The wooden framework of the stamp-mill is better than
iron. The cam-shaft here carries only single, not double cams, a decided
disadvantage: in order to strike the same number of blows per minute it
has to make double the number of revolutions. Moreover, by some unhappy
mistake, it is too far from its work, and the result is a succession of
sharp blows on the tappets, with injury to all the gear. On the other hand
proper fingers are fitted to the stamps: this is far better than
supporting them by a rough chock of wood. At Crockerville, as at Effuenta,
only six of the twelve stamps were working: there the pump was at fault;
here the blanket-tables had not been made wide enough. I could hardly
estimate the total amount of ore brought to grass, or its average yield:
specimens of white quartz, with threads, strings, and lobs of gold, have
been sent to England from Crocker's Reef. The best tailings are reserved
either for treatment on the spot or for reduction in England. The mine, as
regards present condition, is in the stage of prospecting upon a large and
liberal scale. The stamps are chiefly used to run through samples of from
50 to 100 tons taken from the various parts of the property: in this way
the most exact results can be obtained.
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