THE GOLDFIELDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9145, 29 August 1888, Page 5

THE GOLDFIELDS.

[FROM OCR OWN CORRESPONDENT.] Thames, Tuesday. As an outcome of the result of Messrs. Plumb and Bell's visit to the Sydney properties at Marototo, it is understood that they will advise the erection of a small plant, on the pan amalgamation principle, at once on the scene of operations. In the meantime the mines are to be thoroughly prospected and opened up. Mr. Bell has returned to the Thames, but Mr. Plumb proceeded yesterday to Waihi, and from thence proceeds to Te Aroha, being anxious to gain a thorough knowledge of the resources of the upper country districts. [BY TELEGRAPH.—OWN CORRESPONDENTS.] Thames, Tuesday. Saxon. —On Friday last an interim retorting took place of amalgam accrued from general dirt crushed during the previous fortnight, for a yield of 190oz:s lOdwts gold To-day the amalgam obtained from 2301ba picked stone and general dirt crushed since Friday was retorted for 221 ozs gold, making a total of 411ozs lOdwts. New Devon. — The new proprietors intend resuming operations shortly. Mr. Myers has completed the purchase of Mr. Crawford's special claim, on behalf of himself and other Sydney gentlemen, the deeds transferring the mine having been signed last evening. The terms have not been made public, but it is understood the new proprietors will endeavour to float a company in Melbourne to take over the property, and that operations will be commenced forthwith by the sinking of a shaft near the Waio-Karaka reservoir. The Mining Inspector, Mr. George Wilson, returned from his visit to the upper country to-day in connection with the collection of exhibits for the Melbourne Exhibition. Mr. Wilson will now gather together all Thames exhibits, and probably takethem to Auckland on Friday. There will be about ten tons altogether, and some of the stone is exceedingly rich.

TRENTON G.M. CO.

The annual general meeting of shareholders was convened yesterday at the company's office, and lapsed for want of a quorum. Subjoined are the directors and mine manager's reports .-— Directors' Report.—Auckland, August 28,1888. To the shareholders : Gentlemen, —Your directors have the honour to submit the annual report for the year ended August Ifi, 1888, and Wance-sheet for that period. The summary of the balance-sheet is as follows :—Receipts : Cash balance from last year, £9 0s 9d ; calls received, £1625 16s 6d; gold, lOloz ldwt, sold for £280 15s 4d; tailings, £1 9s (5d ; weatherboard house sold, £4 ; McDermott's deposit, £5; bank overdraft, £210 4s 4d : total, £2136 6s sd. Disbursements : Wages paid, £(>B7 ss; general mine and other charges, £884 Is sd; Moanataiari Extended machinery and pump, £500; purchasing contribution to Big Pump, £60; McDermott's deposit refunded, £5 : total, £2136 6s sd. The mine manager's report, which will be read, supplies all particulars of the mining and other operations of the company for the past year; but the directors cannot help bringing to notice the gratifying fact of 104oz of gold won from the mine during working through the Saxon claim, as a proof that there is gold in the ground, and as an earnest of what may be excepted when crosscutting takes place from the shaft. Sinking the shaft has been necessarily slow, on account of hard country. Happily the hard rock has now disappeared, and the remainder of the sinking will be rapid. The shaft has now reached the depth of 398 feet. Although the small winding engine on the brace of the shaft had to be removed and replaced with heavy machinery, the powerful engine now erected was purchased and placed in position at a small cost. The surplus machinery on hand, gear and pump, for sale, are valued in all at £380. The latter amount will be realised when an opportunity offers; and with £150 calls yet to come in as against the overdraft, shows a healthy state of finance, while the equipment and appliances in possession of the company embrace everything on a complete scale. The directors hope to see mining operations when the shait is sunk the required depth soon begun. Mixe Manager's Report. — Thames, 25th August, 1888. To the shareholders : Gentlemen,—l have the honour to submit the following report for your information :—ln the beginning part of the year arrangements were entered into with the Saxon Company fer this company to work through that company's mine on certain conditions, the first being that this company would pay half the cost of driving the No. 4 level of that company on the lode up to this company's boundary, which was a distance of about 250 feet. When this drive reached the boundary this company commenced work in their own ground : the drive was then extended a distance of 175 feet on the footwall lode; also four stopes were carried along from the boundary for some distance. From these works 79 loads of quartz were obtained, which gave the good return of 104oz of gold, but after doing this work it was found to be utterly impossible to work this company's ground to any advantage, through that company's mine. It was then deemed advisable to stop any further operations there, and it was then decided to resume sinking this company's own shaft. The small engine that was on the shaft was considered too light to sink the shaft much deeper than it was at that time, and the new engine that was on the Moanataiari Extended Company's shaft was bought to replace it. The new engine was erected with as little delay as possible, and the deepening of the shaft commenced. It was then sunk 6 feet by wages men, but the country being hard, I advised the directors to let it on contract, which they accordingly did, by letting 100 feet. The contractors made slow progress, having only sunk it 50 feet in nine weeks. This week the country has been much better, and they have put it down a distance of 11 feet since Friday last. There are small stringers of quartz running through the country in the bottom of the shaft, which leads me to believe that it is now through the hard bar. The depth of the shaft is now 398 feet. The prospects of the company are much more encouraging than they were twelve months ago, as at that time no lodes or leaders of any importance had been discovered in the mine, but since then the footwall and hanging lodes in the Saxon mine have been worked into this company's ground, and in both cases payable gold has been found in those lodes in this company's ground; and seeing that those lodes have come into the ground, there is every probability of yet intersecting the Prince Imperial lodes, either in the shaft or the crosscut tiiat will be put in to intersect those lodes. I consider the prospects of the mine very good.—Jamks Coutts.