Mr V. Pyke's New Venture at Roxburgh. TO THE EDITOR.

Otago Witness, Issue 1933, 7 December 1888, Page 7 (Supplement)

Mr V. Pyke's New Venture at Roxburgh. TO THE EDITOR.

gg I ij j _Mr Warden Hiokson has, in the face of the most strenuous opposition from the miners, decided to grant Mr Vincent Fyke's application for a reservoir comprehending 1500 acres of Dismal Swamp, together wibn ! a water race and right, and a special claim ' of 90 acre-:. I say nothing against the granting ) of such a large area to one applicant, as I am of opinion that in the hands of bonajide mining invtstoi'3 it will bo found requisite in the mar f iiDnre to gi-aub plaims of much larger area tlrm has hitherto been the case. Where I think lbs mistake was made was in permitting Mr Pyke to get such a stronghold of the Dismal Swamp, of which he has now the practical control. Iv my opinion it m^aus dkatter to mining in the district w any novice in mining matters knows that diiecdy the fiwarup becjines ve&bud in Mr | Pyli.-', flp, au'l ho alone, Lls control of the watfr stored in it, <'tti«l can lead ifc where ho chooses, and do with it as he pleaserf, even io the cost of other miners.

Mr Pyke, 1 hear, intends sending or taking Home this venture for floating on the London market. If this is the best spec, we can offer the English capitalist-, then it is high time that a stop was put to this method of company promoting. It certainly ia a very lucrative w*y of doing business, and if Mr Pjke succeeds with this venture i which I am inclined to think won't be the cafe) I tbink I shall go into that particular lino myself. Fanc3', oue has only to take up a largo area of presumably auriferous ground, situate anywhere; apply for a site for a huge reservoir ; obtain a grant for a water iacr-, and, hey, presto, as if by a wave of the magician's wand, the trick is done ! Too many concerns have been sosi'j Home from tho colony lately (efpecidlly from theNorth),and it is to be hoped we have seen the last of this sorb of thing. I don't mean to insinuate that this particular venture is a bogus affair, bub I mean to a«sert that if Mr Pyke succeeds iv floating it the English company need never expect to obtain dividends on their outlay. — I am, &c, Roxburgh, November 22. Digger.

The Lake "VTalialipu Gold Mmmg 1 and Sluicing-" Company. TO THE EDITOR. But,— A feeling of distrust as to the bona fides uf the above-named company having been created through the publication of certain stateraeuts wade by your Arrow correspondent iv a letter dated September 26, ami which appeared about the beginning of last month in the Otago Daily Times and Witness newspapers, and although such statements were ably refuted by Mr L.O. Beal, Mr C. C. Boyes, and others, I have thought that (those gentlemen b^ing all more or less connected with the formation of the company) perhaps the independent testimony of an outoider who has no axe to grind mighu to somo extent influence those in search of a safe investment, to give the matter a second thought, and to at least ascertain for thernselve» the actnal facts. Your Arrow correspondent, who is considered hi h ■ eonerf'lly rpliphlf, apj>.*ttr<? to li">vo h»pn mtule a. cat'ri-pa\v of in the present instance. This is bo»'no out by the very strenuous opposition nm.tio to the granting of certain water rights and privileges applijd for by the promoter.- of the company, ab also by 'die fact that a nutnerou- lyMgued petition to the Government to re-ume possession of the land had not been given effect to.

My mates and I prospected both the Five and Seven Milo creeks before there was a solitary tent where Quoenstown now stands. We got excellent prospects at the Five-mile, but those were stirring times, and it was only after gettiug completely "flyblown" by rushing from oue place to another that we returned to the Five-mile and set in to work. 'I his was in January 1863, and although the best of Ih<3 groiuid was then taken up and in full work, we did very well for over two months. I had opportunities of knowing how some of the neighbouring claims were turning out, some of them being vory rich, at least for the &ize of the ground, as the workings were mostly confined to tho bed of the creek, and that was very narrow in most places. The only terrace then working v, as the one immediately below the track o;i the

side of tho cceek nest Queaaslovrn. Boms capital payable ground where the creek enters the lake was compleloly smothered and rendered unworkable when the water was fhv>t turned en to this terrace, and I can well remember the a.vful looks of my mates on discovering that our claim was being made a tailings site of, and there being no Warden's Court near than the Dunstan or Nokaniai, wo Mfc for fresh fields. I have often wondered biuce if this piece of ground has ever been worked ; if not, ib will amply repay anyone who cim m»nage to reach the bottom. The gold was principally in the crevices of the rock. Being in Queenstowu during the late carnival, I paid a visit; to me old haunts on the Five-mile. Nearly 26 yeara had pissed awsy since I worked tin re, and [ was very much surprised to find | tim 1 ; with the exception of the du.appcare.nce of iho honvy timber, very little chouge had taken place. The terraces have scarcely been touched. T may state that I vi«ited the ground ai the request of one or two of tht- promoters of the company, and was sccompinied by Mr Cameron, jun. We Trent over the whole of the terrace lying between the Five and Seven Mile creek?, and I believe this to be the most valuable poition of tho company's pro-p-'rty, there being evrry indication that an :i'ici"ut river bed, full of auriferous wn-b, runs righs through the whole length of the terrace from the Seven to the Five-mile creek and terminating ner.r where the track crosses the creek. This chaunel is at a considerably higher level than the terrace traversed by the 1 rack, fhe outlet into the Five-mile creek is well defined, and some excellent gold was obtained close up to tho boundary of Mr Cameron's freehold ; in fact, his fence has been undermined in following the lead. The Seven-mile end of the channel is also well defined, Mr Kyle having worked close up to the boundary with highly payable results. The lower side of the channel is defined by a rocky rim, almost continuous. Two or three narrow gullies or breaks occur in this rim, in each of which good payable wash has been found. These breaks will be found very useful as outlets for tailings from the main lead. As Mr L. 0. Beal's report deals ably and almost exhaustively with the geological features of the ground, water supply, &c, I shall only state further that my researches were confined entirely to the terrace formation lying between tho Seven and Five Mile creeks. I got several satisfactory prospects in some of the holes inside Mr Cameron's freehold, and was shown a parcel of 2oz sdwt by a party prospecting on the shallow ground skirting the lead. This was the yield of a small paddock measuring seven by 12 I I may conclude by saying that, taking into consideration the aatural facilities for obtaining water supply, hydraulic pressure, for tailings, &c, &c, I should think that with an efficient plant and good management, the the terraces on the Five and Seven Mile bid fair to rival Stony creek, Londonderry, or any other terrace workings in the Wakatipu district. — I am, &c, John Allan. Springvale, Alexandra South, November 17.