MINING NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15390, 27 August 1913, Page 7

MINING NEWS.

WAIHJ.

TEE CORRECTED RETURNS,

The quarterly circular, under date July 22, issued by the" Waihi Gold Mining Company is just to hand. The corrected returns up to March 15 are contained in the circular In a table previously published the corrected returns were given up to December 31, 1912. For the period from January 18 to March 15, the actual realisation of the returns over those previously cabled represents an increase of £3493, and brings the total value of the bullion won from the mine to date to £10,306,734.

WAITANGI. The manager of the Waitangi mine, Tararu, reporting upon operations during the past week in the intermediate level, states that the rise on the No. 1 leader is now up 12ft above the back of the drive. The leader averages about 6m in width, and shows dabs of tellnride, but not much free gold. A few feet of tho No. 2 leader were broken down, and showed dabs of free told. In the drive cast from the rise in No. 2 intermediate level the quartz is improving, and" shows favourable minerals. There is a slight improvement in the country on the footwall side in the drive west on the 4 beach level. The reef is now about 3ft in width. In rising from the drive on the eastern end of No. 4 level a strong body of ore was met with. The rise was put up sft and the quartz stripped. In shooting down this portion of tho reel nico dabs of gold were seen.

WATCHMAN. Reporting for the past week tbe manager of the Watchman mine, Thames, states that tho rise was extended 7ft. The reef continues very flat, and for the last few feet has increased in size. It is now about 3ft wide, and is of low grade. WAIHI WARDEN'S COURT. [by TELEGRAPH.OWN CORRESPONDENT,] Waihi, Tuesday. The following mining applications weredealt with at to-day's sitting of the Warden's Court (Mr. F. J. Burgess, warden, presiding) ; —J. W. Blackmail, for the Pride of Waihi special quartz claim, adjourned ; Waihi Reefs Consolidated, for six months' protection for the Key West and Favona claims and one special site, and also for an extension of time for four special sites,recoinmended to the Minister for Mines.

CURSE OF PHTHISIS. The fact that certain South African mine-owners have taken steps to reduce that .misfortune produced in this world by pneumoconionisEor, as it is commonly called, miners' phthisis—indicates -i desire on the part of employers, in that vast industry, to regard the health of their employees* as a not negligible quantity. Australia has suffered, as has New Zealand, considerably from this insidious ailment, which saps the strong man's health, and leaves him, while still in the prim© of life, an object for pity, commiseration, and sympathetic treatment, until he reaches the goal of the average consumptive tho grave! So far, in the vast progress of medical science— as its strides have been— dust which means the early death of the average miner or stone-cutter at an early agehas baffled all ingenuity. It may be" that if Australia and New Zealand (says the Brisbane Daily Mail), had the time and tho money to import, for the sake of experimentation, such men as that late eminent Scottish surgeon, Sir William Robertson, Sir Frederick Treves, or Sir Thornley Stoker the leader of the Irish school of medicine a method would be evolved. At present Australia is suffering from a waste of human life and animal tissue, which it can ill afford to lose. The very trade (as it is) and calling of a miner denotes courage, pluck, and perseverance in a degree not met with by the average r/impany director or cabman. Our statesmen might profitably devote a modest ; .:.uunt on the annual Estimates to a small scheme of research, in which the great medical minds of the world might profitably be employed —and whoso investigation could not be in vain !