This was later recognised as magnesite. Nothing was ever done with it until 1935 when his three sons started mining the magnesite. They were digging it out with pick and shovel, loading it on a dray, pulled by a horse, sorted into a heap then loaded on to a truck by a horse pulling a scoop up a slide on to the truck, the truck carted it eight miles to Weedallion Railway Siding where it was loaded onto railway trucks and sent to Punchbowl Brick and Tile Company.

It was then burnt in a kiln and sent to England for war time use in firearms, tracer bullets, including bombs.

Pit numbers and size:

Original No.1 PIT 57 acres. No.2 PIT two acres.

The Blue Metal Company leased portions of the mine from the Hughes Brothers, and during 1941 Australian Blue Metal Company set a record by mining and loading 535 tons in one day. During the war magnesite had priority over food goods, trucks were made available for magnesite when they were not available for anything else. The mine worked day and night. When Italy was captured, England was able to get supplies from there. Work at the mine then slowed down. The mine was then taken over by a company organised by the Editor of the Young Newspaper, this company was Causmag International, trading as Devex Ltd. Devex Limited employed 15 factory workers, 17 miners received 22,000 tons, finished 10,000 ton at $277 per ton. Gross turn over $2.5 million exported to Philippines, New Zealand and USA. At the present time cleaning bauxite for aluminium.

Australian Blue Metal verses Caldwell-Hughes Partnership

The Australian Blue Metal Company took the case to the High Court of Appeal when Mr Justice Jacobs in the NSW Equity Court ruled in favour of the Hughes-Caldwell Partnership.

Mr Justice Jacobs ruled that the agreement made during June 1957 was terminable at will or at any event at the termination of the mining ease in September 1957.

Australian Blue Metal contended in the Equity Court and before the Judicial committee of the Privy Council that the Hughes-Caldwell Partnership had granted Australian Blue Metal the right to mine in return for a monthly royalty which was irrevocable so long as magnesite remained to be won or until the Hughes-Caldwell Partnership right to the lease should end. Australian Blue Metal further contended that the right continued after the first lease expired because the Hughes-Caldwell Partnership intended all along to renew the lease, and did in fact renew it.

The Equity Court dealt with an application from Australian Blue Metal Company for an injunction restraining Hughes-Caldwell from carrying out a threat to prevent ABM from continuing to mine in the lease.

The defendants were the Estate of Logan Caldwell and the Hunter brothers who signed the June 1957 agreement on behalf the others.

These were the respondents in the Privy Council hearing, although the litigation was carried on with the concurrence of the others by signed arrangements only the Hughes Brothers were to benefit from a favourable verdict. The others would only receive the share due to them if the mining had been carried out in a proper fashion. This case was the first Privy Council hearing directly connected with the Young District. The win represents notable triumph for solicitors RB Ormat. From August 1957 until the Equity Court hearing in February-March 1960 and then the Privy Council appeal Mr Ormat prepared the instructions Hughes council, Mr Edward St John QC, Mr K Holland and Mr Phillip Jeffery. Appearing for ABM were Mr Anthony Larkins QC and Mr JEF Hughes. Legal Costs are estimated at between £25,000 and £30,000 a substantial part of which will have to be met by ABM Australian Blue Metal-Hughes-Caldwell, Hearing Local Paper June 1962. London Privy Council and Seven Lords of the Judicial Committee. This information was supplied by the Late Mr Lester Holland.