THE WEEK'S MINING NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2250, 15 April 1897, Page 18

THE WEEK'S MINING NEWS.

Simples of stone from the Great Barrier Gold and Silver Mmmc; Company, of which the option is held by the Otago syndicate, were assayed last week by Mr Kidstoa-Hunter, aud yielded at the rate of £72 per ton for picked ore and .£2l for bulk as-<ay. An Auckland telegram states that the Waihi crushing for four weeks of 3150 tons yielded bullion viilußil at j£IO,O3U. The Juno Company crushed l(i loads quaitz and ollb picked stone for 78oz golfl. A.t a meetiuß of the Auckland -Coolg.irdie Syndicate the chairman said they had lost their mine and their £1100, and other p«rties also had lost money on the property. £1500 had been paid for various options. The syndicate owed nothing, but there was a charge of £195 against tho property. The Cromwell Argus hears that the Cromwell mine is to be again let on tribute. When on tho bottom, the Electric No. 1 dredge is getting splendid returns just now The river is a, bit high, however, for them to work constantly. An Auckland telegram states-that two tons of ore from the Great Barrier mine, sent, for treatment to Dunedin, yieldei equal to £19 per ton. 3?iom the Kuaotunu Company foe the past month's operations 210 tons of ore were treated for a yield of 181oz, worth £<IGO A parcel of 9Slb picked stone was received from- the Waitara mine before it was taken over by tho Jflnglish company was treated at Fraser and Sons', un\ the result is an ingot of thn value of £40 Ms. Writinjrof the O.P.Q. Gold-mining Company, recently floated on the Home market, the Tuapeka Times says:— "The O.P.Q. has had a checkered history, but under more favourable conditions it might long since have established its claim to a premier place among the reeling claims of Otago, aud not improbably the colony. The reef, though discovered by a party of Slietlanders, was first worked" by a party of Blue > v |iur men, who bad gaineel reefing experience in Victoiia, among them being the 1 late Mr .Tames Ritchie, of Waipari The Shetlaodera worked the reef until compelled to throw up the sponge, and retired, swamped by debt and disappointed in their expectations. On. the same line of reef Mr Hill, once a manager of the O.P.Q. claim, and still residing in Waipori, on exposing pavt of the reef in a narrow rift up the range, washed Boz of gold from a single tin dishful of stuff, and some years later Messrs Cotton and. Thompson took out stone that crushed from 7t)cz to ]s(hz a month. This, no doubt, was exceptional, but yet it gives some indication of the quality of the resf. For the first time in its history the reef is about to get a far trial, and should the results come up to expectations, as we have no doubt they will, the future of Waipori is assuied." The Neyis con-e-pondenfc of lhe Alexandra Herald writes :— "The past season has beeu a very | dry one, and the hydraulic claims have done very little work owing to the scarcity of water. Within the last fortnight, however, heavy rain bas fallen, increasing the supply of water sufficiently to enable Messrs Masters and Adie and Williamson and Chuwtain to commence elevating again. Messrs Robertson and party are still at work bringing in a new race from Diep Creek This race will bo three miles in length, about half, through difficult country, being now completed.— Last week Mr H. F. Nees completed bis second contract on the Nevis — the pontoons for the Ngapara No. 2 dredge— and his employees are now at Waikaia, where they have a laige diedge to build for the owners of the Golden t reasure and other dredges at Miller's Flat. It says much for the quality of Mr Nees's workmanship that hiR services are in such gooddemaud. There is very little machinery for the Ngapara No. 2 on the ground, and unless some special effort is made it ia improbable that she will be working this season, unless the dre-lgen are able to work during the winter months, which has yet to be ascertained. — Mr Adair and his men are busy erecting the machinery on Messrs (Jutten and party's and Mrs Silk's dredge, and have now aTIa T l the principal parts in position. They expect to commence dredging in about three weeks. — I understand Mu3»rs Magnus and Steel also expect to get their dredge on the Upper Nevis at work before the winter sets in. There is sufficient machinery on the ground to enable the engineers to commence erectinff, and if the road keeps in fair condition, Mr M'Nulty, wbo has the carrying contract, expects to keep them going with the balance. — It is to be hoped that one or other of the dredges will gut to work soon, as in the event of them eotting payj able gold the holders of the other claims who intend putting dredges on would be able to get their machinery ready fov conveyance to the ground a3 soon as the road is open next Hpring.