182
THE NEW ZEALAND GAZETTE.

stone and quartz indicate the outcrop of a heavy reef,
but nothing has been done to test the ground in this
direction.

It is therefore probable that if a steady defined
reef is found it will have a N.W. and S.E. direction
and easterly dip, and in this respect agree both with
the Jackson and Sutherland reefs, and also with the
auriferous quartz and antimony lode between En-
deavour Inlet and Port Gore (Cox, Geol. Rep., 1875,
p. 2), so that N.W. appears to be the prevailing
course of mineral lodes in the district.

The workings in the Golden Point Mine have
hitherto been for the purpose of tracing the irregular
leaders of quartz already mentioned.

A bench has been cut on the face of the hill clear
of tide level, and a tunnel put in for 50 feet to the
north. At the end of this tunnel a shaft has been
sunk to a depth of 30 feet, and from the bottom a
cross level has been cut 17 feet to the east and 19
feet to the west. A thin leader is cut in the roof of
the tunnel near the entrance, but having a north-east
dip intersects the floor about 20 feet further in, where
it expands to about 12 inches in thickness. It was
from a shallow pit on the east side of the tunnel at
this point that the rich specimens exhibited in Wel-
linton are stated to have been obtained. Several
dishes of stuff from the leader, roughly broken, were
tested on the spot, and in every case gold was
obtained. One prospect, got in this rough way, was
preserved and weighed, and gave half of a grain to
the dish, or about half an ounce per ton. Eighteen
and a half pounds of stone from the same place was
taken for further examination in the Laboratory, and
yielded at the rate of 14 oz. 15 dwt. 5 gr. per ton.
The next leaders examined are in the cross-cut at the
bottom of the shaft. The ground is tolerably dry
considering that it is so close to the sea and about
25 feet below tide-mark, and the leakage water being
only faintly brackish, proves that the ground is tight
and favourable for deep working. In the cross drive
towards the east three leaders have been cut, two of
which dip to the east at a flat angle, and the third is
seen to split as it rises from the floor to the roof of
the drive into an east and west branch. Quartz from
the junction was tested and gave a prospect of ⅓ of a
grain to the dish. A mixed sample from the leaders,
weighing 125 lb., was taken for further examination,
and has yielded at the rate of 3 oz. 16 dwt. 5 gr.
to the ton. In the cross drive to the west a small
east dipping leader is first cut, and then a strong
leader of very compact quartz, also with easterly dip,
is seen in the roof and upper half of the walls of the
drive, but it is cut off by a cross course which has
been filled by a subsequent deposit of banded quartz
about two inches in thickness, and to which I have
previously alluded. A few pounds of quartz from
both the leader and the cross course were taken, for
comparative examination in the Laboratory, and gave
the following results:—

Oz. dwt. gr.
Flat leader, per ton      ...  0  13  21
Cross course, per ton     ...  1   3   8

The gold from the cross course or latest formed reef
being decidedly more argentiferous than that from
the leader.

The following are the details of the various ex-
aminations and analyses of specimens from the mine
which have been made by the Analyst in the Labora-
tory under my supervision:—

1, 2, 3, 4. Samples taken by myself.

1. Dish of broken quartz from the “Specimen
   Hole” (a on and plan and sections), washed
   in the sea under unfavourable circumstances.
   Weight of sample, about 10 lb. Gold
   obtained in rough flakes, 0·55 gr.

2. Dish of stuff from the Y leader at the east
   end of the cross drive (b on plan and sections).
   Weight of sample, about 10 lb. Gold ob-
   tained in fine specks, 0·15 gr.

3. From flat leader in the west cross drive (e on
   plan and sections), compact slightly ferru-
   ginous quartz. Sample of 5 lb. weight,
   after roasting and crushing, yielded by amal-
   gamation process at rate of 13 dwt. 21 gr.
   per ton.

4. From the cross course or vertical vein cutting
   and displacing the leader from which sample
   No. 3 was taken. A thin vein of ferruginous
   quartz with a banded structure, but breaking
   into angular fragments. From this vein there
   is a constant drip of water. Sample of about
   3 lb., after roasting and crushing, yielded by
   amalgamation process at the rate of 1 oz.
   3 dwt. 8 gr. per ton.

5, 6. Samples taken in my presence, and crushed
at Mills’ Foundry, under the superintendence of Mr.
J. F. E. Wright. The pounded quartz being passed
through a sieve, and all the coarse gold separated,
the pounded stone and the coarse gold was delivered
at the Laboratory in separate parcels.

5. From the hole on east side of the tunnel, at
   20 feet from the entrance, where the rich
   specimens were found, samples of 18½ lb.
   yielded,—

   Oz. dwt. gr.
   Gold in separate packet, being
   that picked out by Mr. Wright
   with the sieve, at rate of ... 11 9 3
   Amalgamation of the crushed
   stone yielded ... 3 11 12
   ——————
   Total yield per ton ... 14 20 15

6. From the leaders in the east cross drive,
   Sample of 125 lb.—

   Cwt. dwt. gr.
   Gold in separate packet ... 0 11 5
   Obtained by amalgamation ... 3 5 0
   ——————
   Total yield per ton ... 3 16 5

Two samples of the gold have been analyzed, one
of them (a) being extracted from the prospectors’
specimens, and the other (b) from the leader in the
east cross drive:—

a.        b.
Gold      ...  92·51    94·22
Silver    ...   4·38     3·93
Iron and loss ...   3·11     1·85
————    ————
100·00   100·00

The proportion of silver to 100 parts of gold is
therefore in a 4·70, in b 4·17, so that the two
samples are of similar quality.

A tracing from the chart (A), showing the locality,
and a plan of Price’s Point (B), showing the position
of the Golden Point Mine, is enclosed; together with
a sectional view of the quartz leaders as they are
seen in the cliff (C); and a ground plan and two
vertical sections of the workings, showing the posi-
tions of the various points referred to in the foregoing
report.

In conclusion, I may state that I consider the
indications on the whole favourable, but that much
work may be necessary before a defined reef is
found. At the same time, the analyses above quoted
prove that some at least of the quartz leaders contain
a remunerative percentage of gold, provided that
their extreme irregularity does not make the mining
operations too costly.