MINING NEWS.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XVI, Issue XV, 11 April 1896, Page 411

MINING NEWS.

A LTHOUGH the past week was broken into by the X-X Easter holidays, still the developments in mining matters have been of an important nature. Negotiation for the floatation of three more properties on the English market have been practically completed. In the case of the Pride of Tokatea mine at Coromandel the capital has been fully subscribed in Liverpool and the Company duly registered, a deposit having been previously paid by the purchasers. This makes the twenty-fourth Coromandel property floated on the Home market, and the aggregate working capital to be expended is about /'6oo 000, so that the various mines should have a fair chance of proper development. Another cable was received notifying that the contract had been signed in London in connection with the sale of the Maori Dream mine at Kuaotunu, and the Alpine at Otanui, Thames. In each case the working capital to be provided is £ 20,000, while £l,OOO cash is to be paid to the Alpine shareholders in addition to 22,50 a paid-up shares in the new company. A notification was also posted on the Stock Exchange this week that the Puriri mine had been sold in London, but the terms were not made public beyond the fact that £20,000 working capital is to be provided. An offer was also made by the agent of a London syndicate for the purchase of the Huanui-Oceania mines at Waitekauri, £4OO deposit to be paid for the option for three months. The terms include the finding of £"25,000 working capital. This offer was accepted, and negotiations are now proceeding.

These various sales and offers did not, however, materially affect the price of shares on the Stock Exchange in the various companies. The fact is investors at this end are beginning to realise that there is a considerable difference between an option and a sale, consequently the market does not respond as it used to do when a cable is posted stating that an offer has been made for a certain property. It must be admitted that past experience fully warrants the cautiousness now being displayed by investors. Directors of some companies are now, however, adopting the wise plan of requiring a substantial deposit to be paid before consenting to tie up a property for three or six months as the case may be. Another wise precaution that has been taken in one or two cases is to stipulate that the working capital should be placed to the credit of the Company, and not left to be raised as required.

The crushing returns that came to hand during the past week were again very satisfactory, notwithstanding that in some cases the dry weather is reducing the water supply and lessening the power of the batteries. The Hauraki mine produced 2,11902 s lodwts of gold for the past month, which is valued at about £(>,360. The return from the Woodstock showed a decided increase this month upon the previous yield, £"1,049 worth of bullion being obtained from 272 tons of ore—an average of close on £4 4s 6d per ton, which should pay handsomely seeing that the Waihi Company gives regular dividends out of ore of an average value of about £‘3 7s 6d per ton. The May Queen return totalled £'B46 is gd for the month, the gold this time being of slightly better value, namely, £2 16s 6d per oz. Shares in the Kapai-Vermont Company advanced a little in price during the week, which was attributed to a rumour —not yet authoritatively confirmed —that the Sydney directors had received an offer for the mine. The crushing return for the month which came to hand on Saturday being a decided improvement upon the previous one may perhaps have been anticipated on the market by those in the kuow. The yield was 4730 ZS of gold from 330 tons of ore. Accounts from this mine are of a very satisfactory nature, a reef which some months ago was cut off by a change of country having been picked up again, the ore being as good as before. The development in the Moanataiari mine at the Thames are very encouraging, a second haul of 50IIJ of picked stone having been obtained from the Reuben Parr reef which proved so rich in years gone by. Apparently the English Company that took over this property have good prospects before them. The richness of the locality in which this mine is situated may be judged from the fact that in the early days of the field an adjoining mine paid over half a million in dividends in one year. Shareholders in the Moanataiari, however, have not to be content with what their neighbours have done—which, after all, is a cold sort of comfort—for they have the substantial fact to go upon that their mine has already produced £1 17,000 in dividends, although nothing but the old amalgamation process was ever used for extracting the gold. I note that Mr J. H. Witheford, while speaking at the meeting of shareholders in the Moanataiari Company held in London about a month ago, also put in a good word for the Reefton district. He said :—‘ I thought it

would be interesting for you to know the results of mining in another part of New Zealand, especially as one of the London papers has recently stated that mining in the Reefton district had never paid. The returns laid before Parliament by the Inspector-General stated that 131 companies had created, and that they had crushed 559,943 tons of quartz, for a yield of 431,07302 s of gold, representing a value of £"i,623,244 10s tod, while the amount paid in calls was .£291,028 14s 4d. The dividends that were received were £510,596 16s, which shows that there was £ 219,568 is 8d more received in dividends than was paid in calls, and this is the result of a district in New Zealand which it is said never paid.’

An important feature of the past week was the opening of the new battery belonging to the Waihi-Silverton Company. The crushing plant is stated to be one of the most complete yet erected on our goldfields, being replete with all the most modern improvements. The result of the first crushing will be awaited with interest, as this was about the first property taken over by English capitalists at the commencement of the present revival, and should the returns be as good as anticipated from the known assay value of the ore in the various reefs, the effect upon the English market should be to create still further confidence in New Zealand mines as profitable investments. The Silverton mine was pegged out some ten years ago by Mr J. A. Pond and Mr John McCombie, but lack of capital to erect the necessary crushing plant held it back until English investors provided the funds. As was but fitting, Mr J. A. Pond was allowed the honour of starting the battery which is to prove the true value of the property, which he had believed in and held fast to for so many years.

As was to be expected, just before the Plaster holidays business was not quite so brisk on the Stock Exchange during the past week, but any concessions in price for shares in proved companies were soon accepted. Waihi Silvertons changed hands frequently during the week at 73s and 73s 6d. Queen of Waihis, which mine adjoins this property, also sold freely at from 2s lid to 3s. Kapai-Vermonts advanced from 6s lod to 7s 3d, while Bunkers Hills sold at a concession of about a shilling. The good return from the Woodstock caused shares in that Company to sell at 245. Victoria shares fell one day from 4s to 3s 7d, but recovered later on to about the former price. Other stocks showed little change in value.