THE GOLDFIELDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8671, 14 September 1891, Page 6

THE GOLDFIELDS.

[FROM OUR own correspondents.] Thames, Saturday. Trenton.— contractors for the extension of the main crosscut at No. 5 level have driven a distance of about 45 feet, bub so far the country has been of a very unfavourable description for gold, and no leaders have been intersected. A little work is being done in the eastern {drive upon the new reef at the same lever, the reef being about 15 inches in thickness, and looking very kindly. No gold is seen, however, in the quartz broken. A Test Parcel.The treatment of the test parcel of one ton of ore broujjhb down from Waitekauri by Messrs. Ber*i»ham and Mason, two well-known prospectors, has been completed at the School of Mines by Mr. Park with very successful results, as 90 percent, of the gold, and 68 por cent, of the silver it contained was extracted from an assay value of* £34 per ton. The ore was broken from a largo boulder found in a creek, and contained a large proportion of silver sulphides, besides considerable, but very fine free gold. The treatment adopted was wet crushing with the ordinary stampers, combined with pan amalgamation with chemicals. By the old battery process it would have beon found impossible to havo saved more than a small percentage of the the bullion on account of tho difficulty which would have been experienced in keeping the amalgamated copper plates free from the heavy silver sulphides, as owing to their high specific gravity, they would have accumulated on tho plates, and thus prevented tho gold from coming into contact with tho mercury, which fact, no doubt, accounts for tho non-success of tho old Martha G.M. Co.atWaihi, when dealing with the ore comingfrom tho same reef as the Waihi G. and S. M. Co. are now so successfully operating upon. The result, however, of the test parcel in question shows that wet crushing and subsequent pan amalgamation with chemicals can be substituted for dry crushing, which is necessarily more slow and expensive. The tailings from tho plates were collected in a series of settling pits connected below water level, and it was found that only a small percentage of loss was sustained by tho' final overflow. This test is cminontlv satisfactory, and has an important bearing upon the successful treatment of ores containing both gold and silver, as it proves that ores of an average assay value of £3 can be profitably treated by the process adopted in the present instance.

Saxon.—The drainage difficulty having at last been overcome so far as No. 6 level is concerned, operations upon the various reefs are now in full swing again, and crushing has been commenced on behalf of the company, so that regular returns of gold will no doubt in future be banked every fornight, as was previously done before the late stoppage. The work of cleaning up the sediment and dirt that fell away in places during the time tho water was in the level proved a very tedious and obnoxious job, but Mr. Dunlop has kept a number of men employed all the week in cleaning out the various drives and putting things in general in order again, so that now the worst of the work has been accomplished, and most of the faces are once more manned. The prospects of No. G level upon Nos. 1 and 2 reefs eastward of No. 2 break, and also upon what is termed the new reef, are very encouraging indeed, for it will be remembered that prior to the water invading the workings frequent parcels of picked stone were obtained from each of the reefs mentioned, and now that operations have been resumed upon them it is probable that further hauls will soon be reported. Up to the present a total distance of about 40 feet has been driven upon No. 1 reef eastward of No. '2 break, and it has averaged between two end three feet in thickness. It bears a very promising appearance, and has shown gold freely so far ; but yesterday a clay head crossed the face, and somewhat disturbed it, but the quartz is again making solid on the other side of the head. A leading stope is in progress over the drive, but scarcely any quartz lias been broken at this point since resuming work. The drive upon the new reef is in a distance of 20 feet past No. 2 break, and it averages about IS inches in thickness. At present, however, the reef is divided into two portions near the floor of the drfve, but conies together as it makes upward. No picked stone has been obtained here since resuming work, but prior to the stoppage several parcels were obtained. A leading stope is now underway above the drive, and gold is seen pretty freely at that point. Between Nos. 1 and 2 breaks five stopes are in progress upon No. 1 reef, three of them being eastward of No. 1 winze, and two westward. In these stopes a width of from 5 to 10 feet is taken out in places, the reef sometimes being divided into several ribs of quartz, in some of which gold is sometimes seen very freely, and an occasional pound or two of picked stone secured. The drive upon No. 2 reef has not yet been cleaned out further than No. 2 break, which leaves GO feet further to go to reach the face. At the point where the break crosses the drive, however, a start has been made to prepare for driving eastward upon the break with the object of effecting a connection with the workings upon No. 1 reef. To accomplish this will require about 80 feet of driving, but during its progress a large "blow" of quartz is expected to be met with similar to what was found at No. 5 level, and which turned out to be good crushing dirt. When this work is accomplished, stoping upon No. 2 reef will then probably bo commenced, there being now between 300 and 400 feet opened up on its course, while it ranges from a foot to 18 inches in thickness, and has shown gold pretty freely. • Driving upon No. 3 reef has also been commenced back near the shaft, there still being about 40 feet to go before reaching the Victoria boundary. Above No. 5 level stoping is in progress upon the new reef, which is looking fairly well, and has already given a little picked stone. The * crosscut towards the same body at No. .3 level has not yet been resumed, but it will be shortly. Crushing with the full force of stampers . was commenced on Thursday afternoon.

[BY TELEGRAPH. —OWN CORRESPONDENTS.] Thames, Saturday.

Sharkmarkkt.—Cambria, sellers 2s 3d, buyers 2s ; Consols, sellers Is Id ; Calliope, sellers Gd; Dives, sellers' Is; Lone Hand, sellers Is Gd ; Moanataia.ri, sellers 8s; Alburnia, sellers' 2i 2d; Orlando, sellers 6d ; Saxon, sellers Gs 3d. Cambria. —This company's crushing of 111 loads of quartz from all parts of the mine was completed to-day, for an excellent return of 1550z melted gold. ', Saxon.—A parcel of 251b of picked stone was obtained from the new reef in the eastern drive at No. 6 level, to-day. Some of the stones were very pood, and contained a good deal of ruby silver, which is an excellent feature for picked stone. Hazklbank.— manager purposes having a cleaning up and retorting on Tuesday next, by which time the stampers employed at Moanataiari battery will have been at work a fortnight. There is nothing particular to report in the mine. Te Aroua, Saturday. For three weeks' run Mr. Adams cleaned up on Wednesday last for a satisfactory return of 108-ioz of gold from quartz from thee Hero mine. Mr. Adams has put on ten motmen this week. The Ferguson Syndicate are demolishing their battery, having sold a great portion to the Crown Company, Karangahake.

[BY TELEGRAPH.—PRESS ASSOCIATION.]

Reefton, Saturday. The gold returns for tho week are— Globe, 191oz amalgam from 190 tons ; No. 2 Dark, 13loz amalgam from 95 tons.

MINK MANAGERS' REPORTS.

Dives.There is no sign of the hangingwall, yet we are now in about eleven feet from the footwall, anil the lust hole that was bored before leaving this evening touched quartz again. I believe that when we touch the hangingwall wo shall have a larger body of quartz than any yet passed through. This portion of the reef we are now penetrating is all brown sandstone, and the quartz the same colour. As I mentioned in my report, the quartz is all in ribs, which are now from two to four inches in thickness with 18 inches of sandstone between them, all of which are running towards the footwall. They carry excellent mineral, and it is very difficult to see gold in this class of stone, it being so brown. I may state that this is the same formation the reefs carry through No. 2, also in the Welcome, and it will certainly surprise me if it does not crush fair at the battery. The Pinfire boundary, from the present face is 297 feet. Alfred.—The contractors have completed the winze connecting the intermediate with t the low-level, the distance sunk by contract

being 93 feet, the winze was down 6 feet when they started, this will makes the block | between the two levels 99 feet. The quartz is now all broken down and trucked into the | new hopper. I purpose starting four men to extend the low-level on the reef, and as soon, as the drive is advanced sufficiently for that purpose I will start the leading stope. In the mean time I will crush the quartz oroken by the contractors. Yesterday we sent down 13 loads of quartz from the intermediate hopper, this was chiefly broken from the winze, the balance coining from the stopes which was broken before the tributes were let. I sent this down in order to let; the tributers pass their quartz through the hopper, but will not be able to get into the battery before the beginning of next week. There are about 16 loads in the new hopper, broken from the low-level, this I will send down as soon as I can get into the battery, The present face in the low-level having passed through the mottled ground is now in a good cold-bearing class of country, and I have hopes of soon meeting with gold. Should this block prove payable we can push the drive a-head east £00 feet, as it is that distance from the present point to our boundary. This would take a long time to work, and with a good staff of men. Moanataiari.—l am starting two men today to clean up and repair the Unicorn level to get into Charles Wilson's old winze sunk on a specimen leader in the footwall of the big Unicorn reef. There was also a winze sunk on the big reef by Mr. Comer when manager of the Reuben Parr, but as there was then a lot of water to contend with the work was not profitable. The water is, however, now all gone, so that there will be no trouble in that direction.

May Queen.The No. 4 lode was broken down in tho western drive at No. 2 level. Gold was seen through the quartz. It is not broken down up to tho break yet. The lode was also broken down iu the eastern drive at No. 2 level. Gold was seen through the quartz. There is a splendid class of mineral through the lode. , Norfolk. —During the past week the. drive from the rise at No. 2 level has been extended eight feet. The reef has been prospecting much better than usual. The country in tho low level is still very tight. The contractors have giveu their contract up, therefore I have put oil six wages men to get through the tight ground. For the week the drive has been extended a further distance of nine feet. .; .

Red ' Mercury (Kuaotunu).—The mine manager telegraphed on Saturday : Ninetyseven ounces hot water amalgam for 68 hours, with five head; nothing taken from box or pan.