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Tababu. Tararu Creek Mine. —This company has done a very large amount of work during the year, and operations on the reef are being vigorously proceeded with. The main adit level, which has been put in on a level of the battery, has been driven a distance of 2,700 ft. At this point a break was met with, and a rise was put up on the reef, alongside of the break, to a height of 103 ft., which is used as a travelling-way, and a pass to run the quartz down from the upper levels, the rise being partitioned off into three compartments. The City of Dunedin level has also been driven from the Tinkers' Gully side of the hill for a distance of 1,550 ft. The drive is being extended on the reef at this level, and stoping carried on over the level for a length of 500 ft., and to a height of 90 ft., and is about 4 ft. in width, from which an ample supply of ore is obtained to keep the mill constantly employed. The low-level adit has been extended a distance of 300 ft. from the bottom of the main pass through the break. The reef was not picked up through the break until some considerable distance had been driven, but a body of quartz has been met with which is supposed to be the main reef. All the necessary plant has been fitted up for working rock-drills in the drives and stopes with compressed air. When the rock-drills have been fairly started a large saving should be effected to the company, as the quartz should be Jaroken much cheaper than it can be done by hand labour. Since the connection has been made with the upper workings from the low level a considerable saving has been effected in the transport of the ore to the battery, which is now conveyed to the mill at a small cost in trucks drawn by a horse, delivering from 55 to 65 tons daily. The systematic manner in which the mine is worked, and the cheap transit of the ore to the mill, has placed the company in a more advantageous position to work their property. The ore is treated by wet crushing and amalgamation, the tailings being treated by the cyanide process.' 8,479 tons of quartz has been crushed, for 3,637 oz. 9dwt. of gold; value, £8,985 15s. 10d. One hundred and twenty men are employed in the mine and battery. The City of Auckland Mine. —There has been little work done on this mine during the year, but the Tararu Creek Company have now got an option over the property, and they will no doubt do some work to ascertain the value of the reefs. Iron Cap (late Kaiser) Mine. —This company has done a large amount of work in opening up the reefs at the different levels, several hundred feet of driving having been done. The work at present is confined to driving on the Kaiser reef at the No. 2 level. This drive is in a total distance of 500 ft., 220 ft. having been driven on the reef, which varies from 4 in. to 18 in. in thickness, the quartz being of a kindly description, containing a large percentage of iron pyrites and other minerals which are considered favourable for the precious metal. A trial parcel of 12 tons of ore was treated at the Moanataiari battery, for a return of 5 oz. 12 dwt. of gold. Six men have been employed. Scandinavian Mine. —This mine was worked in the early part of the year by a party of tributera who had 82 tons of quartz treated from the different reefs at the company's battery, which gave a return of 17 oz. 7 dwt. of gold ; value, £44 14s. 6d. This noc being payable, work was stopped and the property sold. Argosy Mine. —There has been very little work done on this property during the year. Chicago Mine. —This company did a considerable amount of work in the early part of the year. A ten-stamp mill was erected, water-race constructed, and tram-line laid from the mine to the mill, and a good deal of development work was done on the reefs in the mine. When the mill was completed, 156 tons of ore was crushed, for a return of 26 oz. 13 dwt. of gold, but, this being disappointing, the yield not coming up to expectations, the work in the mine was stopped and application made to the Warden for protection. Eclipse Mine. —This company, in the beginning of the year, did a large amount of work on the reef at No. 3 low level. The reef in this drive varied from 3 ft. to 8 ft. in thickness, from which 106 tons of quartz was crushed, for the payable return of 136 oz. 16 dwt. of gold; value, £396 14s. 4d. This yield having exceeded their expectations, the company at once decided to erect a battery to treat the ore as it is won from the mine, instead of stacking the quartz on the surface, and at present the following works are in progress : A ten-stamp mill is being erected ; water-race constructed, and nearly completed, and an aerial tramway is in the course of construction for the purpose of conveying the quartz from the mine to the mill, a distance of a mile and a quarter. There is a slight hitch with the contractor for carrying out the latter work, but, apart from this, the battery should be completed in two months' time. A shaft is being sunk, and is now down a depth of 80 ft. This is being put down for the purpose of opening up the reef, and an engine and poppet - head is put up, and everything in connection with this plant is nearly completed. The company deserves great credit for the manner in which they are developing the property, and it is to be hoped the shareholders will be handsomely rewarded for the money it has cost. Shellback Creek. —Very little work has been done in this locality during the year. The Waitangi, Thames Special, and Mabel Claims have been worked intermittently, but nothing of importance has been discovered. Kubanui. Kuranui Mine. —This mine was worked by tributers iri the beginning of the year, who treated 125 tons of ore from the surface levels for 89 oz. 5 dwt. of gold, value £194 11s. sd. ; but at present there are only two men working in the ground on tribute. The company have nine men employed oh wages who are engaged driving a cross-cut from the bottom of a shaft which has been sunk 51 ft. on the flat near the company's battery. This drive is being put in for the purpose of intersecting the continuance of Hunt's or any other of the Long Drive leads that may traverse this part of the property.

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