THE GOLDFIELDS.

Dunstan Times, Issue 1053, 23 June 1882, Page 3

THE GOLDFIELDS.

Wellington, June 12. A meeting of the goldfields members was held this afternoon, about 14 members being present. Mr. De Lautour occupied the chair. A draft report was drawn up by Mr. Pyke, and this, with verbal alterations, was the sam as the report adopted, with he exception of one paragraph, which was omitted. The paragraph was to the effect that the Government should provide a two. head crushing machine which should be readily available for prospectors. The meeting unanimously resolved—(l) That prospecting should be encouraged by grants in-aid upon capital invested or labour cm ployed—in the latter case, whether the prospecting party has a fund in hand or not ; the working of the inferior auriferous ground and of country requiring special cost or labour for its development should be encouraged by the granting of extended claims on easy terms, subject to equitable conditions as to the capital invested and the labour employed, so as effectually to check the locking up and sheuherding ”of mining country. (2) In addition to the construction of water-races and sludge-canals wholly undertaken by the Government, water racis and other works undertaken by p' ivate enterprise should be subsidised by the State, and this whether such works are carried on by capital and labour or by labour only. (3) Sufficient sets of dia-mond-drills, with a supply of extra diamonds to replace any that may be broken, are required for the proper development of the goldfields, generate sots should be provided for the Auckland, Westland, and Otago goldfields. They should he placed at the disposal of the bounty Councils for use within th»ir respectiv • di-dricis. The same remarks apply to rock-boring apparatus. (4) The cutting and formation of tracks on or to goldfields should be wholly undertaken or largely aided by the Government, especially in the case of newly discovered wotkings. The construction of roads to timber forests should also when required be wholly undertaken or largely aided ny the Govern ment. The lands known to be auriferous should he permanently reserved from sale, and land believed to be auriferous should on sufficient evidence be temporarily reserved. but provision should in respect of all such rcse ves he made for the temporary occupation and utilisation of the surface.— C. De Laut mr. Chairman of the Meeting The foregoing resolutions were at once forwarded to the Minister in charge of the Mines Department, the Hon. William Holies ton.