ST. BATHANS.

Cromwell Argus, Volume 1, Issue 50, 26 October 1870, Page 5

ST. BATHANS.

(From our own Correspondent.) \ [eo.\'Ci,irDi:i>.] c Having painted out to niv friend a track by t which he could return to the township, I sit ' down to have a smoke; when who should appeir 1 on the scene hut poor old Tom, who had come ' over from his claim to ascertain what ship I had i in tow ; but I had cast oT before Tom came ' alongside, so he ha 1 to bo satisfied with a second. ; hand account of what had passod between the '' traveller and myself. " And what did you say about the future, Jack?"—" Nothing," I replied; " it never occurred to mo to prophesy.'' —"Well," says Tom, "when you begin to initiate a stranger into the secrets of our little mining family here—more especially if ho is a man of an enquiring turn of ruin I—you should draw a picture of the future. For what is said jast by you is longest remembered : the past and present may be subjects interesting enough, but the future is the main thing." I did not contradict Tom, nor quote the proverb, Sufficient for the day, &c. ; but agreeing to his proposal to draw a sketch of this place in tho future, I lit my pipe afresh, and stretched myself out with my head on a tussock, while [ listened to TOM'S PROPHECY. I do not pretend for one moment to bo more gifted than my fellow-men in discerning signs of times or in soothsaying, but I do believe that Providence will reward with foreknowledge (as much aa i 3 good for thorn) those who seek to ' know about futuro events, only that they mav better prepare themselves to join in promoting

sound interesta', and in withstanding evil. It" we are to bo wit-liiul and waiting, iustoiid of being continually in suspense, we ought, by reviewing the past, to calculate in some measure what we may expect in the future. And in the case before us, it must bo undoubtedly useful, if we can depend upon such an hypothesis, as paat progcss to calculate on the future. So listen tomy prediction : In the first place, lot us speak of the St. Bathans basin. On glancing over the unworked ground of marked claims, and concluding iu my own mind that the sludge-channel with its present level will serve for auocher four years, I judge that at the end of that time the present branch ones into the basin wi.l be no Lnger required, and that new ones will then have to be cut to the township side of I eyman's Gully ; while the township, which is now in the most convenient place, vill become split up into three divisions—the first at Surface Hill, the second in fche basin, and the third ten miles away at the junction of Dunstan Creek with the Manuherikia. Yes, Jack, the 2,500 acres of agricultural ground at Beck's White Horse Hotel, Dunstan raad, is the nucleus of a town which, within t «a yeai-3, will be equal to Alexandra or Clyde t. the present day. The family men of this i , \ who are now gradually increasing their f mds ant * ra P"^> r tne number of their children, ■l] e. -d in a raw years that the less distance n. i~ 'e to travel the better for their pockets, tnev nav u * * ~, [ t j •• floored by the rising generation, will V ', -l estead if possible near at hand. seek a horn "" , l , . ~, , ~ „ , , t i Block, mark my words, will be the Becks Land ' , ~ . ... , ~ . ~, St Bathans diggings will be the spot; while „ ~, °°,, °., ... , l i.i ■. ■ tt prevent the old identity from magnet that wi ' ,„, , , . , .r. . ~ away. Wherever a t.nvnsuip dnl ing farther , • inmtiabi y) with a il its has been formed.. . nevertheless remains a rising and wanm \ Q , f k fa lab()Ul . o£ townsbip ; and, ah ° f nec ° ssity _f iU . nl i llg choice and mining t d tem ° looked upon as pen j "^ porary—yet, as a ge. . ' """• ~ P has once commenced it '"ues and tiu "*" gullies in dirFereut plac, 3 are . sald to be workow out, the locality remains * m * m Z o , ne - , I refer !to alluvial digging, (not q Uur \ z °. r be f h ): and j though you and 1, Jack, Mu Ca,mUu e tne time it will take to work out eve. ' y claim "now in I possession" at St. Bathans. depend upon it ! before that period arrives s»in.. n w diacove m will be made hereabouts tosupp ws ' imd P r -' b »- lily increase, the population ; and w strengthen our position, a farming township \ spring up at Beck's paddock, and the produ ' fc ; ns!e " , -- tained find a good market within the ' boundary of the Lauder, Manulier kin, on the " e 't a nd South'St. Bathans, buns van Ranges, l. ?*"haud east. Mining and farmfng interests wil ■ ■ blend together, mutually supporting each other. ! Perhaps the creation of a new townshi 9 a ' ! Beck's will be viewed by some with diea i, ,* na I drawing away people from this corner, and t. ft j alone may delay the change of settlement, bu * | such narrow-minded prejudices will be ove-come I in time ; and it will be disc ivered fiat he more ! important a place Beck's township I ec m.s, the better it will be for the mining crm.LU:.ity of St. Bathans. Un'ike (geographicilly Sj.e.iking) the relative positions of other townshiis near one another, where trunk r.nl b/rods cause jealousies, each community pr lies ing to believe their locality the best for a head c n re, tie Beck's towu would be enhancing its own importance by drawing at eiu.'on to St. Bithans diggings, for it would be the principal inlet and outlet to a na'lsd-ia corner, from which there is scircely an/ other egress unless across the range.-!. Look here, Jack : Imd la.vs may change—the constitution of New Zealand ba completely altered—gig m tic schem s uulerI taken—and hopes raised that the colony may be declared an Empire—all th smyco ne to pass, but upon what fonn iation, t link you? The fertile brain of unthink.ng enthusiast;, who, with an astonishinginnuence, draw a vat-t crowd, into tne gambling arena of spe.nla kv>, and at last actually believe in the reality >f thai which exists only in imagination. Take the £j,')l) ',OOO scheme. Scarcely a man in the colony doubted the succes3of the plan, or the power to -aise the amount; an lin one hour after the arriv dof the English mail, theteleg aph wires hive conveyed throughout the islands an item of intebigence that his nearly quenc.hid all hopes of the four million reserve. My belief is that st;t smeuin their labours, and ever/ ot'er c'ass in their ovn station of lire, should, b; a isi'ed r o iai the means God g'.v.s them to gu le th ir wa •. 1 regard the simple inci lents of life and changes, with as much thought an 1 care as great events ; and carefully gmrd against any at "em it t) overcome great AUncultiei by mil iwful (be3ruse unsound and uncertain) mjais hiwevcr nlausible, if frame I by worldly w'.s lorn alone wi hout any help from above. Certainly, lam digressing from the point, Jack ; but pardon rae, t cannot rid inv mind of a case s> much in pjint as the four mi'.lio i sjheme nearly upse--, by an English mail. So, alio, we mav in building ' our atrial castles suddenly fi id the f.iunda ion a , quicksand. Jack, my bay. be sitistiel if G>d spares us to look forward to a woolen house, ' garden, and small farm outside Beck's town, 1 with four plough horses, and a few cows and I pigs, and to spend the remainder of your days I there, and to see New Zealand, your ad-opted i country, slowly and sure'y increasing i.i imporl tance by the tiny steps it now takes, unmoved u by the hotbe 1-forcing of speculating gardeners. Oh ! liow much better it would bo for the - country if its rulers were to turn their atten- •/ tion entirely to providing for the wants of the people who are in it that they, the people, may , prepare the way for immigration, if increasing population is a legitimate metho 1 of developing 1 the country. When settlers write homo and invite their frion Is to pome out, it will be safe to do so ; but 1 would placard iu red letters, e " Beware of paid agents as you would of quartz f reef scrip." j. 1 believe Tom wonl 1 have rambled on all day if I satland listened; but, fort'ina'-ely, it, oc--3 currod to him that it wai time to (urn the 0 water off, and thin I escaped fr in a i m-j'tira la t ha was g;)ing to favour mi with on the raid" management of o;ir rulers.