Gold In B. S. I.

Insistence on Possibilities Despite the Adverse Reports

By “Solomonoo”

riIHOSE interested in gold-mining in 1 the Solomons at the moment feel about as happy as a milliped with bunions.

Once again has the industry been thwarted by practices that do not seem to have had much to do with honest-to goodness gold-mining. The unfortunate position is that while we know we have, on Guadalcanal, a field capable of pro ducing large quantities of very payable ore. and while there is—obviously—any amount of money in Australia simply beg ging for mining speculation, something always prevents a combination.

Mr. Victor has again visited the field, but anyone, given some of the facts, would have been able to prophecy his verdict before he landed in the Solomons.

He found practically no more opening up done than when he was here previ ously, and he was expected, in the short time at his disposal, to start in prospect ing in very steep and difficult virgin jungle. On top of this, options on most of the holdings had been boosted up to ridiculous sums, so that there was no possible chance of their being recom mended to real mining capital.

Holders of the leases and licences are having such a gruelling commercial spin in their various businesses that they can not afford to put in the required mach inery for working on a small scale, to prove values definitely, and pave the way for large scale operations.

Engineers are queer cattle, and the ex perience of those who have visited here shows that any given four of them are apt to give four different opinions about the same question. But no engineer can give a definite opinion about a field he has not been able to examine sufficient ly. Several, professing the qualifications to do so. have already severely criticised Mr. Victor’s report. We have all heard how Fiji was definitely turned down be fore it became a winner. From this we take comfort in believing that Gold Ridge will yet turn out thousands of pounds’ worth of gold.

The long-promised “new” Mining Re gulations are expected shortly, and hopes are abroad that the Government will do its best to assist us in proving the field, and thus clear the way for real “mining” capital to make its entry.

A start in this direction would be to survey and construct a horse-track over the 20-odd miles that separate Gold Ridge from the coast. This would not be ex pensive. and it would leave no room for argument over road rights.

We have nothing much to hope for in copra (our only industry) until some big change takes place in high finance or its control. It follows that, as no immedi ate change seems possible, we would be wise to look elsewhere for succour—and surely nothing offers such rosy possibili ties as the gold-producing potentialities of Gold Ridge and district.

Efforts should be made to provide a landing ground for planes, and also ho tel accommodation in Tulagi. Indeed no self-respecting Administration should be without a plane of some sort, in these turbulent days. Its value in mining and road-surveying is self-evident, while no strain is put upon the imagination in considering other administrative reasons for its immediate institution.