MINING NEWS

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 11677, 10 February 1902, Page 3

MINING NEWS

Per Press Association. GREYMOUTH, February 8. Dredging returns : —AI, 20oz for 115 hours; Buller Junction, 440z for 132 hours; Hokitika River, 340z for 128 hours; Leviathan, 240z sdwt for 123 hours; Maori Gully, 13oz for 200 hours; Mokoia, 240z 3dwt for 120 hours; North Beach, 290z 12dwt for 130 hours; Pactolus, 670z lOdwt for 130 hours; Reeves' Proprietary, 19oz for 86 hours; Greenstone Three Mile, 350z for 110 hours; Greenstone Junction, 460z 18dwt for 132 hours. DUNEDIN, February 8. • Dunedin Exchange sales: — Enterprise, 27s 6d. Greenstone Junction, 25s 9d. Mosquito, 22s 3d, 22s 3d. Notown Creek, 235, 235, 23s 1 jd, 23s W Reeves' Proprietary, 16s. Roval Maori, 17s, 17s. Returns are as follows: —Cromwell, 590z 3dwt; Mokoia, 240z 3dwt; Globe, 15oz 2dwt; Pactolus, 67£oz; Leviathan, 240z sdwt; Gold King, 20oz lOdwt; Jnnctinn Electric, No. 11., 720z lOdwt; Electric, 730z 6dwt. February 9. Additional dredging returns Perseverance No. 1, 570z 12dwt; Success, 40oz Bdwt : Ettrick, 390z 'l9dwt: Enterprise, *No. 2, 360z 7dwt; Waikaka United, 360z : No Town, 360z; Inchdale, 350z; Enterprize No. 1, 320z 13dwt; Alexandra Eureka, 31oz; Earnscleugh No. 1, 270z lOdwt; Molyneux Hydraulic, 250z 7dwt; Dunstan Lead, 240z 17dwt; Patterson's Freehold, 230z; Waimumu Extended, 220z 15dwt; Perseverance No. 2, 220z 12dwt; Prince Albert, 220z lOdwt; Erickson's Reward, 220z 16dwfc; Chicago, 220z 2dwt; Waimumu Central, 220z; Happy Valley, 19oz 12dwt; Ngapara No. 3, 19oz ldwt; Waimumu, 18oz 7dwt; Gabriel, 17oz 5 dwt; Spec Gully, 16oz; Manuherikia, 15oz 14dwt; Point d'Orr, 12oz; Endeavour,

lloz; Royal Maori, lloz; Charlton, lOoz lOdwt; Golden Link, 9oz 18dwt; Central Mataura, 9oz lOdwt; Celtic, Boz.

The gold export for 1901 was tile highest for 50 years. Its value was millions , sterling. There is a long pull to be made to reach the record —£2,844,000, in 1886. The famous Blue Spur sluicing mine in Otago has not proved an Eldorado to the big company which has owned it since 1888. The average yield of gold from the material in the claim has been decreasing for some years past. In '96-7 the value of gold extracted was 14d per cubic yard ;in '97-8, 15d ; '9B-9, 9 4; 1900-1, Bd. And the hardness and toughness of the cement makes the quantity dealt, with small. Last year the total was 174,377 cubic yards, and the highest quantity in any of the above periods was 228,261 yards. There must yet be room for a good deal of remunuerative work in hydraulic sluicing in the_ poorer alluvial goldfields of New 1 Zealand, if the work is done in the best known way. The "New Zealand Mines Record " quotes a report on the work of a Californian sluicing mine, which gave a profit, though the average yield of gold was but 2.52 cents, say lJd, per vard of gravel sluiced. The water supply, how : ever, was cheap and plentiful in the sea- I son ; the quantity of water used was cubic yards per yard of gravel. Old Naseby diggers among our readers will be interested to learn [hat a- new development- of the field is in progress. Five-and-twenty years ago a large" area of ground was sluiced away to the " Maori bottom," a " tight, coarse, sandstone gravel." This was left untouched, as unpayable. Now, however, a start has been made to sluice this deposit, which varies from £jo to 100 feet thick at different ■ points, and it is being found payable. The "Mount Ida Chronicle" does "not anticipate that it will prove to be rich, but it will pay wages after paying for water. The weekly average number of dredges working on the Otago goldfields in 1900 was 34, and highest number 44; last year the average was 46, and highest number 67. The total yield of gold was 65,530 ounces last year, worth £253,900. The average per week per dredge was 350z in 1900, and 270z last year. On the West Coast 27 dredges in the field only kept a monthly average of 15 2-3 a-t work, and the weekly average'yield was 220z 18dwt. This, however, gives an estimated profit of £45 per week for the time actually worked, or £23 per week for the whole time, whether working or not.