BOUND ABOUT OPREPUKI.

Otago Witness, Issue 2370, 3 August 1899, Page 29

BOUND ABOUT OPREPUKI.

'(Br Otlß. TbAVEIXING GOBBESPONDENT;)

The vicinity of Orepuki is well adapted for mining, and presents the- appearance of being intended by Nature to foster the industry. JThe vast mining area, lies between the tongr .wood Ranges and the ocean, where numberless gullies and creeks run parallel with, one •another, and render the working of the auri.feroua territory an easy task. All the claims ore close to the- township. Tjsn minutes' walk will bring you to most of them; but better than their proximity is their riohness, which is sufficient to satisfy the most fastidious dig.ger. False Creek received great attention Boine years- ago 1 , but now the light of Kb mining days is becoming dim, although the head of the oreek is being still worked to advantage. On tbe other side of the township, the claims are numberless, and all seem to be doing fairly well. v Between the township and tho bush, water races cross and recross one another like netKvork, and may be counted by the score; while dams abound in all directions, and so much ground is taken up by the contingent water supply that residence sites are not available In fact, all applications for sites are being objected to, and a strong feeling, bordering on a mild civil war, exists between .the miners and the shale workers, and both parties are in communication with Mr Gilfedder, M.H.8., who is on the Goldfieds Committee- now sitting in Wellington. '1 he member will bs asked to visit the ground be/ore any alteration is unado in the existing regulations. The Undaunted Company is- vigorously pushing works ahead, and an expensively constructed race is nearing completion. The site of the Shale Company's operations 'is about a mile from the township, at the base of the ranges, and in the midst of heavily-timbered bush. An iron tramway is the only passable rouUi Jleiw-sp/iJ leiw-sp/i lite t jwnsiiip and the works, but all along the tramway buildings are either oreoted or in eowvee of construction; while it may be fairly surmis««l that the most populous part of the Orepuki township will, in a short time, be along this line of route. The company's buildings will, when completed, cover about seven acres of ground, and about 50 hands are busily engaged clearing, reclaiming, and levelling the intended site. Bricks are made on the spot, and sand is procurable close by, so for these two materials the outside world is not troubled. Two large boilers are in position and 10 more are being prepared for. The overdue Waikato has on, board nearly 400 tons of machinery consigned to the company, and as many more tons have been ordered. Besides this, a large quantity of castings has already arrived, and the Invercargill foundry is busy executing orders. The total value of the machinery will be about £70,000. Should the Waikato not turn up, preparations will be delayed for about 12 months, pending the arrival of fresh apparatus. A drive of 900 ft has been put in, and now water is being brought up. Besides oil, a. large number of other household commodities may be manufactured from ehale, and the company intend to make the best possible use of it.