MINING IN THE FAR NORTH.

Mataura Ensign, Issue 1146, 12 February 1903, Page 2

MINING IN THE FAR NORTH.

MR A. CHRISTIE'S EXPERIENCES. Mr A. Christie, who left Gore some vears ago for the Klondyke, writes as follows" to a friend in Gore, dated 21st December : This appears to be a very healthy climate the winters, although severe, have a bracing efff ot. Our coldest day up to the present time was yesterday, the thermometer registering 52 liciow zero. When a wiud is blowing on a day like this it is hardly wise to be much out t«f doors, but when calm it is just about bearable. These very severe days are exceptional, and tho average weather is fairly moderate. Athn lake was frozen over of the 10th inst. (the earliest on record), but a strong wind came up and has left open water again. The mailmen (four in number) are having an exceptionally hard time at present on account of Taku arm being only partly frozen over (two were drowned a few weeks ago). Taku arm is connected with Atlin Lake by the Atlinto River—a river that runs very swift, and several have been drowned while attempting to navigate it. lam still mining in the Atlin district on Pine Creek, and for the past two years have been meeting with fairly good success. I belong to a company of five called the St. Martin's Co. (St. Martin is a town in Nova Scotia, the home of somo of my partners). We have located a pay streak 60 feet wide, and have secured by location and purchase a group of five 250 ft bo. claims, and two 100 ft so. Our raining is all underground, and we have already worked out 200 ft x4oft. The pay was located back under the hill 300 feet from tbe creek, nothing being found in the present creek bed at this particular point. We have a large orew of men working night and day, and expect to have a big amount of dirt out before spring, and, of course, a big amount of gold too. Yours truly has tbe extreme honour of being secretary and treasurer for tbe above-mentioned company. Hydraulic mining is making iapid progress in this district, and a few companies are already working on a fairly large scale and are reaping good returns. The two most prominent of these companies are located on McKee and Boulder creeks, and some 100 pound weight of jlean ups were made during lest summerl Quartz mining has been somewhat of a failure as yet although one stringer was discovered on Pine Creek that assayed as high as 1200 dollars to the ton, but it gave out in a short time. The ore in this district is on an average of a low grade, but it may be pat on a paying basis by securing a much needed reduction in the transportation rates. Dredging—One dredging company has been formed to operate near Atlin, but I do not predict for il a successful career, as I believe It to be only a scheme of the Atlinites to get something going near that town. I notice ttat ta this country Mew Zealand is quite frequently quoted as an authority on all dnddng matters.