MINING.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16601, 26 January 1916, Page 7

MINING.

Tho following record of progress has been telegraphed from the manager of the Talisman mine:—"Woodstock: No 5. crosscut, 47ft; No. 6 crosscut, 57ft No. 12 winze s'mlc Bft; roof 60 inches." The Westport Times states that a very sanguine feeling exists in Ross in regard to the prospects of important quartz mining developments at Cedar Creek, on the Mount Greenland Range. Extensive prospecting has been carried on for some months past by a Wan,gamii syndicate, who hold a special claim. It is reported that the results have been most satisfactory, and that several hundred tons of payable quartz have been stored Ereparatory to the erection of a crushing atterj.. A track is now being formed to enable 4he necessary machinery to be placed at the battery site. Work at the Mount. Lvell Company's mines has been resumed after the holiday interruption; but, owing to tho lamentable scarcity of men, production, during the next few weeks, at any rate, is likely to be seriously interfered with. Since Christmas Eve, the output of ore ha-s been sufficient to keep only two furnaces in commission, and it docs not look as if thero is going to ho any improvement in this direction. There may bo several reasons for this stete of ■ affairs, but the mo principal are the keen ' dissatisfaction with and disappointment at 1

tho award of tho Arbitration Court in regard to tho men's claim far increased vuges, and the number of men who aro enlisting. At present tho shortage applies to both skilled and unskilled labour, and at the mines alone tho number employed must be something like 200 below the complement required to carry on operations on a scalo commensurate with the resources of tho company. And just non, with electrolytic copper worth over £100 a ton, is the time when the mince should be exploited up to their full capacity, instead of which they are producing only about two-thirds of what they could do provided tho labour was available. As far as tho North Lyell mine is concerned, it may bo said to bo looking first-class. The Mount Lyell mine is producing on lines compatible with the labour obtuinablo, and dovelorimcnt work at No. 9 level, to determine the extent of the downward continuation of the pyrites body, is in regular progress