THE OTAGO GOLDFIELDS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2210, 9 July 1896, Page 19

THE OTAGO GOLDFIELDS.

An occasional correspondent at Waipori supplits tho Tuapeka Times with the following notes :— " I am pleased to be able to report that both the dtedges belonging to the" Upper Waipori Alluvial Company are now upon gold again. The No. 1 lias been on very poor ground for some weeks past, but for the last three weeks the returns have been considerably increased, and there is fevery probability of very good returns being obyasUfcter oa»AS &»£iound ahead of tho dredge

ia considered, to ha very rich.— The No. 2 dredge, which has been cutting her way through drift and silt for some weeks since she was altered, is also steadily increasing her returns. The dredge was one of those built by Messrs R. S. Sparrow and Co. duriag the boom of 18S9-9!) for the Golden Run claim at the mouth of the Shotover River, where she did not pay on account of the Ecarcity of gold and the largo amount of drift shingle overlying tho wash. The Upper Waipori Company bought the dredge, and had it shifted down and re-erected on the upper part of tbeir claim at Waipori. The dredge, however, only worked for about 12 months, as it little more than paid its expanses on account of the small amount of dirt lifted and the number of stoppages. It was then laid up, as it was thought advisable to leave the ground to be worked by the larger drndgo, which could work it; more profitably by treating more dirt. Nothing further was done to this dredge until after the settlempnt of the dispute with the Berwick farmers. • Messra Cutten Bros, then undertook to alter the dredge in such a manner that it would , lift a much larger amount of dirt and, at the same time, reduce the consumption of fuel. The alterations have been lately carried out, and the results are beyond expectation,* for the dredge now lifts nearly as much as a largo dredge, while the fuel consumption is little more than half. I am informed that it ranges between four and a-half and five bags per eight-hour "shift. This result is most satisfactory when it is ' considered 'that ■although tins dredge is nearly nix years old it is now working more economically thau most of the modern dredges constructed with all the latest improvements.— The Jutland Flat Dredging Company, I am glad to say, pursue the even tenor of their way on their caresr of gueeeas. The present company have about 190 'acres of their original claim still to work, and their returns continue as steady as .they have been throughout: For the past 12 months the company have averaged about ■20oz par week, and on the ground they are now working they anticipate results' fully equal to,if not batter than, those already obtained. For Buch successful returns the company are largely indebted to the skilful and careful maiiagemeut of Mr Edmonds, the manager. Their dredging plant ii of the ,very best, and under Mr Edmonds's tmperintendencn it lias been worked to the best advantage. The ground belonging to the company is held in good estimation by competent authorities, co that their prospects cannot be looked on as otherwise thau exceedingly hopeful." The North Otago Times sayo :— "For some considerable time efforts have been made to discover where the gold came from that lies in the black sand on the beach near the Kakanui lliver. It is supposed that it was held in reefs on Balruddery and the adjacent country and was washed down the river by floods. Whether it was so or not we cannot say, but Mr John Reid, of Elderslie, who owns the land, has been carrying out an exhaustive prospect of the country, and his men (of whom he has six engaged) have corns across different reefa ghowing promising quartz. Mr Poison, we believe, has also discovered a ruef that eivea every evideuca of bsing gold-bearing. Whether it is so has yet to bo tested. The quartz will be submitted to Professor Black, who will be asked to report on it. Until then .we can say nothing as to whether it will pay towork r it or not. About a dozen reefs have been opened up and specimens token from them. We have seen ■ a specimen of Eldertlie quartz, but our experience j in quartz mining does not qualify ~UR to give an opinion on its value." The following items are from Saturday's Tuapeka Times :— The annual meating of the shareholders in the Golden Gate Dredging Company was* held at. the Railway Hotel, Lawrence, on Tuesday night. The directors for the ensuing 12 months were - app intel a«i followa .-—Messrs B. Hart, J. C. Short, G. M. "Grig[g, W. MutMy, and W. Adams. The clirectois have decided to remove the dredge half a mile below wheTe she ia at present at work towards the lower b nmdtry of the claim. They intend having repairs to the "buckets effected and to have n new top tumbler , put in.— -The directors of the Golden Run Company paid a visit to their sluicing claim (better known as the Island Block Extended) on Wednesday, A large paddock has tecently teen stripped, but owing to the scarcity of water the bottom had not been taken up. With the change in the weather wh'ch has set in, plenty of water should now be available. When cleaning up operations, have baen completed, a satisfactory return is looked for.

We learn from a correspondent that the winter so far . has been a splendid one for mining at Nenthoro, there being little or no froat to stop the flow of water. A large area in Nenthom is being applied for by Mr Begs, of Dunedin, and will come on for hearing at the first court held at Macraes, when, it is understood, it will be objected to on the ground of not being properly pegged off. Several small cruahinga have been taken out, with fair results, but bo large quantity ia being taken out anywhere. The Bonanza mine is being offered for Bale. Messrs Donaldson, at Golden Point, are workinir a very large body of stone from 12ft to 15ft thick, and putting a lot of it through tbte battery with good results. At Mount Highlay a tramway some three miles in lcmgth, from the mine to the battery, is being laid down, and will cost a considerable sum, as it is through rough country. The abridged prospectus .of the Central Otajfo Dredging Company (Limited) is published in another column. The brokers inform us that nearly 2000 shares, of the 4000 to be allotted, are applied for. The prospectus provides that the vendors' shares do not carry any dividend until the contributing shareholders have receiyod back in dividends the full amount of the capital they have paid. The vendors' shares v\ ill then receive the n«xt £500 of profit, and thereafter all shares rank alike for dividends. The Bhare list closea on 20th inst.

Friday's Dunatan Timeß reports :—" Hyde and party obtained 16oz for last week's work.— The Alolyneux Hydraulic Company's tributers w«slied up last Saturday and obtained 18oz 18thvb 3gr, value £72 15s 9d.— The Golden Beach Company washed up last Satmday, and obtained 17oz 15dwt." A London cable states that the prospectus is out of the Norman proprietary mine, waitokauri; capital £75,000, of which £i\m is issued. The International Syndicate, registered in London last month with a capital of £60,000, will shortly Bend a representative to tour through the South Island to examine and report on mining properties. Mr Arthur Die3eldorff, at present in Auckland, has been appointed manager, and will receive proposals. The object of the syndicate is to acquire mining properties and develop them for flotation on European markets ; also to assist mine ownera financially. The Bannockbura correspondent of the Cromwell Aigus writes :— "The Oamck Company have washed up the head of their ditch with poor results, about 230z."