THE NEW GOLD FIELDS. (FROM THE OTAGO MAIL.)

Evening Post, Issue 35, 20 March 1865, Page 3

THE NEW GOLD FIELDS. (FROM THE OTAGO MAIL.)

We haVe previously remarked on the extreme' folly of any attempt to stem the torrent that lias set in lor the West Coast gold 'fields, The rush must: hare its way; the storm must spend its fury ; the reactionary, period must arise before those thoroughly innociilated with the mining mania will reason calmly on the subject. It is not ! a pleasant thing for tradesmen and storekeeper!) in town or country who h rive commenced business), and contracted liabilities on the presumption that they were dealing with a settled population ; but they will hay» to bear this mishap with the: best grace they possibly enn, nnrl Tt-gard the, infliction as the penalty they hive tp pay for being, in a gold country, where dreamVof wealth have turned men's lrimd*,' ! aHa ritulßed them to forsake the ordinary of which nothing could deprive them, in' order to follow the flickering will-o'-the-wisp which deludes them into the belief that by following it they will stumble on unheard of treasures. Fickleness and unsteadiness of purpose have always been and ever will be the characteristics of a mining population. No matter what may be the income of the great niaj ority of miners, if the gold fever has once , taken firm possession of them, ' such is their belief in luck, and their conception of the advantages of breaking up freshgi i oftrid, I thftt no dear-bought lessons of experience" of disasters, brought on by reckless conduct! will ever prevent th m funning^ftf the same desperate career a^a n. It would be easy 1 to show that the position of the minWsin this province is as orood as that of their compeers in the most flourishing gold fields of Victoria. In no gold producing country that we know of are the earnings of.the individual miner greater than in' this. The returns of gold per escort prove ittcontrovertibly that the yield of gold will bjear comparison with that of other countries, whose advantages are frequently referred ,to to , throw us in the shade. It requires therefore a passion for novelty equal to a mania, and a reckless* ness which would be considered insanity in any other' class of men, to impel a multitude of prosperous miners, as is the case now-a-days, to join the ever-increasing throng of adventurers trho rush off smitten by the first tidings that fall Upon their earn of the least success that has been obtained at any new El Dora 'o.

We hear from private sources, says the Evening Mail, that almost every vessel in Melbourne is laid on with passengers to Lyttelton, while from the other Australian port ß a similar influx may be expected. No doubt some vessels will go direct to the W.est Coast, but the difficulty of effecting insurances will deter most owners from such s bourse, ihe rush may be considered as only commenced. It is to be hoped that the results will justify this great excitement. There is no doubt, a large extent of auriferous country which will now be fully examined by experienced miners, and no doubt large products will be obtained ; but, on the other hand, there will be great hardships to be endured, the Wintry being possibly the roughest in the covered with timber,' aud a dense

undergrowth of shrubs and creepers, while the ground, even on t;he hills, is in many places wet and spongy. Yesterday an extra train was run by the Lyttelton and Christchurcb Railway Company, for the accommodation of the dicgers recently arr'ved in port, in Christchuroh, the public houses are crowded with men, wlm at night contentedly roll up in thtir blankets and sleep ou the floor. CAUTION TO DIGGERS. The following letter to the editor of the Canterbury Press appears in that journal : Sfr, — Hundreds of people are coming through here without provisions. I am much afraid 1 shall not be able to keep my provisions. Something ought to be done to impress on the people, there is nothing to he had at Taylor's ; everything is eaten up except the stock. I remain, Sir, Your obpdipnf servant, Walter Blake. Luke's Station, March 12, 1865. John Hall, Esq. P.S.— I have sent a man back with no 1 ices to let the people know there is nothing here.