THE MINES.

Otago Witness, Issue 1682, 16 February 1884, Page 22

THE MINES.

ISotes from Macetown. (?ROM OtJll OWN COEKKSPONDBsi.) MACKrowx, February 4 "Ono hundred and sixty-four ounces of retorted gold to 103 tonj of stone," averaging lcz !3dwt to tho ton, is tho rtport published iv the iocjl paper of tho Uaribaldl C'ouipany't) crashing. ''Your own", has been informed that the real weight ot retorted gold wiw lOGt'z ; and if it proves to be the lat'.cr sum, ilia average would be us quoted — v:z , 33dw t per ton m round numbers. The divei-oioy of report is of vory tm'ill moment to bharcholdavd, but it serves to point a uKirnl, which may bo stated as follows :~ -Managers of public companies outfits to report to the I'ress, u,a soon a-i they «ot the information, ihc oxaefc amount of yield cbtained, aud thua avail ttiem tlvos of the advantages offered by tho libetality of tho Pre>s to diifceminato tho information to the public. Mine mauai;ero a 5 Mauetowu ure pfenerallv required to f urnWi to the legal ' manager of the company in whoso service they lubouc a weokiy report cf tho woik done, and tht> st'ite of the mine up to <late. Of course such Wfoloy report ia the most dcpcndanle information which can possibly b ; obtained of any mine, and \ien> ie pu!>li3hed would prove of inctimable benefit in furnishing shareho cirra .vith necshsary information to guide them to c inclusions m regard to tho management of their property. Minenuiiugtrscmnot, without special permission, furnish such infotrnation to thy ll J res 3 ; but it would not transgv'jas any propriety for the legal manager to send in tlio iutoniHtion -say omcj a month so long as tho nuwfipapers authorities were willing to rrceive and (Wb'.i-h it Ie ib questionable whother lo^al managers oi ao-calkd public comcanioi are doing their duty by thtirccmsoituentn iv withholding information so easily disfceminatcd. Thero is a special pleasure in recording tho sue :ess of tho Garibaldi Company for tho sake of tho manner in which the working shareholders stuck to their venture— through good luck and adversity, months of hard '' elo/jging" labour w.»s done without a murmur, and wi'h,a poun 1 or even frum the ao-rulli d "p vying" shareholders to acknowledge ihu services performed in their interest; but wea^jn after season tho work weut on, until at l«ugth ouc^c-a crowned i he eft\irte of tne porhi-ve>i»g Beai Urotticrs!, who piloted tho venture through to its hapj»y climax '{ he preBeut manager, Mr Eliadon J. IJea l , and his brother, Mr John Heal, were q'lartzuiiiion in oM Bendigo's earheot dnja. Coiai-j.' to Otago iv its it.fj.ncv, thov ultimately sit led into race cointrujti jii and ironoul mining at Mac town. Tlie Ji'.ipot^ry Company havo started to crush the stove which has accumulated in thoir paddock during a faeason of prospeci ing ; it will therefore neces3aniy bo a \ery mixed sample, and cannot be takon aa a guide to the valuu of tho finds obSainod in the progress of the work ; but better may be oxpectod to follow if all is woll.

Tho Gladstone Company is putting stone to tho mill, to it is fair to suppose that thia Company will soon report their No. 2 cite. Tho Premier Company's paddock ia being steadily filled with good-looking btone, and it is probable that thoy will give a good account of themselves 'before lonf?. The Homeward-Bound will probably put a crushing through for the Keep-it-Dark Company be.'oro they crußh any more ol their own stone. They have had ao much prepacatoiy work to do that they could not keep thu mill going.

The Advance Peak dray-road is getting on to completion, md the Keep-It-Dark Company is constructin a paddock at the foot of tho new road in which to stow their stono when sleiyhed down.

Tno Ladye Fa>ro Oimpany are propating fora cm hin^. but Uiey have had bo much preparatory work to do that the beaaon will be a short on j with them.

Tne Albion Camnnny, joining tho northern boundarj of the Lady Fayre, are packing a tiial crushiug of stono to tlio Maryborough battery, having decided to crush at short intervals, in order to prove'the claim as the woik goes on; They havo about 10 tons at grass, and havo obtained home vo/y good protpeeta in stone submitted to the mortars, as well as soiub good specimens and prospects of free fjold. The reof is a strong one, about ISm to a foot in width, aud in iu-aror horizontal than perpendicular, very much, like tho Ql.uUtono in iis chaiautenaties. Thero is not much doubt but that iK will intersect the Lady fayre, if it "lives." This find seems to indicate the necessity of more prospecting beinur undeitaken Jor side-lined on the main lodes, cither by cross-cutting from below or boring with the diamond-drill from tho suiface. Theto X probably more prospecting beiDg done on this fli-ld thia Beason than has been done during tho la=,t l\ve years by bona falc miners honestly looking for claims ; but many facta might be quoted to show that in would ho good policy for companies holding bug lines on ludciof bton»to have their biirfaces mcuo mimrtily e\uminuiL than thej nave been in tho habit of doing, on this fieM at an,y rate

The lalo fni'l of the Cromwell Company af. Rondi^o Gully, also that, of the Gaul'aldi and Allrion Companioi ut Macetown, bhould aurvo to ii.ciicalo thu proboblo value of BUuh work. Shoots (if gold arc fcvidcutly j'ist as iikely to be found on thu burfuco sa> anywhere il=e, and at far leaa cjsti to tho proßpeetur Tho great vant of Wacctown ia "more power" l'liysically iu»d fliwucially ; and tlio conr o wlvch will

moat conserve or increase existing force" Is the proper course to adopt ' Quite a number of claims, especially in Bush Creek, ha\e bcc:i idle for yun.i>, and if the d>imant3 do not .soon move in the direction of workintr them they will laid thut the ehophciding dodge will not be much longer permitted on c'.aius fcha'j have not had any labour performed upon them frr a number of years. Tho wh .lv of the Tipperary Kew Ail Nation i line cf root is idle Between the two claims übovo mentuiicd about a mile long of surface remains uutrenched, unproved -in fa--, un*cratehod ; and yet the inquiring stran-er has the hillsido r,ointedout to him, and the cianus named in continuous rotation, aud ho loavea luipceused >\ith tlio idea that there Is no show; and so tha "dog-iu-the-m«nger" policy is porpetL-ated with impunity, if, v time it received a salutary chock, cither by the strict enforcement o( conditions or by fresh legislation to meet the case. The Saddle Hill Gold-mining Company (Liiui<e<:.) The following report is supplied :— Operations at tne above Company's mine aro being pu-hed forwaid with unabated » igour, crushing bein* cuitiouud night and day without interiuißsi' n. " During the month the main drive on ren'f D has bean extended a furtl.ei 1 distance of 6."»ft f and ahov\s an unbroken !ino of stono tho whole of that iViitance At thu end of the drive a new make of stine was -tmclr. Nothing m yot is known cf its extent, but in quality it far surpasses anything as yet ciushed. The stopes are carrying a 3ft body ;>t etono of good appeartine, showing a tendency to winen i-i depth. Iho furthc dt vrilopment of tnis reef has now euabled the mmanemcnfc to (\< the position of ' the low-level turn oi— a work wnich will be gone on with at once, at! it will tn.uuriaily lessen tho cost of procuring the stone. Xie^f Bis now connected by ttam with the battery, aud is likely to play nn important parkin the futura of the mine. The stone is of a deep blue colour, and cirrt'spords in appearance with some very rich specimens found iii the main valley.

Chriitie'g reef is improving in quality as the workings extend Jeaatward. borne 2-..0 tons of stone havo been contribuied during the nnnth to tho battery, and from the appearanco of the p a;oj a good yield tuny bo cxppctul.

The coim\icrord~T*v tho C reef aro apaTiujf neither men nor money hi thrir undertaking-, and are making uvery effort to Utep faith with the Company. They are already supplying scone to the mine paddock, and by tho end of tho present month expect to be able to supply rogu'ar cru9hir.jjs. It may rot bo judicially known that this Company is actually crushing more stone than all the mines of the Arrow, Cromwell, Macetown, Lyol), and Skippers dUtriet- put together : and to these may bo added the wholo of iho West Coast goltifidds, if wo except the Globe and Ksop-it-Dark wines. When the workanow in progress are completed, nn enormous supply of sf.one wn be cheaply and profitibly won. in tho machine* house several important alterations have been made tince the washing-up in January. Chief anionjr-t these is tho alteration in the driving power, by which the-wholc of the ,cru-hing plant can ha wikcd by the one engine. To effect thia the encine lnd to he t-hifleil and the gearing altoroJ, tho boiler euppMoi with a largo dome aud water-beater, ar.d 50ft of new shafting, wif.h the necessary fitting, e-ecfed. Th-; wholo of the work was carried out by Messrs Palmar, Booth, and Co. in a highly cwditablo manner. The-.0. alterations compelled a stoppage of the crushing-power for about 12 day- 1 , but will etloct a monthly saving of i:7O to the Company in tho items of eugineera and fad. The lartro pul'o % «eter is ni>w erected, the necessary connectiona fitted, and everything ready for use whenever tho Comoauy may have oc a^ion for its servlcoa. It wa3 tested for 24 hours, and pumped to a height of 50ft, at the rate of 30,700 gallons an hour, with taaliprossure of si cam. Mr Twinning's new gold-saving apparatus has been fixed to the end of the Company's tailrjice for tho pisfc weos. It i 3 workirg very smoothly, and a washing-up will take place sriorth, with a view of teeing its gol.l-fcavicg capabilities. About G:0 tons has bcou crushed fjr thu past month, end the reauH will be known on Monday.