde a profit of something over £4000 by the transaction. Another English company's failure, the Eclipse (Thames) has been placed by Mr. Adams on a promising basis ; and as soon ns he got capital to support him in taking up the Albumin and pushing on the- Moanatniari Tunnel (a project of vast hnpoitance to Thames Proper) a new reef showing gold, and of great possibilities, was intersected in the tunnel extension. Another Tairua mine, at Neavesville, hn;come under Mr Adams's management, also (as mentioned) tho May Queen (probably the best of Thames deep-levels properties) nnd the Koyal O.Vk, a rich but pockety Cnromandel mine The Albumin, the May Queen, nnd the Royal Oak have all been abandoned by English capitalists, who, apparently, cannot make evon tho Talisman pay its way.

Tho Hikurailgi Coal Company has doohvred a. dividend of 10 per cent.