AMONG THE MOUNTAINS.

Dunstan Times, Issue 357, 26 February 1869, Page 2

AMONG THE MOUNTAINS.

CLYDE TO THE HEAD OF LAKE WAKATIP. (par.l AN- O3GASIOXAT, COREr.rPOXDEST.) I cannot say much for the general appearance of Arrow town. The prin cipal street is very. narrow, and the buildings thereon are not the most pretentious in the province. It seem;;, however, a busy little place, and, from the large surrounding mining and agricultural population, there should exist a good legitimate trade. Arrowtown possesses a public library, a school, with master’s residence, and a bank, together w tli the usual adjuncts of a gold fields t iwuship. The greatest fen Hi re of the place appears to be i's g udeus. hat of the Royal Oik i.otel is, perhaps, the best in the Lakes District. It is well stocked with fruit trees many of them very Inge and in full hearing. To the mandate of our “Master cf the Hors,:” that we must be “ all on 1 oarcl,” wo wrh alacrity became s’ a' ed. Our jaded steeds having been once more replaced by fresh one , we soon left Arrow's own behind us, and descending a rather steep hill, at the font of which lies ilic remains of a smashedup coach, we reached Lake Hayes. The scenery hero is remarkably pretty, and there are some very fine farms surroudding the Lake. The crops of golden, grain give the place quite a rustic appearance, and I could scarcely have believed in the possibility of such a change in the short distance of forty mile-' fn.m Clyde. Vegetation appears to have a most luxuriant growth, and 1 conjecture that, besides the soil being good, the climate must bo a very humid one compared to that of the Dunstan. Wo halted a short time here, a> d called upon an old Clyde acquaintance in the person of Mr. Cope, a genth man who for several years tilled the office of editor of the J) mu tan Times, but who is now engaged attending to his firm. Chatting over the change of occupations, I learned front Mr. Cope that the pursuit of literature in small communities was the reverse of a satisfactory business, and he compared journalism in such places with attempting to drive nails into ; n iron door, urging tint no progress whatever is made. The hammer may be worn out, but the door

remains precisely the same Bowling along n level road skirting the lake, and then for some two miles with fences on either side ol ns, the land all under cultivation, and the crops almost ready for the sickle or reaping machine , then another steep descent, and we are on the brink of that terror •to travellers—the Shot over. The liver was low, but, unfortunately, during the night the stream had shifted and what was yesterday a shallow crossing was to day a deep channel. Mr. Smitham, whose occupation now required considerable nautical skill, handled the reins equally well in tin water as upon dry land ; but the fates were agai> st him. We got into an ugly quicksand, and had not good judgment been used, aided by the prompt assistance, of Mr. Blair, of the Berry Hotel, together with that of a gentleman who happened to be passing on horseback, our leading horse must have been drowned. Through struggling! he became so entangled with the liar ness that escape seemed almost hope less. With another chorus of bless ings (!) upon the Provincial Govern-, merit for their neglect in not building a bridge here long since,' wo agaii. took- our way over terra Jirma. Wi were now on the shores of Lak' Wa ratir, and a glorious sight tin hind-locked Rea presented, with it waters smooth as a mill-pond glitter ing in the golden -rays of the sett in ■ sunn Fr.mktou is only a town ii name. It consists of three hotels, r shanty, a hospital, a cemetery, and : flonr-mill, and I am told that, som time since, the Government was a] plied- 1 to f r a large public reserve where the miller and his men mi di d'siinrt tin niseiyes, and e’ear thei lun ’ e°n the hours of labor; b"t this luxuri ai.-.jpieCGjof indulgence tin Govern nt v y j ioperly refuse;..

A drive of four miles, over a passably good road, and we enter the main street of Queenstown, where again wo find ourselves greeted with tin; cheers ot the rising generation, who seem, by some natural instinct of their own, always to take a peculiarly lively intere t in the arrival and departure of a coach-load pf. p .ssengers. Perhaps they find it the most fitting opportunity of clearing their throats, poor little things ! •'M 'We alighted shortly after 7 p.m at the Queen’s Arms Hotel, highly delighted with our • excursion to (he Wakatip. Numerous wore the congratulations wo received, and there seemed an universal desire on the part of the residents to fraternise with the folks from down country. Were there a bridge across the Sir t iver, and the abominable charges made lor ing the Kawaran Ferries within reasonable bounds, an immense traffic, mutually beneficial to tbe Dunstan and Lakes districts would vary quickly spring up In fact, to push the goldfields, a-head, the road from Tuapeka to this, via the valleys ofthe Molyneux and Kawan u Rivera must easily accessible to all kinds of traffic. From observations made I can draw no other conclusion than that it is nothing more than.the isolation of the various mining districts that, figuratively speaking, “kills them.” Determined to make the most of ray short stay, I was out in good lime the following morning, so that I might see as much as possible of the ph co bifore starting up the lake. For beauty o" situation Queenstown stands unrivalled. It lavs on the shore of a romantically situate bay, at the foot of a gorge in some high mountains on the eastern shore of Lake Wakatip. through which, in ages lung past, the Shotovor Hi' er 'must have emptied itself into the lake, instead ot into tin Kawaran as at present. Tins gor-

t : on of the couutiy was then dr.i’n d by the Mataura, The streets are formed at right armies with each other, and, unlike most c.th r goldfields townships, 1 lie business pk ces are not confined to one long thoroughfare. All the principal streets seem to terminate on the beach, while in numerous instances the occupiers of premises, if they choose, can laud trom a boat at thair back doors. In case of fire weds have been sunk at convenient places, and there being in existarcs a thoroiuhly organised lire b a .'ado, having an excellent on; i e. rates for b surame against the ravages of she devouring element should be taken at lew premiums. Besides the supply of fro !i water’ obtainable from the Jake, a goodly sized creek runs almost through the heart of the town, and it seems to mo that the inhabitants have nothing to desire, except a little more busiu-ss to drive away the ennui from which they must suffer sadly during the dull times. The landing-places c- nsist of two jetties or piers, one built by the Government, and the other by Messrs. Robertson and Co., alongside both cf which vessels of one hundred tens burden can load and unload cargo. There are two banks, a post and te'egraph office, and that usual congregation of ugly buildings which denominate the head-quarters of a Warden of Goldfields. The. stores are on a very large scaic. The premises of Messrs. ITallenstein and Co., who al o have establishments at Arrowtown and Cromwell, are so nothing quite out of the common order of things. They occupy almost one half of the pri ncii al street,and H-ora the enormous stock con aiued lies nay he seletci d from a needle to an anchor. I was told that even a coffin could be supplied to customers by this enterprising firm when such is imperatively necessary. Queenstown is also the head-

quarters of an Acclimatisation Sce’ety, who take charge of what is denominated the Park or Botanical Gardens. Tn this enclosure the sludy of the native grasses and schistose rocks may be pursued uninterruptedly, while in the stagnant pond or ornamental water in the centre anyone tired of this life might, with a little ingenuity, possibly find the means of departing it. The labors of the "'ncicty have been almost exclusively of a n epistolary character, except an attempt to introduce black swans, which all flew away very shortly after being let lo sg and now it is said that the idea is to treat the monster eels which inhabit the lakes and its tributaries to a grand banquet oil trout and salmon. Tho gardens belonging to private persons are really beautiful, and well worthy of a visit. The Lake View Pleasure Gardens, owned by Messrs. Mft’onnochie and Rowell, are in a high state of culture, their excellence being the result, of s : x rears' labor. Australian and Engli hj forest trees appear to do exceedingly well, while the fruit trees give promise of a large yield, No visitor to Queenstown should miss a. visit to the Lake View Gardens. While despatching a hearty breakfast we wove startled bv the shrill shriek of a steam whistle. This, host Fichardt informed us, was ■i signal that the steamer was getting ready, and that wc had better prepare to embark-. We therefore vapidly despatched (lie various condiment's that graced our table, and were quickly on the jetty, alongside of which tho Antrim Jay, with stem already up. It was now 0 o’c'ork and the grave quiet of enily morning had given way to bustle ai d confusion, to which the din of esc; ping steam added consider, ally. The work of pro’ Is oning the

ship to earnest. Entaliles ami firmkVbles were buiug taken on hoard in all shnp?s ami forms, aiul: by aM manner < f contrivances. Boxes, baskets, ami cases were carried uii men’s sbonldqrs or winded on tnicks. There seemed to lie sufficient to'provision an army, instead of some one hundred and fifty p: rsous, men, women, and ohilclren, Bent upniria. day’s “outing,” Hr. Hailensteiji had provided handsomely for the down-country visitor-. Everything being in readiness, at 10 o’clock the skipper, Mr. Williams, took bis station upon the bridge between the paddle-boxes, the mooring ropes were loosened, and we bid farewell to the host of spectators who had assembled on the jetty to see «s off. w I will send you the particulars of our voyage in time for insertion in your next issue.