o.—B

30

tin dish and mixed with clean water, and allowed to settle for a short time, and the sediment panned off a second time into a dishful of water, and nearly as much gold was obtained from the muddy water as that got in the first panning. The same operation was gone through four times, and still there was a fair prospect of gold left. The panning operation was carefully performed, and showed conclusively that the gold from this lode cannot be saved by the ordinary wet-crushing process. The gold is disseminated through the stone in the finest dust-like particles, and the muddy water will carry away more than half the gold the stone contains. It resembles the character of the gold found at Mount Morgan. The same obstacle was found there when crushing the quartz. According to the assay-value of the Mount Morgan stone, it contained over lOoz. of gold per ton ; but not more than 2oz. of gold could be got by the ordinary battery process. The manager of the Try Fluke claim informed me that a sample of the lode-stuff was tested by the Cassel-Company, at Karangahake, and was shown to contain gold at the rate of 40oz. to the ton ; but a trial of one small sample is no criterion of the average value of the lode. Thirty tons of lodestuff was sent to the Thames for treatment, which yielded 3510z. of gold, being an average of lloz. 14dwt. per ton ; and there is little doubt that had the slimes and tailings been saved they contained far more gold than that obtained from the battery-tables. There is on every field a considerable loss of gold by its being carried away in muddy water, and not lodging amongst the tailings, and the loss of gold on this field will be very considerable if the ordinary process of wet crushing is resorted to. It is afield where the chlorination process could be successfully carried on, or, if the Cassel process can extract as large a percentage of the gold as it did in the ton samples tested at Karangahake, it would be the most economical method of saving the gold. The proprietors of this claim have purchased a crushing-battery of ten heads of stamps, which formerly was erected at the Tiki, and are now erecting it on the side of the Kuaotuna Creek. It will be driven by steam-power. As soon as this plant is completed the other claims on the field will be able to get their stone tested, although it is questionable if such a plant will give a very high result. Still, if the quartz be rich in gold, the claimholders may be satisfied with the returns without taking the means of ascertaining the amount of gold lost. Carbine Claim. —This claim adjoins the Try Fluke, and the adit-level, which has cut the lode, is close to the place where rich stone is being got in the latter claim. About 50ft. has been driven along the lode, which is about 4ft. in thickness, and 20 tons of stone have been crushed, which yielded nearly 220z. of gold. This shows that, although they have got the same lode as the Try Fluke, they have not got the same shot of gold; and possibly the gold in the Try Fluke claim may not be carried to. any great depth. However, nothing can be said in reference to this until more work is done. The Mariposa, John Bull, Eed Mercury, and Great Mercury claims are supposed to be on the Try Fluke line of reef ; but some of these have more than one lode in which fair prospects of gold are got. The Great Mercury is known as the prospectors' claim : here a considerable amount of work has been done, and twelve different lodes and leaders have been found, varying from 6in. to 10ft. in thickness. Five hundredweight of quartz has been crushed from this claim, which yielded lldwt. 9gr. of gold, which is equal to 2oz. sdwt. 12gr. of, gold to the ton. Otama Claim. —This claim is on Native land, and lies to the westward of the Great Mercury. There are two quartz leaders in this claim—one 6in. and the other loin, in width—from which 31 tons of quartz was forwarded to the Thames for treatment; and the result was 181oz. of gold, or nearly 6oz. of gold to the ton. A considerable amount of work has been done in this claim, where nine men are employed, and where there is a considerable stack of quartz at the mouth of the adit lying ready for treatment. Waitaia Claim. —This is a claim on Mr. McPherson's land, near the place where prospecting was carried on for several years at the head of the Waitaia Creek, but this is on the opposite side of the range. There is a quartz lode cropping out here and there in the face of the range, from which some very fair specdmen-stone has been got ; but at the time of my visit they were prospecting on a narrow ridge, in a lode about 18in. in width, the quartz being to a certain extent mixed with mullock, but on breaking up the stone several large blotches of gold could be seen. There was not sufficient work done on this claim to prove whether the lode would be payable for working or not. Some of the owners accompanied me, and stated that they had found a lode 4ft. wide further along the range ; but as it was nearly nightfall we had not time to visit these outcrops. There are a number of other claims on this field which are referred to in Mr. Wilson's —the Inspector of Mines —report, and detail of workings given. Suffice it to say that there are numerous quartz reefs in this district which contain gold ; but, as there is no crushing-plant on the field, very few of the claims are sufficiently tested. At the same time, the present indications lead one to suppose that rich patches of auriferous stone will be found, although possibly many of the present claims may be after a time abandoned. This is only what might be expected on any new field where claims are pegged off on supposed lines of reefs without any knowledge whether the lode continues through the ground or that it contains sufficient gold to pay for working. A small township is being formed on Native land not far above the mouth of Kuaotuna Creek. There is a small bay here in which steamers can come and lie in good weather, and where the goods are landed on the ocean-beach. It is also from this place that the quartz is shipped to the Thames for treatment. Mahakikau . Auriferous-quartz leaders have been found on the range on the west side of the left branch of the Mahakirau Eiver, going up the stream. The place, where this discovery was made is twelve miles from Mercury Bay and five miles up the river, where the track leaves the main CoromandelMercury Bay Eoad. There were at the time of my visit three men employed in prospecting a leader which was in places not more than 3in, in thickness, but widens out in other places to nearly