LATE MINING.

Otago Witness, Volume 02, Issue 2420, 2 August 1900, Page 38

LATE MINING.

(Continued from page 21.)

NOTES FROM CLYDE. CFroii Oifb Own Coskesponbknt.j

CLYDE, J-uly 30

A heavy plump of rain fell here yesterday (Sunday). The weathei is generally quite mild again. The Cairnmuir pontoons- are ready for launching. A start is to be made this week with the Kelly and Casey pontoons. A large quantity of machinery for the Vincent Extended dredge is now at the site.

The Monte Christo pontoons are advanced to the planking stage. The owners of the claim known as the Old River Bed are having useful prospecting operations done by means of boring. The bottom was. tapped at a depth of sft below present water level, and as the sandstone bottom wa3 found dipping towards the flat, which constitutes the claim, another bore is being put down with a view to ascertaining the angle of the dip, and to satisfy the party as to whether an. old' river bed exists within tha taxrac*

The report, that the Clyde collieries were about to be floated into a company is incoriect. Some effort may now be made to float two of the coalpits, and in such case one of those must be the old pit that has been in disuse for a number of years past. There are two pits opened up on the local coal measure, but as regards one of those the owner informs me that he is unaware of any negotiations for its purchase. In the face of this it would be misleading to state that the Clyde collieries were under offer to the public. "

At last Wednesday's sitting of the Vincent County Council separate applications were received from the Clyde and Alexandra Lead Ccmpanies respectively, for permission to dredge a piece of giound adjoining the Alexandra bridge reserve. On the motion of Cr Kane, it was resolved not to grant permission to work the ground lest the operation endpnger the security of the bridge.

S. E. JDennison takes me to task, in your columns, anent some remarks of mine on the futility of boring as a means of ascertaining the auriferous nature of {.he alluvium. Mr Denuison is delightfully sincere in his statement to the effect that he recovered gold after it was, put mto the pipes for him. t^uue so! 1 have heard of such recoveries being made by boring rods before to-day. Again, he states that he recovered dust shot, which was also placed in the pipes for him. Quite bland this! Why it is on a par with a discovery recently made by a gentleman ot my acquaintance who found e\ half-crown in his pocket after his better half had innocently placed it there previously. And Mr JDennieo'n tells me ail about those recoveries as justifying his faith in boring rods, iiad Sir Denmson mentioned when and wheie he found gold that was not put in the pipes by some other individual' there would be reason in his statements. As it is, I fear me that I would not be justified in accepting the challenge he throws out. Some of that gold may be clinging anioagst the rust on your boring bi' 3, Mr JJennison ; and, then, where should I come in? It is too ridiculous to contemplate the results of tests under such oircumstaiices. I would require also io line my pipes wit : i the metal in order to ensure an "even start. I quite agree with Mr Ee/mison that rods are the cheapest method of ascertaining the depth of wet ground. He will have pciceiyed that I stated so much on a past occasion. As to my posing as an authority oa piospecfcmg, I can assure Mr Dennison that any prospecting I do is done solely for my owii use and benefit. However, I have every opportunity of seeing boring operations, in some of which I am personally interested, and 1 do not hesitate to say that the system is not at ail to be relied on as a means of teoiing the auxifeious nature of ground, even v/lien the most thoroughly competent men are employed to execute the work. However, Mr Danmson may keep going ahead on the clust shot business so long as he confines his energies to the schistose shingle deposits of the Mataura.