A SMALL DECREASE SHOWN

Grey River Argus, 23 September 1911, Page 6

A SMALL DECREASE SHOWN

(Our Parliamentary 'Reporter.)

WELLINGTON, Sept. 21

The (total iminclral -production in the Dominion during 1910 shows , a small decrease. Substantial iincreas-s are recorded in quartz and coal mining, Hie two principal brandies of the industry, but owing" 'to unforsc-sn causes the returns from kauri- gum and alluvial mining show cans^dei*a;bla decreases- The conditions of the various 'branches of the mineral industries ara reviewed in the Mines Statement. The report on the goldfields and the inspection of coal | mines report which were presented to tho House lof Representatives this afternoon. The value; of the .exports from mtital .mines, and kauri gum fields during the P a st two years, and the total production from January 1. 1853, to'Decemrber 31st, 1910, is shown in the following: — G01d.— 1909, 1910. £1,---896,328; 1853—1910, £77,437,131. Silver.— l9o9, £180,872 ; 1910, £1/4,---56^; 1853—1910, £1,618,522. O'h&r miinerals.— l9o9, £11,867 ; 1910; £22,227; 1853—1910, £445,876. Kauri gum.— l9o9, £552,698; 1910, £465,0444 ; 1853—1910, • £10.413.440. Totals. — £21,752,337, £2,555,161, £94,914,974. , The production of gold last year was less by -. £110,572 than in 1909, and tho silver production fell off by £9,310. The value of the production of other minerals increased by £10,---912. The) J.&Luifi ghwn produ'otion aJso decreased by £87,654.

The miming- of gold and silver provided labour for 8,081 persons, and 40 men we.ro engaged in the production of iron scheclitc, cvttabar and asbestos. The total number of persons engaged iru or ab'ou- the metal mines of the Dominion during the year -being 8,121, compared with 7,---60 l«n 1909. About a thousand diggers are engaged upon the kauri gum fields. The actual number is not known. Fifteen fatal accidents and 17 serious accidents occurred at the mines, the rate of fatalities being | 1.84 per 1000 persons employed; The production of bullion from the quartz mines during 1910 was the highest' on record. As the result of treating 688,660 tons of bullion to the value of £1,564,189 was obtained and dividends .amounting to £597,127 were declared. An increase in. the valu'a of production 1= recorded for the Coro-mand-el, Waihi, Ivaraagahnke, and Inangzhua quartz miining" ficilds, ibut at the. Thames and Ota-go- fields a decline has taken place.

Dredges -to the number of 104 produced gold valued /it £315,237, a decline of £12,439. The dividends paii dby the 35 dredges owne dby registered companies amounted to £51,---918. Owing to the exceptionally, dry year, which rendered the water supply for sluicing- purposes inadeuate, the value of the productiion from alluvial claims decldned Uo- £188,464, being £144,771 below that of 1909. The output of kauri gum has increased by 443 tons. The to<tal quantity exported during 1910 was 8,693 tons, valued at £465,044. There was a satisfactory increase of 15 per cent, in the. annual coal production of bituminous and semi-bftturninous coal Avas 154,797 tons in the northern district and 1,340,912 in the West Coast district. Total 1,495,709 tons. Pitch coal was produced iin the southern district, the quantity .being- 6,068 tons. The production of [brown coal was 245,867 tons in the northern district, 120 tons in the West Coast district, and 349,---008 in the southern, district. -Lignite -o the amount of 100590 tons was mined in 4hei southern district. The totals for 1910 with those for 1909 in parenthesis are as follows:. Northern 400,664 3(48,370), West Coast 1,341,032 (1,122,642), Southern 455,---666 (440,235). Grand total 2,197J--362 (1,911,247), increase 286,115 tons. ! The- number of persons engaged at tlie collieries has douoled wi'-hi-n the past decade, and is now 4,599, of whom 2,799 are employed on the West Coast district;. The mum-be rof fatal mining !accide'n.ts 1910 was higher than usual, no less than 16 lives having been. lost. Sixteen other persons were iinjurcd iby "accident. Ten lives were* lost by falls in the names which are becoming more prevalent ,as 't-h© stage of pillar extraction is being advanced by the Iboard and pillar system. The discovery of a safe and econoim-kal method by whilch a -high percentage of thei .thick coal soams of New Zealand may be extracted is a subject that deserves special research, but th? inspecting j engineer (Mr Frank R e -ed) is not san- j gu-nc el an entirely satisfactory solu« Moj: .