368 JOHN C. H. MINGAYE. 
NOTES on tHE OCCURRENCE or PLATINUM, GOLD anpb 
TIN in tHE BEACH SANDS In tot RICHMOND 
RIVER DISTRICT, N.S. WALES. 
By Joun C. H. Mineayeg, F.c.s., M.A.1.M.E, Analyst to the 
Department of Mines. 
[Read before the Chemical and Geological Section of the Royal aa of 
N.S. Wales, July 5, 1892. } 
THE ocean beaches and river sands in various parts of the world 
have been extensively worked for gold and platinum. *In America 
much attention is given to the occurrence of gold in these ocean 
placers, or beach diggings, and they are being worked in the State 
of Oregon, where it is reported that two of the claims have yielded 
as much as £160 for two weeks’ work. *In Japan, at Hakodaki, 
small quantities of gold are found along the beach, which is 
covered for miles with thick layers of auriferous black sand. In 
New Zealand, the sea beaches are extensively worked for the 
gold and platinum present. At North Beach, five miles from the 
Maori River, the wash yielded as much as one ounce a day per 
man. So valuable are these claims considered, that they are 
commonly sold for as much as £200 to £300 each, independently 
of water race and appliances. 
The presence of gold and platinum in the beach sands of the 
Richmond River was pointed out by +Mr. W. A. Dixon, F.1.c. &e. 
in 1878, the sample examined containing gold 1 dwt. 5 grains per 
ton; platinum a trace, being less than 5 grains per ton. These sands 
have been extensively worked for years, with the result that some 
hundreds of ounces of gold have been obtained, also a small quantity 
of platinum, iridosmine, etc. 
The sand may be described as follows :—Consists largely of 
white sand and magnetite, with lesser quantities of ilmenite, 
* « Gold, its Occurrence and Extraction.”—Alfred G. Lock. 
+ Annual Report, Department of Mines, 1878. 
