C.—2

30

digging-ladder is 73 ft. long between centres, and is fitted with semicircular and sloping well-plate bulkheads, riveted to the web-plates, making it secure against side bending ; when in position it will have an overhang of 15 ft., to enable the dredge to thoroughly dig out the corners of the paddock. The top tumbler is of chrome steel, six-sided, and fitted faith steel wearing-plates. The lower tumbler is circular, with hollow shaft and renewable rim. The chain of buckets are manufactured from manganese steel, and are of the close-connected type. There are seventytwo buckets, each of 8 cubic feet capacity, which will discharge at the rate of twenty per minute. The bucket-pins are 5J in. diameter, each pin having a special-shaped head sunk into a recess in the bucket so as to avoid excessive wear of the tumbler-cheeks and to prevent the pins from turning. The screen is of the revolving type, 36 ft. long, built of heavy steel framing, which is fitted with perforated-steel plates that can be easily renewed. The stacker is 80 ft. long, of heavy steel framing, with a system of rollers to carry a rubber belt 36 in. wide for conveying the rough gravel to the tailing-heap clear of the dredge. The water-supply for the screen and gold-saving tables is obtained from two 12-in.-diameter Rees centrifugal pumps. The main winch has six drums of cast steel for operating the head and side lines, and a separate ladder-hoisting winch is also provided. A pilot-house is situated at the bow of the dredge, 20 ft. above the deck, and in it all the operating-levers for working the dredge are situated, in control of a man who will have a full view of the dredge and claim during operations. All the machinery on the dredge is electrically driven, each part having a separate motor. The power is developed at Wye Creek, ten miles from the claim, and transmitted across the Kawarau River to the dredge. A total of 500 h.p. will be developed. The construction of the dredge has been carried out by Joseph Sparrow and Son, Dunedin, and Mr. George Pettigrew has acted as inspector of works for the company. Minerals other than Gold. Tungsten.—The production of scheelite amounted to 6 tons 4 cwt., valued at £432. Of this amount, 5 tons 1 cwt. were produced by the Glenorchy Scheelite Co., and 1 ton 3 cwt. by E. B. Gallery, owner of the Ounce Mine, at Stoneburn. Platinum.—3s oz. 2 dwt. of platinum concentrates, valued at £263 6s. 10d., were recovered from alluvial and seabeach claims at Round Hill, Orepuki, and Wakapatu. Osmiridium.—lo dwt. of this mineral, valued at £9 16s. 10d., was found alloyed with 8£ oz. platinum which was recovered from the Wakapatu Mining Co.'s claim. Cinnabar.—An area of 86 acres, in Block VII, Waipori Survey District, was taken up under prospecting license by W. E. C. Reid, and driving is in progress to prospect a lode from which high-grade cinnabar has been obtained. Accident. On the Ist March a miner named Charles Oxenbridge, who was employed in his father's alluvial claim at Twelvemile Creek, Lake Wakatipu, had his right leg broken through falling down a small prospecting-shaft. The injured man was being lowered down the shaft by a windlass and hemp rope. When about 10 ft. below the brace the rope broke and he fell to the bottom. The rope, which had been used on other prospecting-shafts, was examined and tested before it was put on the windlass over the shaft in which the accident happened, and, as no defects were observed, it was considered safe to use.