C.—2.

500 tons of quartz, arrangements for the crushing of which at the Waikino battery had been made with the Waihi Gold-raining Co. Five head of stamps were set aside at the battery, and special provision made for the treatment of the quartz entirely separate from the Waihi Co.'s own ore. Up to the end of the year only 154 long tons of the stone had been crushed. This yielded gold and silver to the value of £601 12s. 4d. The gold amounted to 138 oz. 12 dwt., valued at £582 2s. 4d., and the silver to 296 oz., valued at £19 10s. The ore came from a number of faces on Nos. 1 and 3 reefs above No. 3 adit, and the recovery, which was 90 per cent, of the assay value, was equal to £3 18s. per ton. During the short period the mine was worked, 17 men were employed. Talisman-Dubbo Gold-mines, Ltd., Karangahake.—This company, which is now working on part of the Maria reef in portions of the areas previously held by the Talisman and New Zealand Crown Mines Companies, carried in during the year an adit on the reef from the old Dubbo section above the elevation of the Dubbo No. 1 level to a distance of approximately 556 ft. For practically the whole length the adit was on reef varying from about 18 in. in width up to 7 ft. 6 in. Throughout the driving the quartz is said to have shown colours on panning, but there were three runs or shoots, aggregating about 250 ft. in length, believed to have contained high values. Two tons of ore taken from one of them were sent to the School of Mines at Thames for treatment, and yielded 4 oz. 12 dwt. gold and silver, valued at £10 Is. lid. The recovery represented, however, only about 54 per cent, of the assay value, the School of Mines plant only dealing with that portion of the gold amenable to amalgamation. Quartz is still showing in the face of the adit, and the driving is being continued. Three men on an average were employed. Apart from the foregoing, and a little done by J. E. Morris on what is believed to be the Roderick Dhu reef, and some small amount by R. Schulzki in the New Talisman claim, no other work of consequence was carried out in the Karangahake area. Ohinemuri Gold and Silver Mines, Maralolo.—For several months in the early part of the year this company continued its operations, carrying out a limited amount of prospecting work on No. 4 (Telluride) level, and mining ore, mainly from the Silverstream reef and a short shoot on the north part of the Camoola reef, on that level. A further 1,502 tons from these parts of the mine were sent to the mill for treatment, and 32,599 oz. 4 dwt. of bullion, valued at £2,813 4s. 4d., were recovered. This return not being payable, operations at the mine ceased, and the company went into liquidation. New Waiotahi Gold-mining Co., Thames. —Practically the only work done in this mine during the year was the extension of the drive referred to in last year's report in a section of ground taken on tribute from the Moanataiari Co. This was carried northward from the neighbourhood of the old Caledonia shaft towards the old Hazelbank shaft, with a view to testing the Young American reef at this horizon. The drive was carried far enough to cut the reef if it had lived in this part of the mine, but no quartz was met with. Alburnia Gold-mining Co., Thames. —Beyond a little further prospecting in the Whau level and the extension of the drive for a short distance on the Orlando reef in the Norwegian level, very little was done in this company's mine. A small crushing of 1 ton 1 cwt. 2 qr. 14 lb. of selected stone was put through the Thames School of Mines plant for a recovery of 49 oz. 19 dwt. gold, valued at £128 16s. 6d. As nothing of a promising nature had been located in the mine, and the company's funds were exhausted, all work was suspended in May, and the company later went into liquidation. Galedonia-Kurunm-Moanataiari Consolidated Gold-mining Co. (S. G. Baker, Manager).—The sinking of the incline underground shaft from near the end of the main east crosscut was continued, and it was eventually carried down to 100 ft., at which depth a chamber was cut. Curing the sinking of the shaft several quartz formations were passed through, and when opening out from the chamber it was found that several reefs occurred in this part of the mine, none of which had been revealed in previous workings. On the more defined of them, now known as Nos. 1 and 2 reefs, more or less driving was done. On the latter, drives were put in 29 ft. north and 26 ft. south. The reef was about 4 ft. in width, and colours of gold were seen in it occasionally, but on the whole it was of low grade. On No. 1 reef a drive was put in north for 25 ft. The reef here was wider than the drive, and fairly heavily mineralized. In a southerly direction this reef was driven on to the end of the year for approximately 50 ft. In this drive the reef was smaller than in the north end, averaging only about 18 in. in width, but it showed colours freely. A rise was also put up to the intermediate level from near the foot of the incline shaft, partly to improve the ventilation, and partly to determine if the reefs got in the lower workings were identical with those cut in the intermediate. Several distinct quarts veins were cut in the rise, one of which may correspond with the reef known as No. 1, but no sign of No. 2 reef was seen. During the year some 32 tons of quartz, mainly recovered during the driving and rising operations, were treated for a recovery of 16 oz. 7 dwt. gold, valued at £46 lis. Occidental-TJna United, Gold-mining Co. (N.L.), Thames.—This company only worked its mine for a very brief time in the early part of the year, during which 7J tons of quartz, treated at Thames School of Mines, yielded 15 oz. 15 dwt. gold, valued at £46 4s. 4d. As its capital was exhausted, the company then went into liquidation, and the property was later disposed of to a syndicate, which had not up to the end of the year resumed active operations. Lucky Shot Gold-mining Co., Ltd., Thames. ■ — Comparatively little development work was done in this company's mine. A winze was sunk for 25 ft. from the intermediate level below the main adit with a view to following down the run of gold that had been found there, and a drive was put out from the bottom of this winze for 48 ft., but nothing of importance was located. Some stoping was done on the intermediate level and on a cross reef over No. I winze, and several crushings were put through from which gold to the amount of 71 oz. 17 dwt., valued at £194 3s. 6d., was recovered. About the middle of the year the mine was let to a number of tribute parties, of which Sparkes and party, working on a dropper from the Golden Age reef between the intermediate level and the main adit, was the most successful, winning 113 oz. 11 dwt. 4gr. gold, valued at £313 7s. 7d. Several parties working on the Evening Star section of the property also won a few ounces. The total gold won from the mine for the year amounted to 224 oz. 9 dwt. 12 gr., valued at £613 16s. Bd. From two to eight men were tributing for various periods. Waiomo Sulphide Corporation, Ltd. (J. H. Benney, Manager).—This company continued to work its Zeehan mine. The drive north on the New Reef on No. 5 level was extended to a total of 368 ft. on a reef averaging about 2£ ft. in width. A rise was put up on the reef for 67 ft., on reef averaging 3 ft. in width. A winze was also sunk on the reef for 75 ft., the reef averaging about 3 ft. in width. From the bottom of the winze a drive was extended south for 73 ft. The reef here was somewhat smaller, averaging only about 2 ft. in width. From the Zeehan reef on the same level a crosscut was put out westerly for 53 ft., but nothing of value was found. On No. 4 level the New Reef was driven on north for 127 ft. and south for 38 ft. Going north the reef averaged about 2 ft. in width, and in places carried some fair ore, but was generally of low grade. In the south drive the reef was about 1J ft. wide, and was poor. On the same level a drive was extended 59 ft. north of the Birthday Rise on another reef, but no payable values were got. Stoping was carried out on small blocks on the New and Zeehan reefs, but the values were found to be limited to very short shoots, and even in these they were evidently very patchy. The battery was completed in May, when crushing was started, and up to the end of the year 2,425 tons of ore were treated for a recovery of 690 oz. 17 dwt. 3 gr. gold, valued at £2,903 Is. 7d., and 5,072 oz. 17 dwt. silver, valued at £338 Is. 7d., representing a recovery per ton of gold and silver to the value of £1 6s. Bd. It may be mentioned that the treatment consisted of crushing the ore, concentrating the heavier minerals on Wilfley tables, and passing the finer materia! through an oil-flotation unit. The concentrates thus obtained were disposed of for oversea treatment. The plant worked very well, but owing to inadequate supply of ore could not be worked at full capacity. Towards the end of the year the company acquired the Monowai claim, and did a good deal of work on it, with a view to securing from it

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