investigation
of the Western Areas ground and as a result of that study and research
important light has been thrown on the geology of the area.
Finally in October 1932 an official announcement was made by New Consolidated Gold Fields Limited31 to the effect that
the
option held by them from Western Areas Limited, over the mineral and
certain other rights of approximately 67 square miles of land, has been
exercised by them, and that, in conjunction with important financial
interests in London and Johannesburg, they are proceeding with the
registration of a company which will have an initial capital of
£500,000, and which will acquire the rights referred to and also take
over from New Consolidated Gold Fields Limited options over the mineral
rights of farms extending to the Mooi River for 27 miles in a
continuous line approximately due west of the properties acquired from
Western Areas Limited. It is not proposed at present to make any public
issue of shares. . . .
♦ XIII ♦
On
16 October 1932 Ernest Oppenheimer received a letter from F. A. Unger
(at the time manager and consulting engineer of the Anglo American
Corporation) captioned 'Western Areas Limited and Far "West Rand'. It
began:
I
have examined the reports in connexion with the above which were handed
me by the New Consolidated Gold Fields Limited. First of all, I should
like to express my great admiration for the work done, for the manner
in which the information has been compiled, and for the clear and
convenient way in which it is now presented. The scheme as submitted to
us has many attractions and it appeals to the imagination. The
possibilities are immense, and if fortune favours the bold, the outlook
for the Witwaters-rand will undergo a complete change. I hesitate thus
to put forward adverse criticism, if this would result in not taking up
the accepted participation. My feeling is that a mining group could not
very well afford to refuse participation at this stage, especially as
the initial capital involved is not very great, certainly nothing
compared with the magnitude of die prize.
I
must warn you, however, that the scheme submitted is a gamble,
certainly a very attractive one, and of a type in which a mining house
is absolutely justified in risking even a considerable sum of money.
While I advocate doing this, I shall at the same time have to draw your
attention to what I consider are the risks and uncertainties. . . .
After going into technical detail, the letter concluded:
31 South African Mining and Engineering Journal, 5 November 1932, pp. 139-40.
