§ Mr. WILLIAM THORNEasked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he can state the working costs, profits, and dividends of the mines of Witwatersrand and the outside districts for 1908 and 1909, namely, the tons milled, the stamps at work, the duty per stamp per diem, the number of tube-mills, the yield in fine ounces, the yield in sterlings, the yield per ton, the working costs per ton, the profits per ton, and the dividends declared?
§ Colonel SEELYThe figures, so far as they are available, are as follows:—
1907–08. 1908–9. Tons milled 17,329,825 20,529,084 Stamps at work in June 9,041 9,726 Duty per.stamp per diem in tons 5.761 6.456 Tube mills erected at 30th June 97 159 Yield of gold in line ounces 6,711,436 7,294,711 Yield in £ sterling 28,508,368 30,985,966 Ore value per ton in shillings 32.77 30.03 *Working cost per ton in shillings 19.7 17.4 *Profit per ton in shillings 13.1 12.8 *Witwatersrand only, Figures do not include all companies. It appears from the reports of the Transvaal Chamber of Mines that the dividends declared in 1908 by the Transvaal Gold Mines amounted to £8,751,282, and those declared in 1909 to £9.504,621.