THE GOLDFIELDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8668, 10 September 1891, Page 3

THE GOLDFIELDS.

[by telegraph.— association.] Thames, Wednesday. Sharemarket.—Cambria, 2s, sellers 2s 3d ; Consols, sellers Is 2d;; Dives, sellers Is; Magnolia, sellers Is 4d ; Moanataiari, sellers 8s ; Alburnia, sellers 2s 2d ; Orlando, sellers 6d ; Waihi, 19s. ' Saxon.—The cleaning up. of No. 6 level will be completed to-night, and the various drives and stopes will be fully manned to-, morrow morning. Crushing will probably be commenced at the company's battery tomorrow afternoon. May Queen.—A portion of No. 4 lode westward of crosscut ab No. 2 level, was broken down yesterday and to-day. The lode averaged fully two and a-half feet in thickness and showed gold freely. Stoping eastward from the winze will be started in a clay or two. , Victoria.—Operations on No. 4 lode at No. 6 level have been interrupted during the week owing to a lot of debris having accumulated on the floor of the level through the Saxon water draining into it. Men have been employed cleaning ib out all the week, but ib will take another day to complete the job. KARANGAHAKE. [from our own correspondent.] Tenders are now invited for tho construction of the road through tho Waitawheta Gorge, which forms a sort of crosscut on the reefs in this district, and which affords the lowest obtainable starting points for tunnelling purposes. Tenders are also about to be invited for the different works in connection with the new plan which is to be erected for the Crown Company on the flab, where it will be available for the mines at Waihi, Owharoa, and Waitekauri.

Crown Mine.—Just before the accident to the dam, which necessitated a cessation of work in the presenb plant, 32 tons of ore were treated from different sections of the mine with the following result: —Monastery section, 5 tons 6cwb; assay .value, £30 9s per ton. No. 4 level, 6 tons ; assay value, £4 10s per ton. No. 5 level, 12 tons ; assay value, £1616s per ton. No. 5 level, 6 tons ; assay value, £19 2s per ton. No. 5 level, 3 tons ; assay value, £19 per ton. The percentage extracted by Cassel's process was 95 per cent, on the assay, and the total value of the bullion recovered from the above named lots was £570 sterling. Woodstock United.— 10-ton parcel of ore from the No. 3 lode at the low level has just been subjected to pan treatment, for a return of 360z of melted bullion, valued at 51s per ounce. This lob was a fair average of a 30-ton lot which had been fairly well sampled, and its assay value proved to be £18 sterling per ton. It will thus bo seen that the percentage of bullion extracted is a little above 50 per cent, on the assay value of the ore, but the whole of the tailings and slimes have been saved in pits, with a view to having them subjected a second time to pan treatment, from which the manager expects to extract another 10 per cant, on the original assay value of the raw ore.

FRASER'S AMALGAMATING PANS. Our readers will recollect that for some time past one of Mr. J.C. Fraser's new patent amalgamating pans has been in operation afc the Great Mercury Proprietary battery, Kuaotunu, as well as one of Price Brothers' patent pans, and tliey have been operating on the same ores and in the same quantities. The results have shown that Mr. J. C. Fraser's pans are best adapted for saving the very fine gold of the Kuaotunu ores, and that the loss of quicksilver is considerably less. Under date September 3 Mr. A. Peebles, manager of the Great Mercury, sends the following to Mr. J. C. Fraser, the patentee :—" Dear sir,—Herewith I beg to hand you the results of three different tests, extending over 9 weeks, when 625 u/ns of ore were treated by your pan, one of A. and G. Price's, and one of Price's improved on by Mr. Dewar. Result of first crushing, three weeks, 200 tons treated : —Dewar's improved : Amalgam, 15oz 2dwt; loss of silver, 51b. Price's 12oz 14dwt; loss o! silver, l jlli. Fraser's : 350z 6dwt; gain of silver, 3.}lb. Result of second thing, three weeks, 225 tons treated :—Price's : Soz Gdwt; loss of silver, IMb. J. C. Fraser's: Amalgam, M4oz sdwt; gain of silver, 2lb. Result of third crushing, three weeks, 200 tons treated:—Price's: Amalgam, 14oz lOdwt; loss of silver, IMb. Fraser's: Amalgam, 420z 2dwt; gain of silver, 21b, Total from Price's and Dewar's pans, 50oz 12dwt amalgam; Ws of silver, 7:5-1 b. Total amalgam from Fraser's pan 11 loz 13dwt; gain of silver, thus showing that your pan is far in advance of Price's and 1 believe in advance of any pan now in use on our goldfields." HILDA G.M.C. An extraordinary general meeting of the Hilda Gold Mining Co. was held at the offices of Mr. S. T. George, N.Z. Insurance Buildings, at noon yesterday, for the purpose of confirming the following resolution, passed at a meeting heldon the 19th August: —" That the capital of the company be increased to £22,500 by the creation of .30,000 new shares of 5s each, 10,000 of which shall be deemed fully paid up, and 20,000 of which shall be deemed paid up to Id per share." The resolution was duly confirmed. Mr. Thomas Morrin presided. MINE MANAGERS' REPORTS. Caledonian.—The drive 20 feet above No. l level is still being extended eastward on Turtle's leader. The country is of a very kindly character, and is more settled than it has been. The leader is about five inches in thickness, and looks promising. Gold lias been frequently seen in the quartz in breakins it down. The No. 2 reef still maintains its size, and is carrying very nice mineral. Colours of gold ha's been seen in the quartz, but no picked atone has been obtained. Crushing will be commenced at the Cambria battery about Thursday next. There is something iiKe 50 or GO loach of quartz broken out.

Dives. —Since my last report a large reef, supposed to be the Dayspring, has been cub in the crosscut at Ko. 3 level. It has already been penetrated to the extent of six feet, but the hangingwall has not yet been reached. The reef is not all solid quartz, but is composed of several leaders with mullock between. The first met with was eight inches in thickness, containing excellent minerals in which strong dabs and colours of gold were seen. Upon this is about three feet of mullock with quartz backs all through it. When this is passed there is another leader 12 inches in thickness, also carrying excellent mineral, but not in such quantities as is the case in the footwall portion. Another horse of "mullock lies beyond this, and more quartz has been touched, but not broken down. The crosscut will be continued until the hangingwall is reached before starting to open out. About 100 feet of driving eastward on the reef will reach its junction with the main Pride of Karaka flinty. This was left in the right hand wall of the crosscut some distance back to enable us to cut the reef at right angles for opening out both ways as also to shorten the distance in driving, as the fl : nty was tending too much to the eastward, or more nearly parallel with the reef. From the point of intersection there will be 400 feet to our eastern boundary and about (500 feet west, making 1000 feet in all on the line of reef, and 190 feet of backs. I may add that 600 feet in length was stoped out above No. 2 level with, I believe, payable results. Hazklbank. —About 301b of picked stone were obtained from the stopes above No. 1 level, as per wire to you yesterday. The stope going westward looks very well for gold. The stone is carrying a good deal of mineral, and by the appearance of it a patch may be got here at any time. There, is nothing new to report from the other parts of the mine. The quartz going through the battery has been shaping poor this last two days, but it is looking a little better this morning. John Bull (Kuaotunu).—The reef mentioned in my wire of the 4th instant has been cut through. It is about one foot thick, and very heavily mineralised. I forward sample per lona to-day.. The field rock through which the drive is passing at ; resent is a nice sandstone, and shoots well. Should this class of country contini ■? the contractors will get on much quicker than hitherto. Crackshot.—ln the last few feet of driving we have entered into a change of country. It is now much harder, and not so tough as it has been in the past". I believe we are now getting into the solid formation of the main' spur, and there are now plenty of minerals in the rock. \'here is also a little water coming from the cross lode. The drive has been extended five feet this week. New Ai/burnia. — Battery level: The stopes on Dixon's reef has been securing us a good supply of crushing dirt during the past week. No gold has been seen here during the week, still the reef continues to carry good minerals. There are 30 loads of quartz from the stopes treated at the Cambria and the remainder at the Saxon battery, which will be finished about Wednesday. The winze on the footwall leader from this to the Whau level has reached a depth of 42 | feet. Very little quartz is being broken i here, as it is necessary to hole through with

all possible speed on account of the air being rather light in the drive. Whau level : The drive on the footwall leader at this level is now penetrating a good firm sandstone country. About ten feet back from the present face a break crossed the drive, which caused the leader to be rather disturbed. Since leaving the break the quartz has formed into a nice compact leader, and on shooting down the portion stripped on Saturday gold was Seen freely distributed through the quartz. Calliope.—The drive has been extended about five feet, and the lode broken down. It is rather smaller than it was, being about four inches wide, a few colours of gold being seen in the quartz. The leading stope is now carried along about 35 feet, the lode averaging about six inches wide, and when broken down on Thursday strong colours of gold were seen. " The drive has been timbered up and shoot put in, and a rise is being put up to enable a second stope being taken oft. There is also a considerable quantity of quartz stripped, which will be broken down about the middle of the week.

THE PUHIPUHI SILVERFIELD. [by telegraph.— correspondent.] Whangarei, Wednesday. News from the Prospectors' at Puhipuhi states that the winze being sunk on the south end of the main -shoot) of silver, where the lode contracts to 3 feet G inches, is down 10 feet from No. 1 level, and carries a strong lode of stone, showing good sulphides. , The intermediate level from the winze connecting with the low level is still being pushed north, but what there is of a lode is no good at all. Nothing is expected till the silver shoot is struck Driving the level north to Camp Creek continues. The lode is making, and the country is chang--ing for the better, but not much sulphide is showing yet. The battery resumed crushing on Monday. Good stuff is going through. Several directors are going to the mine to-morrow to forward operations.