concerning
yields from it. The Klondyke Company took over the area a few years
since, but it appears to have spent much time and money in searching
for rich patches, when a big mill and bulk treatment might have
resulted in much mining activity here. Concerning depths reached, all I
could learn is that the main shaft was taken to a depth of about 420
feet many years since ; it measures 10 x 4 feet, is well timbered, and
remains ready for action. Here is another fair prospect for a company.
Over
the gully from the Klondyke, and on what is evidently a continuation
of the actual belt of Egerton lode formations, are the remains of the
old Parker's mine. Here the lode structure shows a vertical (any lode
inclining at about, or less than, 45° from the vertical, is known as a
vertical in most of the mining- districts) underlying to the east
almost with the strata as in
Fig.
7. In old works at 60 feet below the surface I noted about 25 feet in
width of ore, composed of quartz, slate, and dyke stuff, through the
whole of which is a little gold. This Parker's lode is one in a system
of lodes. It is very well defined in depth and length, and its underlay
and strike being but a little off the underlay and strike of the rock
layers, and, as stated, going down nearly vertical, its gold is more
evenly distributed, that is, less patchy in detail deposit, than is the
case where lode formations are more nearly horizontal and cut through
the lines of strata.
The
lode was found to have shoots of gold, but its whole width contains
gold in quantity sufficient for bulk treatment. The mining so far has
been of the picking and choosing kind, the richer parts of the lode
having been raked out, from, a depth of about 400 feet up, for £20,000
in dividends ; but, in the indiscriminate driving about, resorted to
afterwards in the vain attempt to locate other points of unusual
richness, a good deal more value than this was wasted. The Sterrit
Bros, have secured the area of all the old works, and are now engaged
in opening stone left at shallow levels on it. I saw excellent
prospects taken from stone in an old cutting at the surface, and saw
also prospects of gold dished from stuff taken indiscriminately from
old mullock-heaps. A short hunt around these heaps brought to light
many samples of various kinds of indicators in gold-slate, and in the
old works visited these channels for gold drainage are to be seen very
plainly. A big mill is required here, and Sterrit Bros, are negotiating
for a little one for their own use.
Just
to the north of the town, and over another range, Dill Bros, are
treating, with a little three-head mill, auriferous mullock from the
heaps on an old mine known as the Homeward Bound. Here mining was in
progress 40 years ago, and yields from shallow levels are said to have
been as high as 12 ozs. to the ton. As usual, the formation is
associated with dyke material. It is a vertical, underlying east and
running north with the rock layers. It has wide "bulge" extents of vein
country on its eastern side, all associated with lines of slate
drainage, containing gold. The vertical (on the footwall) has received
the most attention, and the early diggers appear to have ignored the
vein country altogether, with its finely-distributed gold and its
patches. There is a wing of quartz coming into the main lode from the
east, forming a V with the latter (Fig. 8), and this is said also to
have yielded well. In fact, the vicinity is permeated with lode
formations all practically nnsampled. To the north again, along a range
of the same slate and sandstone country, 5886.
B.
