THE PUHIPUHI SILVER FINDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVI, Issue 9531, 25 November 1889, Page 5

THE PUHIPUHI SILVER FINDS.

i ■:..-■,..■;•■ '♦, •'■ ■ : CORRECTED RESULTS OF THE CRUSHING. INTENTIONS OF THE GOVERNMENT. [BY TKLEGBAPH.—OWN , 00RKESP0NDBNT3.] Wanoakei, Saturday. "Fowbr reports of the trial crashing of Fahipuhi ore have reduced, it to 2740z. of silver and 13dwt. of gold to the ton. The first report was too good; even this is an excellent return, considering the sizo and extent of the reefs. - v Another company is being formed here, and other prospectors are going to Puhi--polii from Kawakawa, and elsewhere. The first message came in cypher, and was read wrong. The result of the orushing is said to be nearly pure silver ;.and strong hopes aro entertained that Puhipuhi .will be one of tho beet mining districts in the colony. Wellington, Sunday. I am informed that no proclamation of -the Puhipuhi ground can be made until more reliable returns shall have been received of the actual average, yield of the precious metal from a larger area than has yet been tested. . Tho information which the Mines Department possess ab present is uncertain; that is to say it does not distinguish whether the rich yield reported is obtained from a small parcel of specimen Btone or from a lot of ore over an extended area. When the information required shall have come to hand the field will be proclaimed. .Afc the eamo time the public should be warned of the consequence of any premature rush. The Mines Department are quite-alive to the consequences of any action which would encourage hazardous speculation. The present inaction is simply pending the receipt of positive testimony as to "the extent of the area which may be I proclaimed. i A good deal of public interest is now being manifested intne discovery of diver reefs in Puhipuhi, especially since the results of an actual test of the ore have been made known, and several Auckland gentlemen have gone to Whangarei for the purpose of ascertaining as far as possible the nature of the find. Prom the first there have been great difficulties encountered by the prospectors and those associated with them. In the first place they applied for a prospecting, liconse, which was granted to them, but it transpired that this was invalid, having been issued without authority, and the syndicate then applied for a lease, and deposited £20 in order to pay survey charges; but although that money has been lodged more than two months no survey has been made, nor have they received any reply. They are, therefore, naturally reticent in order that their rights may be secured before they make public the nature of their discoveries. The Government appears to have all along shown a disinclination to open the Puhipuhi, fearing the destruction of the kauri forest; and, as will be seen from our Wellington correspondent's telegram, the Government will not yet open the place for mining purposes until they are further satisfied as to the genuineness of the discovery. It appears, however, to be now established that the district contains silver ore, and although the first report of the result of the ore tested at Waiorongo <n ai was exaggerated, owing, as our Whangarei correspondent says, to the misreading of a cypher telegram, still the actual result is very encouraging. A gentleman who recently visited the district to investigate and report regarding the laying of a tramway through Puhipuhi informs us that after all it miiy be found that tho discovery has not been made in the Puhipuhi but in the Kuranui district adjoining, and should that prove to be the case the difficulty which Government seems to fear may be removed. He was then shown some silver'ore, but was not shown the place from which it was taken. It seomod to him to be a very encouraging sample. • The prospectors' party or association consists of ten shareholders, and one of these writing to his brother in Auckland, states that he has been offered £150 for half of his tenth This at once places a commercial value of £3000 on the property, but whether that may be an exaggerated or a low value, there is at present no means of ascertaining. The prospectors are not desirous that the field should be proclaimed until their rights are secured, and, at all events, the Government will not do so until they have official returns before them. An application for a prospecting license has been forwarded to the Crown Lands Office at Auckland by a party not connected with the association, but as the Crown Lands Commissioner has been absent, it has not yet been dealt with, and will probably come before the Lands Board at its ing.