This is the third instalmant of a report with appeared in the 'Dunolly and Betbetshire Express' on Friday 21nd March 1890, under the heading, "The Gold-Commission in Dunolly". It continues on from earlier witnesses who contributed information about the Queen's Birthday Gold Mining Co. This mine, more that any other, was mentioned in the Dunolly hearings of the Commission. And so, in this report, the mine manager gives even more detail about the technology used at the Queen's Birthday, under the headings 'Treatment of Mine Products' and 'Appliances and Adjuncts'. I caanot imagine a clearer description of the machinery used and processes applied. Trevor Williams 16 October 2005 _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ Mr. John Betheras, J.P., mine manager of the Queen's Birthday Company, gave the following evidence: - Prospecting. - I would recommend the Mining and Prospecting Boards be abolished, and that a Central Board be appointed instead by the Governor-in-Council, composed as follows: - the Minister of Mines to be Chairman of the Board, one geological surveyor, one metallurgist, seven mining experts, the Secretary for Mines to be Secretary for the Board. The colony to be divided into seven districts or wards. Each ward or district to be represented on the Board by one mining expert, who shall prove to the Minister of Mines or before a Board of Examiners appointed for that purpose that he is fully competent to discharge all the duties devolving upon an officer filling the position of mining expert under the Government. The duties of the mining experts shall be to superintend all prospecting operations aided or carried on by the Government, and to furnish regular reports to the Board except in mines managed by mining managers, in which case he should inspect and report occasionally; to inspect and report on the prospects of all applicants applying for aid from the Central Board; to inspect and to report to the Board the most desirable localities for prospecting in the district represented by him; also to report on the non-fulfilment or otherwise of labor covenants of mining leases. No auriferous land to be alienated without his inspection and recommendation to the Board. He shall do all in his power to foster and help forward the general interests of mining. The establishment, therefore, of a Central Board is directly in the interests of the general public, inasmuch as it is a barrier to local influence, which is too frequently exercised in a manner derogatory to the best interests of the miner, the general public and the purest intention of the Government in the allocation and distribution of the Prospecting Vote. It is desirable that those having the supervision and expenditure of the Prospecting Vote should be untrammelled by local influence. The existence of such a Board means bringing together the best and most capable talent the colony possesses for the purpose of inaugurating and supervising mining systems and operations calculated to stimulate and revive and raise into a more healthy and vigorous state and condition that industry which has done so much to make this colony what it is - one of the most desirable countries under the sun. Other Boards have been tried, but have failed. To make the merits of the Central Board more clear, let us suppose a company had taken up a piece of auriferous land for mining purposes. But before commencing operations they determined to engage the services of a man to inspect and report on the prospects and value of this piece of land for mining. Whose services would the company be likely to engage - that of an incompetent man? No. Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles? No. They would engage the services of the best mining expert procurable, and why? Because it has been proved in the past that he possesses superior knowledge in matters pertaining or relating to mining. So that if this system is carried out to benefit mining companies, a small section of the community, why .. [damaged and indistinct] .. the same system with a system of allocation and distribution of the Prospecting Vote is defective, and the sooner it is remedied the sooner will the colony participate in the benefits derived from an improved and desirable system. Treatment of Mine Products. - The plant and appliances at the Queen's Birthday Company's mine for reducing the stuffs and saving the gold are very complete. We have been crushing for many years with stamp grates, 225 holes to the square inch, and to each five heads of our forty head battery there is a ripple table, with five mercury wells, all charged with mercury. On each ripple table there are three copper plates, each being 3ft. wide by 6ft. long. When these plates are kept properly silvered and in good condition it is scarcely possible to lose any gold. But, of course, the copper plates must be kept in good condition - that is, the face of the plates when properly silvered always look like a sheet of mercury. I shall be glad to instruct any person who is not well up in these matters. The merits of our process of amalgamation, &c., is seen in the poorness of the tailings from the new battery. Several parties, including Chinamen, have tried the tailings by machinery, &c., but all alike have been compelled to give them up, and abandon the idea that they will ever pay work, notwithstanding there is about 200,000 tons at the new battery to be operated upon. We have in use Hally's percussion tables for saving the pyrites in the tailings after leaving the amalgamating tables. But after saving 130 tons the company had to sell it at the rate of £1 per ton, which was extremely poor, although the vein stuffs crushed gave an average yield of 10dwt. per ton. This is another instance of the merits of the process of amalgamation, &c. It has been proved that our battery saves 98 per cent. of all the gold in stone or veins stuffs. Our process of amalgamation and appliances for saving the gold has been declared by experts to be the best in the colony, and I believe it is, as I am satisfied that to produce this result a certain amount of scientific and practical knowledge is brought into operation that is not generally known by managers and men in charge of machinery. I hope this statement will not be regarded as egotistical, as proof is the main point in law. The Royal Commission should secure for the benefit of mining and the colony all such useful knowledge. Appliances and Adjuncts. - I would recommend that winding engines be worked with a double engine, as being the most safe and economical. I would recommend that with the use of machinery there always be a surplus of power instead of straining the machinery to do the work, as it would be saving in fuel and wear and tear of machinery. The kind of explosives in use in the Queen's Birthday is gelatine dynamite, which I find is a very efficient explosive. It is quite a mistake to use gunpowder and dynamite in one charge. I prefer gelatine for the sake of the miners and its efficiency. The diameter of our pit head pulley for a round steel wire rope is 8 feet, but I prefer a larger one as being less injurious to the rope. Mr Betheras further stated that in mines where large quantities of gelatine dynamite and lithofracture are used, the detonators and other refuse, when cleaning up the battery, floats on the surface of the quick silver; when cleaned off from the silver, it is then called the skimmings from the silver. This carries with it a little gold. After saving about 1000oz. of this stuff he treated it, and obtained 208oz of bar gold. This under ordinary circumstances woujld have been loss to the company, as there are few who understand properly how to extract the gold from it. He thought the knowledge of doing so should be more generally known. He also interested the Commission by explaining the process of amalgamation and silvering two pieces of copper plate, which was quickly and cleverly done, and stated to the Commission that copper plates and batteries should always assume that appearance when in proper condition with mercury. No parties had been able to find gold in payable quantities in the tailings from the battery of any mine where he had been mining manager. This he attributed to the above process of amalgamation and appliances for saving gold. _________________ End of third instalment