THE DISCOVERY AT TINKERS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 8596, 11 September 1889, Page 4

THE DISCOVERY AT TINKERS.

The district in which the recent deep lead has been discovered is bounded by the Dunstan Ranges on the north-west, and by the Manuherikia on the south-east, with St. Bathans at the head and Ophir on the south-east side, and includes Drybread, "Tinkers, and Devonshire, It is about 30 miles long and 10 miles broad. It is probable that the deposit was originallj formed by glaciers descending through the Dunstan Pass, and tho rocks cut out by the ie( were afterwards exposed to enormous floods ai tb.9 ice melted with periods of rest betweer successive floods. It is possible that the Dunstan Range was elevated. after the lowei strata of this drift were formed, and the sid< pressure together with the drifts which cam( down from the range itself gradually pushec over the Manuherikia from close to the foot ol the range to its present bed. Ifsothewhok distance between the present river and the ancient rocks at the foot of tho Dunstan Range is a series of old river beds at different depths shallowest nearest the range, overlaid with more recent deposits. A reference to the "Official Handbook of Mines" shows that ihe idea of deep leads in this extensive district is no new one. Speaking-of the St.' Bathans district, Mr Gordon, inspecting' engineer, says:—"This drift is .an old formation. At the time it was deposited it must have been in horizontal beds, but now it is found at nil angles from vertical to horizontal, but always corresponding with the angle of the silurian rocks which it lies against, showing that after it had been deposited the whole country hud by some freak of Nature been tilted up, The quartz gravel is ail rounded, au though at one time it had been greatly washed, and tossed about by water. In some places there are beds of leaves sft in thickness, and so perfectly are they preserved that the leaves of the Wrinmannia racemosa (karaahaka or kowhai) which grows to a height of 50ft, trunk 2ft to 4ft, and which is common to most parts of New Zealand, can be easily distinguished. [This indicates a long period of freedom from floods, and comparative warmth of climate, during which the forest grew and deposited leaves from year, to year till swept away, but what has become of the timber ?] There is bo regular ruu or lead of this quartz drift, but it is found here and there all over ihe district. The difficulty is to understand where it originally came from, as none of tbe present mountains in tho vicinity outside a certain limit contain this formation. [But do not the back ranges contain the quartz, which by ice and flood may have been. moulded into pebble drifts?] It appears to follow round the valley from the foot of the Dunstan range at the Devonshire lead, near Tinkers, going through Cambrians, Vinegar Hill, St. Bathans; thence following round the foot of the mountains to Naseby; and again it is found at Mount Burster, about 4000 ft above sea level, where rich deposits have been obtained; thence through the valley of the Maerewhenua." ("Handbook of Mines," p. (59.) The same work, speaking of Ophir, or Blacks (p.p. 71-3), says " gold was discovered at Tinkers and Drybread in the early part of 1863, at Ophir (or Blacks) a little later in the same year, and at German Hill and Blacks No. 3 ir> 1865. It is impossible to give even an approximate jdea of the quantity of gold obtained in this portion of the district, as in addition to the banks every storekeeper and every publican was a gold buyer, and large parcels were taken to Melbourne and even to England by some of the more fortunate miners.: The future prospects are good, especially at Tinkers, where the Bluq Duck Company has paid about £45,000 in dividends during the past 15 or 16 years, and at the Dunstan range, where the false bottom hitherto worked upon has been found payable. So far this stratum, which is to be found on either side of the raDge, is of unknown depth. Mr Greenbank, manager of the largest comp »ny in the locality, gives it as his opinion that the deposits ;it Tinkers are almost inexhaustible. This may also be said of Blacks and its immediate surroundings, where a man with a pick, shovel, and cradle can at any time make small wages, with a chance of obtaining something better, At present [1887] about 25 men are doing yery well with these simple appliances, but four times that number could be employed on the side of the range at the back of the Blacks township and that part known as Blacks Flat, where the subsidised drainage channel has been nearly completed. . The Ida Valley deep lead at Blacks No. 3 has been opened up several times during the last 15 years. The prospects are very good,. the, washdirt ■ being 3ft wide in some places, and yielding the handsome return of half an ounce to the load. [This is several miles from Tinkers.] Although the lead has been proved to be so rich, several companies have had to succumb owing to exhaustion of capital. The extremely high price of timber, which has to be carted about 90 miles, has been a serious drawback, and until it can be procured at something like a reasonable price the lead must remain unworked, unless the known richness of the ground should again prove too tempting." Professor Ulrich reported as follows on the drift deposits at Ophir and Blacks No. 2 and 3: —" I cordially agree with Mr Pyke that they are unjustly neglected, and offer excellent chances of rich returns to enterprise and capital. If an efficient water supply were brought down from the Upper Manuherikia (which I was told would be the most advisable course) on to the range above Ophir, it would not only permit the hydraulic sluicing of the rather imperfectly worked drift terraces above the township, but lead, no doubt, also to the discovery of higher drift deposits of equal richness down the valley towards Alexandra. The workings at Blacks No. 2 and 3, now nearly abandoned, indicate, as Mr Pyko 6ays, the existence of a genuine deep lcarl; but examination of the ground and conformation about the depth of the shafts Bhow that they are in reality upon two deep branch leads dipping in opposite directions towards the broad Ida Valley, in which no doubt a deep main lead lies hidden. The two branch leads start nt Blacks No. 3, very shallow from a 6addlo between the ruain range and an isolated outcrop of metamorphic rock, and whilst one runs for three-quarters of a mile down valley aloDg the toot of the range towards Blacks No. 2, making gradually a depth of over 100 ft, the other runs up valley with a curve towards the centre of the latter attaining already within a short distance of tbe lnst shaff^ worked a depth of closh upou 200 ft. This shaft, Hccorilinft to iiifciriaiifciiiii kimily given mo by Sou. Ciijivaiii Fni- r. v.-!i<i w»<- interested in Hie -.V.ifi;, :•::•: ?.W..-'.-'-M-i.'l M, .•..i'...|,t ~f I: bo:iv of .■•••.'.■■: 0.-r-u1.-.::.'- W. '•■ ... ;-»i!i u-:.;r, (!:•• wry ' •..:■: ,1 v,..vi.i'., ; - .iboi'i l-.'ioi; -. „■&! f ,;.•!<■] w;;* t'ouuu in most "of the claims (as much as 4Ooz a

day in one case), and the lead was not lost; only tho great expenses of timbering, occasional trouble with the breaking in of drift sand, and principally the rush to the West Coast led to the gradual abandonment of tiie field. Not doubting the correctness of all the information given I can only say that if such a promising place existed in Victoria it would be rushed directly. It only requires several parties of skilful miners with sufficient capital, or one or two well managed companies to recommence working, and I have no doubt this deep lead field will again become prosperous and attract a large population, the more so as there is every probability of similar branch leads and surface drifts to these worked existing and being opened up along the as yet unproßpected part of the range higher up the valley." Tinkers is only seven or eight miles distant from the places thus described, and many of the conditions are precisely similar. No doubt the region over which deep leads extends is bounded by the solid rocks of the Dunstan range, against which some of tbe richest deposits will lie. It will bo seen that the cost of timber is a serious item, but timber is far cheaper now than in the early days of the diggings, the scarcity of water in some places, and a too plentiful inrush into the claims in others, are also difficulties to be overcome, and not without expense. We suggest that before any large sums of money are expended in securing claims, Mr Gordon should be commissioned by the Government to visit the locality and give a report, especially on the economic conditions under which the field can be worked. It is possible tbiit a valuable find has been made, but the experience, of the past has shown that it is quite possible to lose money in working even rich leads, and at all events a considerable amount of capital will bo required to develop them properly and systematically.