X. THE MOLYNEUX RIVER.

Otago Witness, Issue 2368, 20 July 1899, Page 21

X. THE MOLYNEUX RIVER.

Thk Golden Beach Hydraulic Elevat-

ing and Dredging Company.

This, one of the latest, may be pronounced one of the most successful dredges on the Molyneus. The company was registered in July, 1897, and began work in the same month the following year, and was a success in respect; of gold' getting from the very start. Since July last, when work was started, the dredge has averaged 50oz per week, counting in the inevitable loss of time with starting new .machinery of the description of this dredge, but of the, roughly speaking, £10,000 netted by this company in 1 a little better than 10 months, all liabilities were paid off, and £2275 paid in dividends, and there is now accumulating at the bankers of the company a handsome amount for further dividends. This is an achievement not touched by many dredges on the river. The company's claim is a bank claim, and the bank has been worked for a distance of from 500 ft to 600 ft from the river's edge. The fact ought to be proof sufficient that the gold in the Molyneux goes into the banks flanking the river. Mr L. C. Anderson, who is a Shotover dredger of the Sew Hoy Big Beach times, bears witness that the gold not only does go into the bank of the river, but it pays better as the bank increases in depth, which is perhaps accounted for by the fact that the gold is mixed all through the stuff. However this may be, the gold is there, the query being how to get it when the bank increases to a depth of 50ft or 60ft or more. We may leave this question for time to settle, enough having been said to show that dredgemen are on the road towards its solution. s The dredge is working upon the western bank of the Molyneux, a short mile as the crow flies above the Alexandra bridge, its funnel and elevator bein^ visible from the town. The boat with all her appointments has cost £6000. It is closely akin to the Golden Point and Nil Desperandum di edges, all of which were designed by Mr E. Roberts, of Dunedin. The ladder, which is of special construction, and gives every satisfaction, was made by Poole and Stephenson, of Port Chalmers, as was also the driving gear and boiler, which works up to 1251b pressure per square inch, equal to 25 horse-power. The engine is by Garrett and Son, and is of 25 horse-power. Mr Roberts, of Bendigo, Victoria, furnished the steam winches, which consist of six double barrels and one single barrel. These winches, which are found upon several of the latest and best appointed boats, are highly s>poken of by all who use them. The one nearest approaching to it is the one furnished to the Magnetic dredge by Joseph Sparrow, of Dunedin. The ladder of the Golden Beach Company is 60ft long, capable of reaching a depth of 35ft, and as the average depth of the ground varies from 20ft to 25ft only, there is plenty, of margin to come and go upon. The buckets have a capacity of 4£ cubic feet; the heavy double-banked belt delivering 12 buckets per minute, which means 120 cubic yards per hour, or nearly 1000 cubic yards per shift of eight hours. Speaking of cubic yards as a measurement, it may be pointed" out that according to the best authorities— Rankin. Molesworfch,

etc. — a cubic yard of dray material contains two tons approximately, rather more than less. This -work is done by burning from 16 to 18 bags of the ordinary local lignite for every eight hours.

The elevator ladder is 60ft long, and easily stacks the tailings 25ft above water level. By the aid of an adjustable shoot they can be piled up several feet higher, and at the same time better spread— out.

This is an original idea of the dredgemaster's (Mr Anderson), and works splendidly. The average depth of the ground worked is about 25ft, so that the difference between the levels from which the gold-bearing gravel is raised to where it is dumped as tailings is 50ft. ! Mr Anderson also works a hose and nozzle supplied with water by a Tangye force pump. This serves the purpose of bringing .the face down gradually, thus preventing caves and heavy falls of gravel, which might prove dangerous to the machinery, especially to the" bucket belt, if not to the dredge itself. As it is, there have already been one or two such falls, J which, if they did not do actual harm, I showed what might result if no care was taken.- Mr Anderson prefers to profit by the lesson, and forestalls the danger. For this purpose the ladder of the dredge is made to project further than is the case with most dredges iv which the bows of the boat project over the spot where the buckets are working. Working a river claim, there can be no objection to this, but in working a bank claim the case must be reversed, and Mr Anderson has recognised the principle. The claim comprises 100 acres, and is a ; bank and beach claim with a rapidly-rising ' gravel bank, so that, although a considerable quantity of the ground has been turned over, the claim will last for a long time to come, say, from 15 to 20 years. Mr Anderson claims that he has turned over^ more ground than any other dredge for the same length of- time. This was accomplished in ground that everybody said would never pay to work, yet how splendidly the croakers were contradicted the returns obtained plainly show. J Ie is proposed to replace the present set of buckets with heavier and stronger, • but" not larger, ones. The capacity of the buckets answer well enough, but the stony nature of the ground makes stronger buckets necessary. Acetelyne gas is utilised for lighting up the dredge, of which Mr Anderson speaks in terms of high prajse. j I met with the most exciting experience '■ in my visit to any of the dredges in my trip to the Golden Beach. It took some time to find the dredge. Scrambling over a trackless stony desert of tailings piled up like the waves in the Bay of Biscay, cutting my way -.through a dense fog, I met the coal waggon, tho driver of which kiudly vohintered to pilot me to -the dredge. ; The track lay "down a steep tailing heap, at the foot of which surged the Molyneux. ' There was no sure footing, no rope to lay hold of. At last we reached a narrow , ledge hardly wide, enough for two lizards to pass each other, and at the very edge of the water on the other side was a perpendicular face of gravel, from which little pebbles and small stones kepfc continually ) falling, as if the whole face were on the move to come bodily down. Suddenly there came a horrible noise of falling water from overhead. A large body of rushing water coming down like a cataract, was paid into the lagoon in which the Golden Beach dredge floats to make up for the leakage through the tailings. You pasa underneath this cataract and continue your balancing feat upon the narrow footpath. The stones falling out of the face increase until there is some danger of your being killed by them, and then drowned. And though there is a prospect of your being dredged up in pieces by the buckets the outlook is not good enough tc risk the experiment. My pilot and I beat a hasty j retreat, and decided to wait till coaling began, and then get on board by water, j where there is no danger. I There are some other places where dif- I ficulties are met with, as at the Otago and ' Golden Gate dredges, where you have to lower yourself down over precipices, by • ropes,' and, on returning, scale them again' as best you can. Here I experienced the American's adventure, who found it tolerably easy to get along where the cliffs were , perpendicular, but encountered serious S trouble where they were overhanging. j Tite Eureka Gold Dredging Company, i Boarding^ this boat rather early in the ! morning, I anticipated the dredgemaster, Mr John M'Donald, who is also a shareholder, but had the pleasure of meeting him before landing again. In his absence I was taken in hand by Mr F. W. Trevethick, the engineer, who kindly showed me over the dredge, explaining the different | parts in an intelligent manner. Her engines are by Marshall, and are of 12 nominal h.p., with a dry back- boiler by Morgan and Cable, of Port Chalmers, of 20 h.p., working up to 1251b per square inch. The ladder is capable of dredging to a depth of 36ft, but the average depth dredged is from 20ft to 25ft. To this must be added ' from 20ft to 25ft of bank above water level. In order to deal with this quantity of material, it was necessary to attach an elevator 70ft long. In this case also trays are preferred to buckets, and the elevatoris top-driven, an arrangement for which decided advantages are claimed. The golden wash is treated in a revolving screen 3ft in diameter, and 17ft long, paying the sand ( and gold on to tables, fitted with the ordinary matting and expanded metal. The ground worked is rough and some of it even very fctony. To deal with this there are several sets of grabs attached to the bucket belt, which do good work. Here also the experience is that the gold goes into the banks, a considerable portion of which has been removed. The dredge, though by no means an old one, ranks with those out of date. Although her buckets are only of 2% cubic feet capacity, they have turned over a large extent of ground for the time she has been at work. Upon this dredge, too, improvements have been made from time to time, but in spite of thi> the boat has now dropped j behind the time*. I

The party owning the dredge consist of Messrs John M'Donald, who -is dredgemaster, O. Magnus, and T. Steel, who prefer to keep fchek. affairs "to themgelves.This, however, does not prevent rumour busying iteelf with the earnings of the boat. In this manner it is stated that during one month last winter she netted half-a-hundred of gold. Her gettings for the last 12 months I have heard estimated at no less than 2000oz. These figures. I think, must be taken with a grain of salt. There is still from 12 to 15 years of profitable work before the dredge. The claim comprises one mile of the river frontage, and includes a goodly quantity of bank. Mr Trevethick, who is a- duly qualified engineer, is one of those Otago dredg?men who are under engagement with the New South Wales Government to initiate gold dredging in that colony. His ability in his line is recognised by all men on the river, his services being often requested by other dredges in his neighbourhood. The Molynetjx Hydraulic and Gold

Dredging Company.

This company came into existence in 1891 as a sluicing concern. It was projected with a capital of £10,000 in £1 shares, only 6000 of which were taken up. The sluicing was only a partial success, and it was resolved to' place the remaining 4000 shares upon the market, and with that sum procure an up-to-date dredge. A provision was made by which the original shareholders received a three-quarters, while the new ones only got one quarter, of the dividend. Thus, supposing a one shilling dividend is declared, 9d goes to the original shares, and 3d to the new issue. A £5000 dredge, designed by Mr E. Roberts, of Dunedin, was placed unon the claim, and started work in May, 1897. At the time of my visit, Mr C. Simondsen, the dredgemaster. was busy with some urgent affairs, and could not spare the time to go over the dredge with me, but arranged an -interview, which, however, did not eventuate, so that I lost the chance of having a chat with him on dredging matters in general.- However, I saw enough to notice that everything was kept in perfect order and trimness. The price alone indicates a powerful boat of good capacity. Her buckets hold 4.^ cubic feet. 16 h.p. Marshall engine, worked by a 25 h.p. boiler, working" up to 1251b pressure per square inch, by Morgan and Cable, supplies the motive power. The elevator is 60ft long, and is estimated to be able to stack the tailings 4Uit high. The claim is a bank claim of 60 acres, and is so marked out that it extends one mile along the frontage of the river. The bank working at present is about 25ft or 30ft high, and increases in depth as it reaches from the river. The average depth of the ground below water level is a little beloAv the- average, and I hear the bottom is rising as it is traced into - the bank. ' A Tangye force pump- supplies "a small jet of* water, which is -played upon the face in order to bring it down in small quantities, to prevent the buckets being buried by a big fall out of the face, or the dredge in- ■ jured. Like other claims where the. bank rises to a great height the lease of life of a claim is in proportion to the number of feet measured by the rise. At this claim the manner of working the ground by a dredge is strikingly illustrated by the work "done at the present site of the dredge. The plan upon which the operations are carried on exactly resembles that of ploughing a. field. A furrow is taken along the outer edge of the bank, the excavated stuff is piled up in a more or less straight ridge, the water filling the furrow supporting the dredge being kept clear from the tailings by the elevator. When in this way the desired distance in length, or the boundary of the claim has been reached, another furrow is begun, and, so on, -until the whole claim has been literally ploughed up. and turned upside down.

It has become an established experience upon the river that the best gold is found upon the clay bottom overlying the rotton rock. Where the rock is denuded of the clay the gold is present in only moderate quantities, and where there is any othnr material to clean up, the same is the case. The Molyneux Hydraulic Company has found this to be the case, having got on to a coal bottom, the gold fell, off considerably, but better results are now being ob-, tamed. In oil the company has paid about £2000 in dividends. The" Molyneux" Hydraulic is tlie nearest dredge to Alexandra working upon the same bank, and close to the boundaries of the borough. It is joined at the upper boundary by. th*> Golden Point Company. On the same side of the river, but beyond Enterprise dredge is The Perseverance Gold Drkdgiko Company,

better known as " Finlay's Current Wheeler." This is the only dredge I did not visit, being prevented by circumstances from reaching it, and as I met the dredgemaster, Mr J. Cameron, in Alexandra, and found it to be a case of no newspaper reporter need apply, I made no special effort to board the dredge. This current wheeler, which must not be confounded with the one that went down the other day, is a relic of the olden times. Out-of-date and inefficient as it is, considerable interest attaches to it, on account of its being the dredge that got the gold, that bought the Wakatipu dredges, that led to the present boom. At the present time her earnings, it is believed, rank with the average, got upon the Molyneux, by much more powerful and capacious boats. It will scarcely be necessary to describe either the current-wheeler, or her machinery, the term explains itself sufficiently. Changing hands repeatedly, she has now passed into the hands of the Perseverance Company, a concern with a capital of £10,000. The property of this company comprises two claims of 100 acres each, which, from their position, are highly spoken of. The promoters offer 4500 shares to the public, retaining 5500 as paid up. The contributing shares, which were absorbed in a short time, now command a premium of 10s, without anyone being willing to part. A thoroughly up-to-date boat has been contracted for with the New Zealand Electrical and Engineering Company, to cost

about £5000 or £6000. This is \ n^o^i dredge now actually .building at AlexaiidraJ The pontoons are in a forward state, ano^ will soon be afloat. The contractors ara' under a heavy penalty, if exceeding th« time fixed for - her completion. I haW heard it stated that the contractors forfeifi £5 for every day they exceed the limit.) The boat is to be completed by- October next:

J have heard the facts- of "The History of the Dredging Boom," as related 'in my, article of the 16th inst., assailed as incorrect, and feel called upon, in order to maintain the general accuracy of these reports, to- state that I have the particulars from an actor and participator in the "events related, who, with uncommon magnanimity, sinks his own individuality in the episode. The information upon which the history rests has been keenly competed for, and it would be nothing short of ingratitude on my part if I allowed even ? stain of doubt to falJ upon the source from which the information was received..