TESTING AURIFEROUS ORES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIV, Issue 7896, 15 March 1887, Page 3

TESTING AURIFEROUS ORES.

TO THE EDITOR. Sib,—l notice in your issue of Tuesday that you publish a letter sent by me to Mr. Saunders in regard to the proposed erection of an experimental plant in connection with the Thames School of Mines, and as you also devote a sub-leader to the subject, I will crave your indulgence by allowing me spaoe to state my case more fully, and answer some of the arguments which you adduce in favour of the desired plant being erected in Auokland. It is very likely, as you say, that I may have gained my impression that the Chamber of Commerce were In favour of recommending the Minister of Mines to have the plant erected in Auokland by reading your recommendation* from time to time in that direction, and' I trust that that body wiil accept my apologies for attributing such a short-sighted policy to them. In your leader of Tuesday yon state "that there is no reason why your scheme should militate against the attempts made either at the Thames or Tβ Aroha, to ascertain the treatment of ores from any particular mines." Now, Sir, as you had the scheme proposed by the School of Mines Committee before you at the time, you must have been fully aware, if you know anything of the subject, that the plant whioh they propose ereoting is ample for present requirements, and that it would not be erected in the interest of any particular mine or mines, but would be available for the whole colony, including your embryo goldfield in the North. In considering this matter, any claims whioh the Auokland University have upon the State should not be allowed to interfere with the carrying out of the scheme, for we must remember that it is the Minister of Mines and not the Minister for Education who is going to be interviewed on the matter, and as the former is fully aware of how the thoroughly equipped Sohools of Mines in connection with the Dunedin University is not taken advantage of, he will fight shy of any soheme for propagating that whioh he believes will not be a success. Professor Black, when here, stated publicly that from experience he had arrived at the conclusion that the establishing of Sohools of Mines in the cities was wrong; that in Dnnedin, where every facility was offered, the attendance was one solitary individual who attended regularly, and one who attended occasionally, and that the proper plaoe for such schools was in the midst of the mining industry, where every one, both directly and in* directly, was interested in its success. Professor Brown, of the Auokland University, in delivering a most practical and valuable lecture here lately, also skated that the goldfield undoubtedly was the place for establishing schools of mines, and attributed the snooess attained in Frieberg to the fact of students being brought practically in oonneotioa not .only with the manipulation of the various ores, but by the experience which they gained in the mines' of its vicinity; and further, that an experimental plant should be erected in connection with the Thames School of Mines to

teat and discover the molt approved method of eitreoting the bullion from the ores of the colony, and thus be a guide to capitalists, and also fit etudenU to take charge of any works which may be ereoted. This scbeme Profeeeor Brown laid before tho Government, and at the same time recommended them to divert the sum of £200 from the vote for travelling allowances to himself and Mr. Montgomery, and place id to the credit of the School of Mines to enable the committee to make s> atari towards the desired end, and the Government hare acceded to the recommendation. Now, air, there can be no doubt that the above opinions of two qualified experts on the snb-j-ot will have a great deal of weight with the Mini*tar of Minea, and it would therefore, in my opinion, be wisdom to take every advantage of it, and as all parties are agreed that the ereotion of the desired plant would be found of the greatest benefit and usefulness, its ereotion should not be delayed on account of any Podlington theory. It will be quite nseless to axpeot that the Minister of Minea will grant the necessary funds for the erection cf » plant both is Auckland and the Thames , having the ism« end in view. Now, that being the oaee, let us consider in which place would its erection be of the greatest benefit and lasting value. Ton say Auokland, on account of its being the centre of the gold fields to the South and the goldfielde whloh are to be in the North in the sweet by-aud-by, and also that the Auckland University has claims based on a recommendation made by a commission held tome year* ago. I say the Thames, on aoaonnt of its beiog the oentre of the present goldfielde, and that we have a Sohool of Mines already in existence—that the Government have already placed a sum to our oredit for the commencement of the plant. That the committee of the Sohool of Mines being composed of the leading aoientific, engineering, mining, and battery men of the place (some of whom have been experimenting for years), I can at once bring their practical experience to bear on the subject. That those who would be taught here are those who have already ohoaen mining as a calling, and would therefore be the class of men who—Professor Brown show* by his argument*—made Frieberg what it is, and would be fitted to take oharge of any mining and reduction works in all their varione details; that the splendid water-power on the Thames) wonld be granted by the looal authorities free of cost, and the maintenance of the plant would be very much cheaper on the Thames than in Auckland. There are other good argu« ments which could be adduced in favour of the Thames, but these, I think, to most reasonable men, will be deemed sufficient. I trnst that no one will think for one moment that in setting out the oase of the Thames School of Mines 1 wish anything in its favour at the expense of the Auckland University, but I am decidedly of opinion that by bringing the supposed claims of the latter institution into the matter, the aims of those who desire to help the mining industry out of its present difficulties, and therefore transform' Auckland in a day (as you pet it), are very likely to be defeated. Therefore I hope that all extraneous matters will be excluded, and the soheme placed before the Minister of Mines on its merits.—l am, &c, Albert Brook, Secretary Thames School of Mines.