THE GOAL MINES COMMISSION.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXIII, Issue 56, 27 March 1901, Page 2

THE GOAL MINES COMMISSION.

[fee pbbss association.] Dunedin, March 25,

The Coal Mines Com mission held a sitting in Diwiedin to-day. Mr Geo. Joachiml general niauager of the Wo&t----porl; Oca! Company gave evidence. I Dividends paid from 1882 tqua'led £% per cent. Tho present output; could be maintained for the present generation, i.e., from 20 to 25 ye.irs. Tho Company had tecoLitly spent XI 1,000 in oio-siug a uult at Gre.nity Crook. Last yoa\ the average price for the whole output, f.0.b., at Wei-tp.u-t, was 10s lOd pjr ton. Only abjut 20 per cent of the whole output was fit for seresned coal f-o that out of every five tons one ton only could be sold as screened. Thb price of 22s 6d at Wellington was for screened aud to get that ttie whole ou - put had to be taken intg account. The rest had te be sold at a reduced rate. There was no pieference in the matter of utile.' It was absolutely incorrect to suy the Compmy closed •she Wnllsend mine to profit Westport. It was closed because the qu-ility was inferior to '•he Bi'iinner, :>ud the coal wns cut (;ff by faults ou all sides. Thoy fc.und then that the donund could bo supplied from Bruuuer, and. they c!o.*od the Wallsond, over which they lost .£BOOO. Mr W. P. Watson, gotieral manage of tho Ocal and Oil Company, said they hoped to bi in a position to supply 2000 gillons of oil fiom tho Orepuki •Shale Works by the end of April, and crude oil very shortly. The Company tad applied fi.r an extension of tim>i for the Government bonus, hut they had got no reply yet. There were 130 •hands orap'oyod at Oivpuki and 300 at Kutangata.