Page:Rambles on the Golden Coast of New Zealand.djvu/152

118 the dip appears to be tending southward, at a much greater angle—an angle of about sixty degrees. The vein disappears into the hill, and at the thickest portion a large quantity of débris has fallen apparently from a recent land-slip. Palmer informed us that under this débris the vein was exposed at a thickness of 3 to 4 ft. I should have no reason to doubt this statement, but judging by the manner in which it is dipping and gradually thickening as it goes into the hill, should accept such as highly probable, more particularly as I found in every other respect that the statements of the prospectors were fully verified. To ascertain this, however, would not cost the shareholders or a company any large amount, as the whole of the débris, I dare say, could be sluiced away by hydraulic power, and this is one great advantage for the future working of the mine, that a plentiful supply of water can be obtained from either of the two creeks, only a few yards apart from each other, and which unite close to the mine. The vein of galena, containing the silver and lead ore, is imbedded in a layer of ferruginous quartz in clay slate. Below and above the vein the reef is soft, and offers little or no resistance to the extraction of the metal. Even at the present time, without any other than the common appliance of a pick, a man could knock out two or three hundredweight of the metal in a few hours. We contented ourselves with half a dozen specimens each, which were obtained with the greatest ease, and there is no necessity for, or apparent benefit from, picking the pieces, as all along the thickest part of the vein there is little or no dissimilarity in its parts. Above the lode, about 50 ft. or so, is a thick reef of white quartz, and beyond that again, to the summit of the hill, is the granite rock. In the course of a few minutes Palmer took out about thirty pounds’ weight of ore, which he brought to town. I may state also that there are from three to four tons of the ore already heaped up on the side of the cliff, ready at any time to be taken to town, or to be smelted on the ground, whenever means or ways are provided for ascertaining its value, or reducing it to pounds or shillings sterling. To the right of the creek the prospectors have put in a tunnel of 16 ft., thinking to catch the lode, but in this they were not successful. They subsequently sunk a shaft of about 10 or 12 ft. in the same direction, and have cut the vein about the same thickness, thus proving that the metal exists on both sides of the creek, besides being visible in another vein in the bottom of the creek.

Being satisfied that the ore in quantity is there, so far as can be judged by the amount of work yet done, my next desire was to become equally convinced as to the quality. With that view I took half a dozen fair-sized pieces promiscuously from the mine, not from one block, but from various points along the lode. Each specimen I carefully marked and brought to town.

There are four distinct galena reefs exposed on the prospectors’ ground within a distance of three to four hundred yards, and there are likewise indications of copper in two places on the same lease. Three or four samples of the copper ore were taken down by Palmer, and were left at the office of Mesrs Pollock & Bevan, in Wharf Street. I took down a small sample of the copper ore, and likewise one showing a large quantity