WEST AFRICAN GOLDFIELDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 12000, 24 June 1902, Page 5

WEST AFRICAN GOLDFIELDS.

FOUR VISITS BY A NEW ZEALANDER. OFF TO SIBERIA. [FROM our own correspondent.] London, May 16. On Monday I received a visit from Mr. K. G. L. Kenrick, a son of a late warden of the Thames gold mining district, who has spent some time in West Australia, but who for some four years or so has made London his headquarters.- In that time, however, he has undertaken no fewer than four journeys to tho Gold Coast, or the West African goldfields, as they are now termed.

" It is just like a great many other fields. It will have, or has, one or two good properties," said Mr. Kenrick. "But it has a great number of indifferent ones. It has advantages in the way of transport; there is practically no want of water, such as you find in Coolgardie; and the whole of the country is well timbered. In fact, it is too well timbered; vegetable growth is so rapid that if you do not keep the place clear you soon lose your house." » " What class of mining is carried on there '!" I inquired. "At present it is nearly all reefing," was Mr. Kenrick's reply. " There are, I believe, several dredging propositions being started, and for these they are getting machinery. But up to the present it-is practically all reefing. They have not had to cyanide up to the present. But the gold is very fine, and I have no doubt they will have to cyanide some time or othor." Mr. Kenrick having mentioned that he was leaving for Siberia this week, I asked if he was going on business connected with gold winning. "Yes," he said. "I have to report on some properties in Eastern Siberia, not far from the Manehurian border. I shall not be a hundred miles away from it. At present the work is all done by Siberians, who have very primitive methods of washing. In spite of that, however, there is no doubt they got a very large percentage of gold. But then they work very slowly and with I very little skill. One great drawback is I that the ground is frozen all the year round. i During the warm weather it only thaws, I believe, to four feet below the surface, and ; then they have only thaee or four months i for working in the year. The rest of the 'time everything is frozen. When they get "jater machinery, however, they will be able to work down to bedrock and possibly get fi/iher returns than they have been getting.^ "Have you heard to what it runs there ?" V It is all ' placer' miningalluvial—up to tlu'3 present. And I do not like to speak of the reports I have heard; I want to see for my'self. From native reports they seem to hatfe taken very rich stuff out. As I have said, I am going out to report. Three engineers are to go with me and we shall employ Siberian labour. That, I believe, is fairly cheap, though I have heard that in some'' districts as much as 6s per day is asked") However, I rather doubt it, because I know that in other parts of Siberia labour is vory cheap, something like 5d or 6d per day. ißut that, of course, I shall have to find o|ut." Mr (Kenrick expects to be away some six months; he travels to Eastern Siberia by the trains-Siberian railway, and expects to return by way of Japan and America.