C.— 13. 
22 
just outside the area, within Boys’s claim. This bottomed through washdirt very rich in gold, Mr. 
Harcourt estimating that the area of the shaft alone yielded 8oz. of gold. There was now con- 
siderable excitement with respect to the 40 acres held by Mr. Dwyer, and the whole of the ground 
was pegged off under the belief that the land had not been alienated, and was still open for mining 
purposes. It is understood that the land is to be resumed by the Government shortly. 
There is little doubt that the lead extends east to or beyond the Black Bridge, and thence dips 
to the westward, and in this direction is covered up by the more modern gravels of the Arahura 
Valley. Over the low grounds of the Arahura Valley the lead has been carried away by the river, 
and it is not likely to be again met with till passing to the north-east of Flowery Creek, where it 
should again be present in, and for some distance into, the flat west of Ballarat Hill, which is the 
line of its continuation to the north-east, at or near the level of the Houhou and Blue Spur 
portions of the lead. 
On Ballarat Ilill the lead was fully developed, but the richer part of this area has now been 
worked. North-east of this the Wairnea has broken through and destroyed the lead, and it is not 
met with till Seandanavian Hill is reached, although the terraces at the back of Staffordtown should 
afford some indication of it, as being formed of the same marine gravels, which are gold-bearing on 
the south-west side of the Wairnea. As far back as workings have been carried to the eastward, 
on Ballarat Hill, beds of black sand, partly oxidized and cemented, are found interbedded with the 
coarser gravels, thus indicating the marine character of the beds. 
On the continuation north-east of the line of this old raised beach, between German Gully and 
Sandy Creek, there are a series of terraces, denominated second, third, fourth, and fifth terrace. 
These appear to be the line of lead, cut down to various levels by the action of the different streams 
that are tributaries of German Gully Creek or Sandy Creek. 
The Larnplough Lead, within the Kapitea Watershed, lies on the same line, and is distinctly 
on a continuation of the Houhou lead thus far. 
Further to the north-east, between the Kapitea Creek and the Teremakau River, the line of 
black-sand old beach deposit has at one time been continuous, but in times more recent the action 
of the Teremakau has either destroyed or covered up the marine beds. Workings along the high 
terrace banks of the river, and in Drake’s Terrace and Hughes’s Creek, indicate that here portions 
of the lead yet remain. 
Between the Teremakau and Rutlierglen, in the watershed of Saltwater Creek, there seems to 
be two links of black-sand leads, either of which may be considered as the direct continuation of 
the Houhou Lead. Practically, both are continuations of the same lead, which may be said to be 
of greater breadth here than farther to the south. New River and Saltwater Creek have broken 
through and almost destroyed the lead, scattering its gokl in the more recent gravels, now occu- 
pying the low grounds of their valleys. 
Towards Greymouth this line of black-sand deposits is not so well marked, possibly through 
the action of the Grey River ; but towards Point Elizabeth it is again distinctly and characteristic- 
ally present on Darkies’ Terrace. 
On the northern side of Point Elizabeth the action of the Seven-mile Creek has destroyed the 
continuity of the lead, but between the Seven- and Nine-mile Creeks it is present as a high terrace 
of marine gravels, which are known to be gold-bearing, and which would ere this have been 
extensively worked had there been facilities for bringing water on to the ground at a moderate 
cost. 
The coast-line is now abrupt and high ; consequently, the 200ft. to 300ft. line is much nearer 
the tideway than farther to the south, hence this lead approaches the coast as it is followed to- 
wards the north. Between the Ten-mile and the Twelve-mile Creeks (north of Greymouth) it 
simply rests on the brow of the cliffs overlooking the sea, or stretches as a narrow terrace at the 
foot of the steeply rising hills. 
Between the Twelve-mile Creek and the Fourteen-mile Bluff, since its deposit, this line of black- 
sand leads has been completely destroyed by the action of the sea in cutting back the coast-line. 
At Bam town the lead runs along the lower slopes of the slate-ranges, between the coast-line 
and the Grey Valley, and from Baker’s Creek to the northern slopes of Hawera it has been cut 
through by numerous small streams, so that the auriferous gravels are found only on the points of 
the spurs intermediate between the different creeks and larger gullies. The average height of the 
lead at Barrvtown is a little over 200ft. above the sea. It appears to be thoroughly broken, in 
fact, destroyed altogether, between thePunakaiki River and the mouth of the Fox River. This has 
been owing to the action of the numerous small streams that find their way from the higher part of 
the Paparoa Range to the coast-line. Where the rivers are larger, as in the case of the Fox, Nile, 
and Totara, a greater distance lies between the streams, and thus there is a greater chance of the 
marine-beds being preserved on the bluffs and high lands intervening. There is, even thus, a 
probability of areas being between the Punakaiki and the Fox Rivers where these deposits are 
preserved. One such is said to be on the high ground near Razorback. 
North of Brighton and St. Hilda the elevation above the sea of the black-sand leads rapidly 
increases, till before reaching the Four-mile (from Charleston) Creek these deposits reach to between 
500ft. and 600ft. above the sea. Between the Four-mile and Candlelight the highest reached by the 
black-sand deposits is somewhat less, some 450ft., and this height is practically maintained to Bald 
Hill, overlooking the Lower Bailer Valley. 
In the neighbourhood of Charleston these deposits are of great extent, and occur at all levels 
up to that stated, and from them an enormous quantity of gold has been obtained. The “Back 
Lead’’ at Charleston lies along the foot of the limestone range between the Nile River and the 
Four-mile Creek. Along this line the ironsands have oxidized to some extent, and cements have 
thus formed, necessitating the use of crushing machinery to again liberate the gold. But the gold 
is not thus completely set free, and a considerable percentage finds its way with the tailings into the 
