OTAGO SCHOOL OF MINES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10240, 24 December 1894, Page 3

OTAGO SCHOOL OF MINES.

REPORT OF PEOi-'ISSSOR ULRICH,

The following interesting report from Professor Ulrich was presented to the Council of the Otago University at a meeting held this waek:—

University, Dunedin, November ISM. The Chancellor University of Otago. Sir, —Herewith I have the honour to submit my report on the work and the results of the School of Mines duritig the past session (1S91), and ou mutters concerning present circumstances and future progress of the school. At the end of the session of 1893 the school lost six students, leaving only 13; but nine frash studonts entered, thus making the attendance number during the past session 21. Of the six students who left, three were occasional students for special subjects ouly; one, '."ho required to attend one more session for passing though the mining division, sent notice that on account of his delicate health he wa3 ndvised to take a year's re3t, and hoped to be able to veturn for next session; the other two students had fiuished their studies —one for the mining division only, the other for the raining, metallurgical, and geological divisions, —and both have since been granted the diplomas of associateship to which thay were entitled. Of the "21 students during the past session, three entered for special subjects only—viz., two for assaying and one for assaying and blow-pipe analysis. The other 18 were regular registered students, who attended the different lecture courses entered for very regularly, except one, who frequently missed lectures in one of the subjects, and, in consequence, failed in the examination. The present status of these students is as follows:— Five of the new students passed through the first year's course, save that four of them, with the intention of devoting four years instead of three to going through the whole course, did not take mathematics, reserving it for next year. This accounts for the small number who entered for examination in. this subject, as shown iv the table given further on. Six students passed through the second year's course of the miuiag division, though two of them, who intend to stay four years, missed also one subject. Ons student of two years' standing attended only two of the mining classes, and with success in the examinations, devoting his studies principally to subjects of the B.Sc. degree examination. He intends, however, to devote the next two sessions entirely to subjects of the miniiig and geological divisions. Two students who entered for four years for the mining and metallurgical divisions have fiuished their third year ; one passed examinations iv all subjects taken successfully, the other failed iv one subject, but as he ha* another year's attendance to spare, he is likely to make up the deficiency. One student of four years' standing, who through insufficient attendance due to illness failed in last year's examinations in some of the subjects, attended these subjects again and was successful in the examinations. He requires to pass in only two subjects more to qualify him for the associateship in mining, as he has already been engaged for more than 12 months in practical mining work. One student, who had previously passed examinations in most of the subjects of the mining, metallurgical, and geological divisions, but devoted last year to practical mining work, attended lectures in the remaining subjects, and also iv other subjects, qualifying for tha first section of the B.Sc. degree, but I am sorry to say he failed in some of the examinations, and will have to try again next session. Two students—Donald J Matheson and Harry C. Boydell—each of four years' standing, have successfully passed examinations in all the subjects of the mining and geological divisiqus, and the former also in. that of the metallurgical division, ti. C. Boydell having fulfilled the condition of 12 months' practical work iv mines, is entitled to the diplomas of associateship of the divisions in which he passed; but D. J. Matheson, having not as yet done any practical mining work, can only claim the diplomas of the metallurgical and geological divisions. Both these students are also qualifying for the B.Sc. degree, aud H. O. Boydell has already passed the first section of this degree. The attendance of the classes and the results of the animal examinations are shown in the following table :—

Owing; to interference with tbe university evening classes, the lecture course of the St. John Ambulance Association was attended by only two of the students, who were successful in gaining certificates of " First Aid," as required by the new regulation instituted by the council. During next session the number attending these classes will, no doubt, be much larger.

There were no evening classes in assaying and surveying held during the session, as no one made application for them. Regarding the number of students to be counted upon to return for next year's session, it will probably be 13, as two of the 18 on the roll have completed their studies, aa previously mentioned, and three, who have not finished, were uncertain of return. However, as in previous years, there is every probability that an accession of new students will bring the attendance up to the average of past sessions, for it is now becoming generally recognised that the knowledge gained at a School of Mines opens to a young man who takes proper advantage of the whole cour3e several avenues to remunerative employment leading to really good positions iv time, if not in this in other countries. The difficulty which our students have generally to face at the end of a session—namely, of finding places for practical mining work during the vacation—seems this year to have been more easily overcome than formerly. Two have gone to Ballarat, Victoria ; two to the Mt. Bischoff tin mine, Tasmania; and the others, I understand, have, with few exceptions, found work in coal and gold mines in this province and on the west coast of the island. There was only one division certificate granted during the year to one of the past otudents— namely, that of " Mines and Land Surveyor, to F. B. Allen, M.A., B.Sc, who hud become entitled to it by having been engaged for six months in the practice of mine and land surveying. The liberality of the Hon. the Minister for Mines (Mr Cadrnan) in establishing three scholarships of £50 each per annum for the Colonial Schools of Mines, tenable for three years at the Otago University, caused at first much excitement and satisfaction amongst our students. However, after the conditions of success in obtaining a scholarship had been closely studied by each, there seemed to be only two of the students—and these, I am sorry to say, are very doubtful—who showed a desire to try for the distinction. The reason for this apparent want of ambition is that in order to avail himself of the money value of tne scholarship in studying for a degree of tho New Zealand University, which it is evidently intended for, an older student would have to extend his studies for several years longer, in order to embrace more subjects counting for the degree, while a new student would have to reckon upon at least five years' hard study, as the examinations to be passed for the ncholarship require three years' study at the School of Mines alone, and two years' study thereafter of degree subjects is perhaps scarcely sufficient. Amongst our present students there are, however, few, if any, in circumstances permitting such a protracted university course: all are anxious to gain in three or four years— i.e., as quickly as is possible for them—the1 certificates of th« mining and assaying divisions, aud, with these credentials in possession, to go into the world in search of suitable positions, in the hope of meeting with similar success as some of our pist students have achieved with like qualifications. To mast of those students who went abroad found without long waiting satisfactory employment, while several gained really good positions. As a recent case in point of such success I can mention that nf Edward Pater.son, who only left New Zealand for the Transvaal in August of last year, aud after being in well-paid employment nearly from the date of his arrival there, waa ottered and holds now a responsible position at a salary of ,£3OO per I annum, with free residence. There are other two of our past students in good positions in the Transvaal, and a number well placed in Victoria, Tasmania (the Government Geologist aud Inspector of Mines), and Western Australia ; but only three have so far found employment in New Zealand. And hero I maybe permitted to quote, as pertiueut to the subject, portion of a am nil article headed " On matters relating to the School of Miues," which I wrote for the commemoration number of the Otago University Keview of 1593. It is as follows :—" On glaucing at the educational results of the teaching in the School of Mines one is struck by the fact that most of the past students who have succeeded in attaining to responsible, good positions did so outside of New Zealand, thus favouring the opinion the writer has occasionally heard exnressed: 'that State support to the School of "Mines is of questionable utility if, after receiving their education at comparatively small expense to them, students leave our shores and use theiknowledge for the benefit of other countries which have spent nothing in training them.' At first sight this may seem a formidable indictmeet; but, based as it. is upon a rather one-sided, if

not selfish, view of the raison d'etre of professional schools, it quite ignores the main principle upon which such schools are nowadays established in all civilised countries. This principle is to afford parents opportunity to have their sons trained in professions prooiißiug them a satisfactory status and income iv after life. If their own country offers openings in this respect, no doubt the young meu remain; but if it does not, they are obliged and prepared to try their fortune in other countries, and so stands the case with our psst minine students. All would gladly stay in New Zealand if suitable positions, with some promise of advancement, were available; but This, unlortunately, is the case to but a, very limited number." Ko far the article. What lwiuires to be added is that openings, aucli a; mentioned, are, from experience, moat likely to occur in the Thames and Reefton mining districts and there the students trained at the Thame3 and Reefton Schools of Mines have naturally thß advantage of early information in applying for them. A few months ago, as reported to the council, the representative of the Cassel Gold Extraction Company (owners of the patent rights in this colony of the Maearthur-Forrest cyanide goldextr.nction procew), resident in Auckland, mad» a present to our school of the apparatus aud chemicals left behind by the officer of the company to whom the council had granted room and facilities in. our laboratory for executing assays and trials bi'the cyanide process of auriferous material from Otago mines. Two of our advanced students took advantage of tbe necessaries thus available and experimented with the process on auriferous tailing 3, though on a very small scale, under the guidance of Mr Wilkinson, who had never himself, however, worked or seen the process worked on a large scale. It, therefore, much enhances his qualifications aud is greatly to the advantage of the school that Mr P. Fitzgerald, whom the council have temporarily appointed in Mr Wilkinson's place, thoroughly understands the working of the process on the large scale, having learnt it at the Premier mine, Wakatipu district, under the iust-.ruction of the officer of tbe Cassel Company before-mentioned. According to Sir Fitzgerald's estimate, it would only require an outlay of about £20 towards the purchase and erection of some larger apparatus and providing a stock of necessary chemicals to permit the treatment by the process of samples up to fcwt of auriferous tailings; and in view of the fact . that this process of gold extraction is doubtless the most important and successful oae introduced into practice in recent times, and should therefore be especially well taught, both theoretically and practically, in a mining school of a gold mining country, 1 take the liberty of strongly recommending this expenditure, considering that it might be made up in time by judicious charges for treatment of such larger samples. Another reason for my recommendation is that the results of tho treatment by the process of comparatively larae weights of material would be more reliable in estimating the percentages of gold extractable on. a Urge scale, and therefore more satisfactory to miners sending samples than those yielded by small trials, or by fire-assays of minute weights, hitherto resorted to. Next we have the example of the Tnanies School of Mines, where the process is excellently well taught by the treatment of still larger samples than above spscified, and forms, I am told, a special attraction to students. The Cassel Company having the patent rights of the process in this colony, as before-mentioned, our school would require the permission of the representative of the company to work the process on the scale proposed, and as such permission has been granted to the Thames School of Mines, and might in our case turn out very profitable to the company in leading to the introduction of the process on some of our gold mines, I do not anticipate a refusal of it. The severing of his connection with our school of Mr D. Wilkinson is much to be regretted, as we lost in him a highly qualified and practically accomplished teacher of his profession.

n a o o 1.S -I lesul :ami: its 9] natu a a 1 4 5 2 4 6 E: m. General Subjbcts, -ft LTniversity Classes. M3 Mo Mathematics ... Fheoretical mechanics 1'heoretical physics ... Practical physics Fheoretical chemistry Practical chemistry ... \dvanced practical chemistry Biology Practical biology i 4 5 2 4 6 5 1 2 3 2 2 2 1 1 2 2 1 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 1 Special Subjects, School of Mines. Mining—1st Course ... Mining—Geology Glenural geology Mineralogy Petrography Palaeontology Assaying—1st Course Assaying—2nd Course Blowpipe analysis Surveying—1st Course Applied mechanics ... Drawing—1st year ... Drawing—2nd year ... 7 5 4 8 4 2 7 2 11 7 2 4 5 7 5 6 8 4 7 2 11 7 2 4 5 1 3 2 2 3 3 3 3 2 4 g 4 (i 1 2 1 4 2 4 1 1 1 7 1 1 2 4