ALPHA AND PHCENIX MINES. 



2Q 



movement with the usual characteristics of vein deposits, such as 

 more or less well-marked walls with films of chlorite or talc, seams 

 of clay, strings of quartz, etc., even when the larger bodies of quartz 

 are absent* Besides quarts the vein contains a considerable amount 

 of carbonate of lime in the form of calcite, also patches and streak 

 of chlorite and mica which appear to be altered fragments of the 

 country-rock. The gold-contents are almost entirely associated 

 with iron-pyrites, which occurs in small patches or geodes or dis- 

 seminated in specks throughout the foot-wall portions of the lode. 

 The gold is very finely divided and rarely if ever visible to the naked 

 eye. 



The mine has been opened up by three adits driven into the hill- 

 side. These are known respectively as No. 3, No. 4, and No. 6. 

 The ore-body exposed by adits No. 3 and No. 4, which has a length 

 along the course of the vein of 400 feet, was practically all stoped 

 out, and although No. 4 adit was continued for a further distance of 

 560 feet along the thin clay parting,, marking the position of the vein, 

 only a few small bunches of quartz were met with, and the level was 

 finally abandoned, without having reached a second ore-body. No. 

 6 adit opened up 870 feet of the quartz vein, only a very small 

 portion of which has been stoped. No samples could be taken in 

 No. 3 level, as the stopes above this level have fallen in to a great 

 extent. In No. 4 level 15 samples were taken from the pillars and 

 other places where the vein was accessible ; and in No. 6 level 78 

 samples were taken. 



The following table gives the results of averaging the assays of 

 these samples (the complete returns will be found in the appen- 

 dix) :— 



No. of level. 



No. of samples 

 taken. 



Average width, 

 in feet. 



Average assay 



value in dwts. of 



fine gold to 



the ton. 



No. 4 



. 



IS 



78 



47 



5 - 5 



32 



r8 



( 29 ) 



