THE MINES STATEMENT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8661, 2 September 1891, Page 5

THE MINES STATEMENT.

[EV TELEGRAPH.—SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT. Wellington, Tuesday. In his statement laid on the table to-day as to the mines of the colony Mr. odd on says:— On the Puhipuhi field, where the latest discoveries have been made, very little has yet been clone to prove the payable nature of any of the lodes. One small reduction plant has recently been' erected which will afford facilities for testing some of the ore in bulk, and the value of the lodes ascertained. However, this plant is merely a prospecting one, and although it may test the value of the ore, it is not one likely to be worked economically. There are numerous lodes in this locality containing silver, which is generally found in a free state near the outcrops, but so little work has yet been done that it would be premature to express a decided opinion ns to the extent or payableness of the field. The outlook is, however, most favourable. On the northern portion of the Hauralci peninsula the Kuaotuim field promises to give good returns; but the gold is in, so minute particles, and so finely disseminated through the quartz, that it is difficult to save it with the appliances now in use. A large expenditure < has been made at Coromandel by two English companies, and a considerable amount of work has been done. One of these companies, the Kapanga, hos met with fair success; but the other, the Coromandel, lias not yet found any lode payable for working. A limited number of men are employed in Scotty's, Tokatca, Royal Oak, and Harboui View Companies; but the latter three companies are not carrying on the workings as energetically as they might. The Thames field, which is by far the largest in • > the JLiuraki peninsula, is not turning out so much gold as it did in former years; yet the mines are the;means of supporting a large population, and some of them hold out prospects of being profitable investments for their owners for years to come. The Saxon, Moanataiari, Fame and Fortune, Waiotahi, Occidental, Cambria, Trenton, and May Queen, were the largest gold-pro-ducing mines on that field last year. Three of these have been dividend-paving companies for several years past. The Saxon, with a paid-up capital of £4033, has paid £15,417; the Waiotahi, with a paid-up capital of £15,000, lias paid £24,000; while the Cambria lias paid £79,357 in dividends, with a paid-up capital of only £1181. The deepest workings are in the Saxon mine. At 'Waihi one of the finest plants in the colony has been erected, and a large additional plant is now in course of construction. The Waihi Co. who are the proprietors of the plant referred to, purchased during last year the .Martha mine for £3000 in order to show the value of improved machinery and appliances for the treatment of auriferous and argentiferous ores. The Martha Company worked this mine for eight years, and could recover only from 4dwt to 6uwt of gold per ton, which merely paid the working expenses, but since the present company have worked the mine, they can get handsome returns. One parcel of the ore sold to the Cassel Company, realised £100 per ton. The lode i 3 the largest of any yet worked in the colony, it being 45 feet wide in places, and contains fairly good ore all through it. The present indications show it as being the most valuable mining property in the di trict.

It Is to be regretted that the Australian syndicate who purchased the plant and mining properties of Messrs. Firth and Clark, at Waiorongomai, Te Aroha, did not meet with success. After expending about £00.000 in the purchase of the properties, and in making additions to the plant-, they omitted to leave a portion of their capital to prospect the mine, and the result has been that recently the plant and properties have been purchased for £3500. Notwithstanding the great loss sustained by this company or syndicate there are reasons to believe that the mines will turn out a deal of c;okl, and that Te Aroha will yet become a large mining district. According to the returns supplied by the proprietors of the different milling plants in the North Island the quantity of retorted gold obtained last year from the various fields was as follows: Coromandelj 95380z 6dwt; Thames, 38,1120z 12dwt; Ohinemuri, 12790z lOdvvt; Te Aroha, 51 To?., making the total gold returns 49,7570z 14dwt, representing a value of £128,416, and in addition to this there were 42,5730z-14dwt of bullion of a value of £2(3,325, and ores was sold to the value of £-1508, thus making the value of the produce of the North Island goldfields to be £159,249, whereas according to the Customs returns the quantity entered for duty for exportation for the same period was 38,G300z, having a value of £153,678. The amount received in goldfields revenue for the year ending March 31 last was £19,074, and in gold duty £16,961, making a total of ; £36,035. The average number of miners employed on the goldfields for that period was 19,409, showing that the average tax on the goldminety in addition to the amount he contributes to the revenue by the consumption of dutiable goods, is £2 13s 9d per man per annum. Tho total amount of revenue from the goldfields up to the end of March last was £2,417.094. With regard to coal mining, Mr. Seddon states that last year an important coalfield was opened at Hikurangi, in the Whangarei district, and 3743 tons of coal obtained, equal if not superior, to the semi-bituminous coal worked at Kawakawa, the Bay of Islands. There is a large extent of coal in this new field, but before it can be brought to market at a reasonable cost a railway or tramway will have to be constructed to connect the mines with tho port of shipment. . The coal is nearly exhausted in the Kawakawa mine. Mr. Seddon goes on to say : There are three things necessary in the development of the mining industry, roads and tracks, water supplies, and prospecting, and works of this character required a. certain amount of Government aid. There are many places in the colony comparatively unexplored, including the northern portion of the Auckland district, and the construction of roads and tracks is indispensable. It is proposed to ask the House for 'a vote to aid people who choose to construct largo works for snppying water to the goldfields. It is the duty of the Government, says Mr. Seddon, to assist the miners in prospecting and ; exploring. A small vote is to be asked for that purpose. In order that the work should be done systematically and economically it should be under the direction of the local authority, or the Miners' Association in the district. Mr. Seddon mentions in terms of praise the work done by the Thames School of Mines.