THE GOLDFIELDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8583, 3 June 1891, Page 6

THE GOLDFIELDS.

[FROM OKiOWJ* CORRESPONDENT.] Thames, Tuesday. Moanataiabi.—The monthly retorting today resulted in the return of 318oz of melted gold, for which 720 tons of general dirt and 120 pounds of picked stone were treated. Victoria.—The following tenders were to-day received for the extension of the crosscut at No. 3 level a further distance of 100 feet:—W. Hawkes, 19s per foot; S. VV. Gribble, 13s 3d ;.D. Henderson, 17s 9d ; S. Hill, 17s 6d; F. Wilton, 17s 6d. The latter tender was accepted, and the party commences operations at once.

[BY TELEGRAPH. '■ —OWN CORRESPONDENTS. ] Thames, Tuesday. Sharemarket.— May Queen, sellers 6s; Moanataiari, 7s 3d, sellers 7s 6d ; Victoria, sellers Is 2d, buyers Is.Magnolia.—This company's crushing is expected to be finished to-morrow afternoon. At the mine, the drive upon No. 2 leader has been resumed, and it is intended shortly to commence stoping eastward from the winze. Paeroa, Tuesday. Mr. Russell's Waitekauri quartz mill started work yesterday on ore from the old main level, Waitekauri, and is working splendidly. THE LATE BRIGHT SMILE G.M. CO. Thames, Tuesday. Messrs. C. E. Purchas and W, G. Kenrick, solicitors, have received the following letter from the Mines Department, ro an application by them that a portion of the rent due by the late Bright Smile Gold Mining Company should be remitted :—" In reply to your letter of the 9th instant I am directed by the Hon. the Minister of Mines to inform you that the Warden has been instructed to forward vouchers for payment to the miners of the amount of their claims.for wages against the Bright Smile Gold Mining Company out of the amount deducted by the Mining Registrar for rent, which should have been paid in advance, before judgment was obtained in the Warden's Court.

MINE MANAGERS' REPORTS. Moanataiari.—ln the intermediate drive there is little change to report, the footwall lode having not yet been met with. Good crushing dirt is be.ing obtained from the atopes on the main reef over this level where there is from two to three feet in thickness of qiMi tz being broken out. There is also a nice looking leader .lying off into the footwall which will have to be followed. 100 feet level: The winze has now attained the required depth to connect with the intermediate, so that I shall how open out and drive westward on the course of the lode. None of the quartz has been broken down for the past week, as I was anxious to complete the sinking as speedily as possible. A considerable improvement has taken place in the stopes over the south drive, oii wnat has been termed the flat lead, but is now without doubt the Golden Age reef. Ten or twelve pound of good picked stone having been obtained from the solid or brick portion of reef. A; good supply of payable quartz is now being broken here, and should the prospects continue as at present driving on the reef in the levol will be started directly. The stopes on the vertical or No. 2 footwall lead hayti also been supplying better grade' quartz with a few pounds of: good picked stone every breaking down.. There is but little change in the other stopes and workings throughout the mine. Picked stone for the week, 401bs; amalgam, 3290z5. The picked stone is now being passed- under the single stamper, and the remainder of the stamper boxes cleaned out, so that retorting will take place to-morrow morning. The; weather being cold I fear the amalgam will not yield so well.> The Sylvia.—Since my last No. 7 stope has been extended 35 feet. The reef in this stope averages .4 feet; the ore is of good quality, the whole of which is sent to the mill for treatment. In breaking down the reef in thiss.tope on Wednesday there were some dab 3 of gold showing in the stone. No. 8 stope has been extended 30 feet. The reef in this stope is 5 feet, and produces good ore, the whole of which is sent to the mill. No. 9 stope has been extended 23 feet. The reef in/this stope is 3 feet 6 inches, and also produces good ore; TST6; 10 stone has been extended 37 feet. . The reef in this stope is 6 feet, the whole of which is the. mill i for treatment. The whole of the stopes continue to look well for 200 feet- along. The contractors started driving'weston main lode in low level onr2sth ultimo, and up to date have driven a distance'bf 25 feet. The reef fop the whole of this distance will average s.feet, It is a well-defined body of quartz, heavily mineralised,- and- on Wednesday there tvere a few stones selected from this face with dabs of gold, through the stone. The whole of the dirt broken in this face has been sent to the mill. I discovered a reef in Taylor's level, 7 feet wide, which, gives payable results. I am not able to define at present what extent of ground is intact without doing some little work: Junction.—The main crosscut has been advanced between four and five feet during the week. To-day the country is better for drilling. Souvenir.—The result of this week's operations has been the cleaning out, laying off tramway and timbering of level for a further distance of 30 feet, thus making the total distance of main level 110 feet.

City of l>UNEi)i!f.-f-During last week we have been engaged iin" driving on the course of the reef in No. Siievel. The reef in the face is a considerable size and very hard. I have deemed it advisable to discontinue driving for the present. I have started a crosscut from the present face of level to cut the black or footwall reef. This should be to hand in a few feet, as the two reefs continue to run almost parallel 1 . Waitemata. —I liave succeeded in getting all the quartz down to the bottom of the creek, and the most of it to the batlery. I will commence crushing on Tuesday next. Very little has been done in the mine this week. I have had the men working on the road most of the time.

PuiirruHi Prospectors' Company (Limited). —Ten tons of ore have been treated for a return of 12150z hot water squeezed amalgam. A little was at hrst experienced in calcining the first kiln of ore, owing to the wood, etc., being damp. lam E leased to si;ate; however, that that difficulty as been overcome, and we havo now on hand 60 tons of ore calcined and going through pulveriser. Everything now is working smoothly, and during the eneuing week I hope to operate on much larger quantities with equal success. Silverton (Waihi).—The tributers have opened out on the footwall side of the lode from the bottom of their winze, and, as tho result, they have secured nearly 2cwt of good picked stone, together with some first-class general ore, in which' the precious metal is Freely visible. Here the ore body looks very promising underfoot, and it is more than likely, that the tributers will continue sinking operations. Two tons of the company's tailings have been delivered at Karangahake, where they will be treated next week ?,t Mr. Cox's pan plant, and I will send you tho results as early thereafter as possible. The other five-ton lot is now in transit for Paeroa, where it should be delivered in time to be sent to Auckland by the steamer Ruby on Wednesday next. Frkedom.—During the past week both the eastern and western drives at tho new intermediate level have been at a standstill, owing to the men who are usually employed here having been engaged forwarding quartz to the battery,, and looking after the same while being treated. The leading stope over the western drive has been taken alonjE eight feet for the week. The lode here in about six inches wide, and is of a promising appearance. In the eastern drive the lode has been broken down past the bend meDtioned in last week's report, and shows g thickness of about eight inches crushin dirt, with abundance of favourable minerals, and a little gold through the ore. There is no doubt but what this is the junction of McLean's leader.

Calliope.—The drive on the hanging-wall branch has been extended ten feot, making a total distance of 18 feet up to Thursday evening, when I received your wire to discontinue it, and drive on footwall branch. The hangingwall branch is still trending to the eastward, and if it continues its present course will strike the Calliope Coinpany'sa ground at no great distance from the corner peg. The leader which is still about two inches wide, is running between two hard bars, about four feet apart, and the channel of country between them is of a pood description for gold. The quartz contains soma very promising mineral indications, and a colour or two of gold hast been seen. Since work was started on footwall branch, about four feet of the leader has been stripped and broken down, to enable the drive being carried on footwall of leader. At present it is split up into Hinall stringers, which contain a little mineral, and a colour of gold was seen when breaking down. Orlando.—No. 3 sfcopo is advanced to a distance of 170 feet. The reef in this stope is about 15 inches in width, of fair grade ore. Nos. 4 and 5 stopes are advanced respectively 130 and 100 feet. The reef is much larger in these stopes, being fully 18 inches in width, producing good quality ore, also a few pounds of. picked stone arc occasionally obtained. No. 6stope is advanced to a distance of 70 feet, Tho reef in this stope is fully two feet in thickness. Several parcels of picked stone were secured from this stope. No. 7 of back stope is carried along for about 30 feet. The reef is about 18 inchea in width.

When shooting it down on Friday, about 51b' of picked stone were selected from the quartz. The'height of this stope at present is about 40 feet above the level; I estimate the eurface averages 150 feet above the level, so that we have on this reef alone a large block of ground to work out. I have driven about 520 feet on the footwall leader. This leader nyerages about six inches in thickness. Some nice gold ia seen through this leader; also a few picked stone are occasionally selected from the quartz. Crushing has been started at the Cambria battery with 10 head of stampers. There are about 80 loads to put through, which I do not expect to have completed before the end of the.week. So far the crushine is looking satisfactory, and I believe there will be a fair return.

GOLDMINING IN OTAGO. [by telegraph.—press association.] Don'edtn, Tuesday. The Roxburg Amalgamated Sluicing Company have obtained 200oz of gold for the past four weeks. The company appear to have struck the old river bed, and there is said to be indications of. the stuff becoming richer. The Island Block Company are said to have had a return of 200oz for eight days work.