GOLD 



715 



Gold in New Zealand. Dr. Hector in the ' Geological Survey Progress Eeport ' gives 

 the following account : ' Gold had been long known to exist at Coromandel, a little 

 north of the Shortland District, in 1852, and it had been regularly worked there since 

 1862. Humours had also long existed that gold was plentiful in the Thames Valley, 

 and several Maoris and Europeans had brought specimens to Auckland at various 

 times from 1865. In July 1867, a native chief, named Taipari, stimulated by the 

 offer of the Provincial Government of a reward of 5,000/. for any one who should dis- 

 cover a payable gold-field, employed several men, both Europeans and Natives to 

 prospect his land ; and gold was obtained by sluicing in the Karaka and Hope Creeks. 

 This was taken to Auckland and shown to the Deputy Superintendent and the Native 

 Commissioner, and at the same time Taipari offered to throw open his lands as a gold- 

 field. Satisfactory arrangements having been made with him, the result was that a 

 block of land from the Hope to the Pukehiuau Creeks, known as the Karaka block, was 

 proclaimed a gold-field on August 1, 1867, and a town was laid out at the mouth of 

 the Kawaeranga, and named Shortland. Parties at once set to work sluicing on the 

 Karaka, Waiotahi, and Moauataiari, but with indifferent results ; -when on August 17, 

 four men discovered the gold in situ in .the Kuranni on the face of a waterfall, on 

 the spot now so well known as Hunt's Beef. This led to further exploration for quartz 

 veins, and in a month gold had been found in about a dozen places. Further dis- 

 coveries quickly followed. Sluicing was abandoned, and quartz-mining recognised as 

 the true industry of the field. So satisfactorily did this turn out that, at the end of 

 December 1868, or seventeen months after the first proclamation of the field, not only 

 had two other distinct districts, Tapu and Puriri, been started, but about 1,200 claims 

 had been taken up near Shortland, between 800 and 850 of which were then actually 

 working, and probably 600 of the number had seen gold in greater or less quantities. 

 Twenty-seven crushing machines were on the ground, and thirteen others were going 

 up. The yield of gold had exceeded 83,000 ounces, valued at more than 200,0002. ; 

 and the population numbered about 18,000 souls. 



'Gold is now being worked' at Puriri in the district between Shortland and Tararu, 

 and at Tapu. It has also been found in one or two places between Tararu and Tapu ; 

 and as the same geological structure extends over the whole district, there is every 

 probability of its existing much more extensively than has yet been discovered. 



' The quality of the gold differs considerably in different parts of the field, and even 

 from the same claim, it often varies a good deal. Out of twenty-eight assays from 

 various parts of the Shortland District, furnished by the assay er of the Union Bank 

 of Australia the highest gave 19 - 5, and the lowest 9*625 carats fine, both being from 

 the Waiotahi Creek ; while, from the Lord Derby claim, also on the Waiotahi, some 

 stone yielded nearly pure silver, being only 275 carats fine, and worth only 9s. Sd. an 

 ounce. The average of the 28 assays is 15 carats fine. 



The following table gives the result of these assays separated into districts ; and 

 although they are much too few to give any decided results, they show an unmistake- 

 able tendency towards a poorer goldj that is, one containing more silver, as they go 

 northward : 



' The gold is very widely distributed through the district, although certain parts 

 appear at present to contain it in more considerable quantities than others; but the 

 mines have not yet been long enough worked to pronounce with much certainty on 

 this point. The fact before mentioned, that probably 600 out of 1,200 claims had seen 

 gold, shows well how widely it is distributed through the country, for it must be 

 borne in mind that, unlike most quartz-mining districts, the reefs here are not con- 

 tinuous for far, and that the greater part are but thiu irregular veins ; so that 

 the country was not taken up along lines of loads only, but en masse, nearly the 

 whole of the country between the Hope and Tararu being pegged off. It follows from 

 this, that nearly one-half of the surface of the country contains more or less gold 

 in situ. Major Heaphy informs me that he has had thirty-one assays made of quartz 

 from the same number of veins from, various localities in the . Opiiomoko and Taraia 



