South Africa -- Description and travel; South Africa -- History -- 1836-1909; South Africa -- History -- To 1836
There have been various other mines tried in the vicinity, and there can
be no doubt from the indications of copper which are found all around
that the working of copper in the district will before long be carried
very much further than at present. But up to this time the Ookiep mine
is the only one that has paid its expenses and given a considerable
profit. During the copper fury various attempts were made all of which
failed. The existing Company, which has been as a whole exceedingly
prosperous, has made many trials at other spots none of which according
to their own report have been altogether successful. I quote the
following extracts from the report made by its own officers and
published by the Company in 1877. “The operations at Spectakel Mine have
been attended with almost unvarying ill fortune.” “It is thought that
the Kilduncan centre has had fair trial and as the ground looks
unpromising the miners have been withdrawn.” “Although yielding
quantities of low class ore the workings at Narrap have not so far
proved remunerative.” “The levels at Karolusberg have also failed to
reveal anything valuable.” “A good deal of preparatory work has been
done at this place,”--Nabapeep. “This may be regarded as the most
promising trial mine belonging to the Company.” These are all the
adventures yet made except that of the Ookiep mine, but that alone has
been so lucky that the yield in 1876 amounted to “10,765 tons of 21
cwt., nett dry weight, averaging 28½? per cent.” This perhaps, to the
uninitiated mind may give but a hazy idea of the real result of the
speculation. But when we are told that only £7 a share has been paid up,
and that £4 per annum profit has been paid on each share, in spite of
the failure of other adventures, then the success of the great Ookiep
mine looms clear to the most uninstructed understanding.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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