Ch. 1: Gold in Ceylon

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	gold in Ceylon.	58

	The purport of Dr. Ellery's report we believe to be that from near Ambepusse to the diggings the Maha Oya flows slowly over water-worn gneiss with occasional masses of smooth quartz. The diggings are situated where the river takes a sudden bend from a south-westerly to a north-westerly course. Here, there is a large " diluvial" deposit of smooth gneiss, quartz boulders, sand and gravel cemented together by a reddish clay. The gold was distributed throughout the mass, but was most abundant in the deeper parts and in the rock crevices. The drift seemed to have come from a distance. The gold is either in scales or small rounded masses, much water-worn. On proceeding 40 miles towards the source of the stream Gold was found in the tributary Hingool Oya, near Gordon's Bridge between the 58th and 59th mile stones on the Kandy road. The Geological formation seems much the same throughout— large detached masses of gneiss with quartz pebbles. Dr. Ellery describes it as resembling in its general and particular features many of the gold yielding tracts of Australia, and he is of opinion that by the aid of proper machinery and deep digging the results might be remunerative. On the Maha Oya itself gold was found at Attapitiya, 2\ miles from Gordon's Bridge, at Deyanella, 6 miles farther up and at Nartakanda coffee estate 3 more miles towards the source. Mr. Power corroborates Dr. Ellery's report and supports his opinion that deep digging and careful washing would yield profitable results. He reposes confidence in Bradley, who with his Californian and Australian experience declared that gold abounded in the region traversed by the prospecting party.



	(From the Examiner.) The following is the result of personal remark and information forwarded by others. At Bradley's Diggings.—Yaltalgodde on the Maha Oya, the dam after being erected was found useless—the distance required (270 feet) being too much for the hose. A forcing and driving pump ha* been sent for, and it is expected that it will enable the diggers to work continuously. That party has been greatly reduced during the past few days, Bradley and another having been absent prospecting with the Gold Commissioner—and another having been sent away sick to Colombo under charge of a comrade. As has been before remarked the gold found appeared generally to increase in size according to the depth dug and this was further confirmed by the finding on Saturday last of a piece of rather more than 2j grs. in weight. This was taken out by a gentleman who having noticed the similarity of the rocks at Bradley's Diggings and in the Mahaweliganga and Kotmalie Oya both of which streams run through his properties intends to prpspect forthwith. Having noticed in our former report that a native had found Gold, and sold part of it to Mr. Jayatilake Mudaliyar of Kurunegala, we were glad to see a piece "of the same gold, which was brought from the village by orders of the Commissioner and having been tested by Dr. Ellery of Kandy was pronounced to be pure gold. The rocks about Yattalgodde are generally of gneiss with large quantities of mica and layers or strata of broken quartz both pink and white. But a little higher up the river this is completely altered. There you find the gneiss rock abounding in mica and garnet in layers or strata, with well defined quartz veins running through the whole mass in every possible direction; sometimes at right angles to the strata, everywhere in short where a fissure has enabled it to penetrate. Proceeding higher up the river small tributaries are found draining the adjacent hills and supplying part of the auriferous deposit of the Maha Oya one of the principal of these is the Hingol Oya—it rises in tho Kadugannawa mountains and draining all that part of the country falls into the Maha Oya just below Hingolla—a village to which it gives its name. The Kandy road crosses this stream at Gordon's Bridge and as it was of importance to ascertain whether the tributaries supplied their share—the diggers prospected about 20 yards above

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