Gold is said to have been found in South Africa, and very probably it is. I have myself an undoubted specimen from the copper mines in Namaqualand, in which the gold is imbedded and associated with silicate of copper or chrysocolla; but with regard to the “diggings,” as they are called by the Cape papers, and which are situated some considerable distance up beyond the Great Orange River, and north and west of Natal, the question is whether the gold is in sufficient quantity to pay for the labour and expense of its production. It is certainly very premature to call this auriferous district “Gold diggings” and “Gold fields,” when really not ten ounces of gold have as yet been produced altogether in something like twelve months. Parties have been up and returned, each on some very trivial excuse. Some travellers describe the gold quartz as containing gold in large quantities, and yet they have not obtained satisfactory specimens themselves, although these “rich beds (it is said) extended over many miles of country, and rich gold quartz could be had almost for the trouble of picking it up.” The great idea seems to be in getting persons to come out on a wild-goose-chase, when nothing definite is known about these wonderful “diggings.” Ancient furnaces are said to be found in the neighbourhood, and of course plenty of fuel!!

State immunity — State Immunity Act 1978 — Award — Enforcement — Venezuela seeking to set aside order granting Canadian claimant company leave to enforce arbitration award — Whether Venezuela entitled to State immunity under Section 1 of Act — Venezuela party to 1998 Bilateral Investment Treaty with Canada — Whether Venezuela losing right to rely on State immunity — Whether serving of arbitration claim form required under Section 12 of Act

Arbitration — Award — Enforcement — Canadian claimant company seeking to enforce arbitration award against Venezuela — Venezuela party to 1998 Bilateral Investment Treaty with Canada — Whether Venezuela entitled to State immunity under Section 1 of State Immunity Act 1978 — Whether Venezuela losing right to rely on State immunity

Treaties — Interpretation — Canada–Venezuela Bilateral Investment Treaty, 1998 — Meaning of “investor” — Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, 1969, Articles 31 and 32 — Ordinary meaning of “investor” in context and in light of object and purpose of Treaty — Whether Canadian claimant company “investor” within meaning of Treaty — Whether party to agreement to arbitrate — Whether Venezuela losing right to rely on State immunity — The law of England

Minorco, S.A., a Luxembourg mining company allegedly controlled by South African interests, commenced a tender offer for Consolidated Gold Fields, PLC (Gold Fields), a British mining company. Gold Fields, together with its partially owned American subsidiary, Newmont Mining Corp. (Newmont), filed suit in U.S. federal district court to enjoin the tender offer. The district court held that Newmont, the affected American subsidiary, had standing to raise an antitrust claim and issued a preliminary injunction restraining the tender offer. The district court dismissed a claim based on alleged violation of U.S. securities laws for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and held that Gold Fields, as the target company, did not itself have standing to raise an antitrust claim. On appeal, the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (per Newman, J.) reversed in part and affirmed in part, holding that: (1) Newmont had standing under the U.S. antitrust laws to object to the tender offer; (2) Gold Fields also had antitrust standing (by 2-1); and (3) the U.S. courts did have subject matter jurisdiction over Gold Fields’s U.S. securities law claims. Accordingly, the court of appeals upheld the injunction and returned the case to the lower court for further proceedings. On remand, the district court found that inasmuch as Gold Fields had not demonstrated a likelihood that its U.S. securities law claims would be successful on the merits, those claims did not merit an injunction. The court also ruled that Minorco had failed to demonstrate that its plan to hold separate and sell the assets of Gold Fields posing the possible antitrust problem would provide adequate protection, and so kept the injunction against the tender offer in place. As a result, even though a majority of the Gold Fields shareholders had tendered their shares to Minorco and both British and European Communities regulatory authorities had approved the transaction, Minorco was forced to abandon its tender offer.

Bryn-y-groes Lode.—About 500 yards east of the Clogau lode, there is a parallel lode which has been worked for copper. Striking 50° east of north, its outcrop may be traced for about 1½ miles; its width is very variable. Chalcopyrite and pyrites and a little gold are present in the quartz. The lode is confined to the Vigra Beds, and running with the beds, it is associated throughout its length with greenstone sills.