Mr W. J. Barry's "Experiences."

Cromwell Argus, Volume V, Issue 268, 17 November 1874, Page 7

Mr W. J. Barry's "Experiences."

Mr Barry has been treating the people of Queenstown to his lecture on "Colonial Experiences," ttie proceeds of the lecture going towards the funds of the Hospital. The Mail contains a full report of the lecture, from which we extract the portion detailing his career in Otago, from the time he left Victoria:— The New Zealand goldfields had just been made known, and he had near three thousand pounds left out of the Victorian wreck. He then chartered the Eliza Goddard, for which he bought horses for the Otago market, and realised handsomely out of it. Then he was induced |g go into the fish trade to supply the diggers with fish. Started vans for this purpose. Persons who knew he had meajiss to.go into this. ~He to go fishing in the Taieri Lake for-mullet.: If ever a man was fooled, he was this time, for, after spendiug three days and nights at this lively game, he and his man 'succeeded in netting three eeis. He was not going to be beaten, hqwever, if he was so ridiculously sold. The people on WjaHtsffiiha ahd-Gabriel's Gully We looking out for " Barry's'; fish vans," and he was not to be done. He therefore, at an enormous ■expense, engaged some boats ti gu fishing with lines and hooks at theTaieii Heads, so that he might send up the vans. Labour was then scarce and dear, the vans w'ere standing idle, and horses and men we e " eating their headj3 Off." The men the fish, •but r theigrice he paid for them was great. He fillea two vans with them ai they were landed out of the boat, never thiiking about getting much for them, and procjeded on to the diggings. He took a butqier named Harrison with him into partnership. They rproceeded on to Waitahuna; and ijery shortly Sound they were beginning to smeU " fishy." He and his mate had then to proeed to take the entrails out of the fish—whichthey ought to have'done at first. The job was not & very nice one, they might be sure, for the tish were getting into that condition which was very good when 'applied to yild fowls, Ihut disagreeable as regarded thefinny tribe —namely, "gamey.'* 0 ;Howe ve^Hheystuck to their work Tike mehand prefitel thereby ; for, despite the fact named, the vans were Tushed and the 'fish aoldP" fM'tff at 2s 6d per pound. What promlsedtliere ore at first to be a foolish and fl&iculousVentire turned •out successful, .'and realised,a ham some profit. He had, however, by this time got "' quite full'' of the fish trade. Thai entered. ' :at iWetherstotie'sjb into felmongering I %ifsmess, and the scfttchingicpf rmml pigs to fatten, which latter &e had sons© expert men •with dogs to catch. Amongst fhese men "were Messrs Smitham, Williams, Hancock, «.nd other well-known:'settlers in Otago now. He-alsGi-was'fiupplyinglbStchers with " small goods'"—that is, tripe, puddings, trotters, '&c. He was, at the same time, saving 1 a good •deal of tallow, which he sent fo Dunedin with a -man" named Gitters, who he (Mr Barry) placed confidence in. but that indivi'dt&Hsold the taß6w4iß * bill, gttt it melted, •and " sloped" with the money. That winter "was a very severe one, and people got very with chilblains. An individual came to Mm one day with very bad feet caused by these. He made him rub his. feet with the '" skimmings'" of the tripfcand cow heels from the boilers, which cured; |ii^ nr , r The man did not know what was jiven hji,m,}but he soon ■spread the information, and caused a great rush for the j" perfect cure." 61 course he •■at once took advantage of tliis,"and vended the " precious fluid" according to a sign put <up—"A perfect cure for chilblains"—in small bottles at from 2s. 61 to ss. per bottle.' But winter, was not going to last for ever, and Hartley's and Reply's diggings also started, •and the " chilblain season" got flat and unprofitable. .Business also got bad, and he followed the crowd to the Dunstan. , . . .. . . A great many were rushing over to the Kawarau River Junction (now Cromwell). He followed of course, and had to swim the Molyneux (where the bridge now is) with his clothes tied on his head. Very few men were able to swim that river. Got a few -ounces of gold that day on the beaches of the river. ..... Afterwards bought the interest of the good will of Mr Robert Wilkin, owner of the Wanaka Station, for £270. Prices for meat then ranged from Is. to Is. 3d. per pound. Soon after a powerful opposition "poured in" to the Kawarau Junction, and.he had to resort to cutting against five shopst It was good sport and profit to the public, but almost death to him (Mr Barry.) He lost a good deal of capital by this, but he was not to be done. He put up a sign, " The right man in thfe right place," and sold sheep that cost him 355. for 2s. Bd. per r quarter—and this for fivemcnths. He secured'a victory. The public presented him with a handsome gold watch and chiin ; made a public holiday ; a bullock was roasted ; and a brass band of music played tht " Roast beef of old England." The celebration was a tip-top one, but when it cami he was about " broke," but a remittance cime from New South Wales that put him oice more on his feet. Soon after the " Municipal Corporations" came into force he was elected the first Mayor of Cromwell by a large majority, being three times elected in all. During the second year he here again net Sir George Crey, who he had previously met years before at Port Essington and at Adelaide, when he was Governor there. When his three years were out he found he had to sell about £2OOO of Cromweli property to pay up back arrears. Mr Hillenstein was one of the purchasers, "upon { which" he was then putting up a ferge stone | building. Ha could assure them while he

was Mayor he held the reins rather "too tight" and that put him in arrears. It would have been better had he never seen the "Mayoralty," as he had lived up to his means and something over. He was one of the first pioneers of the Carrick Range (Cromwell) quartz reefing. He took up the first claim—the "Royal Standard," and then camp to Queenstown and purchased the Criterion quartz plant, Arrow, from Mr J. W. Robertson, and put it on the Aurora claim, Bendigo Qully, and lost £J£OO by it. Got, at that, time, notice that he m'ust go to Sydney to be identified for property purchased for him when he was a youth in New South Wales. The property was situate in Bathurst, and was of the value of £IOO,OOO or thereabouts. Before leaving, another bullock was roasted for him by Mr J. Perriam, and the whole public were invited to a champagne banquet. In Victoria got a draft for £IOO in connection with his claim to property. He, had Only 3s. 6d. when he landed in Victoria, which went in cab fare. In Sydney he obtained £SOO more, but had to take up a number of'witnesses to Bathurst, to whom he had to pay £3 3s per week each, besides " champagning them up"-all the time. This soon made his money come " slack." Altogether he spent £7OO in nine months with Seeing "high life below stairs," and other matters which brought his purse once more" low." . . . . He was about to return to New South Wales again to look after his property, and they would no doubt see him once more on his feet, for he still possessed, he was glad to say, strength and energy.