THE SHOTOVER COMPANY.

Evening Star, Issue 3642, 24 October 1874, Page 2

THE SHOTOVER COMPANY.

(From our A wow Correspondent.)

October 20. Circumstances having induced me to reside *t some little distance from the townships, your readers have consequently been spared fro.u any effusions of mme lately j but the perusal of an account of the present condition, &c., of the iShotover mine, published in the * Witness ’ of the 10th instant, compels me to make a few comments upon it. The account referred to speaks of the successful man igemeut of Mr Grace in surmounting the difficulties of old ground, and re-opening the splendid face of ihe rich lead which had been buried up (ac ording to the ‘ Witness’s ’ correspondent by withdrawal of timber and gen ral confusion daused by the lawsuit) ; and aiso speeks of Mr Evans's levels as bring incorrect; th it his water-tunuel was a mistake ; and, generally, that his management was only directed towards getting out trucks or dirt aud not looking for gold. I $.9 hot write to defend Mr Evans, who is well able tp do that himself, if necessary ; but justice compels mii to point out that the cbiei b.ame ior mismanagement (if any) does not rest with him entirely, as I will now endeavor to show.

When the mine was handed over to Grace’s parly by the company, or nominally to Mr .P, M'JS'amee, oa<j of the party, I can asssert. Without fear of contradiction and from the closest personal observation, that it was in absolutely perfect working order—al the debris of lawsuit Jaujages, , had been cleared, and the men were working'serenely iu a face of to md ground about 80ft wide, showing go d freely, and yielding prospects up to as high as an ounce to the dish. Tire * Witness’s’ correspondent dees not tell us how it happened that some months later, -when e.vans took charge, “mine in the neighborhood of the lead was scarcely re oguianble.” and that that gentleman’s “chief difficulty was to fi id the gold.” I have 10 wish to speak harshly *»f any of Grace’s party, who, no doubt, did *ll in th. ir power j but tue credit due to them now for gett)og over gigmtio difficulties must be tempered by the query of “ by whom were thes) diffie.il;ies priucipally created?” and too much blame must not be cast upon Mr Itvaus, who undertook the conduct of a desperate case aud failed, principally frorp a want of that minute knowledge of the ground, which, as a matter of course, is possessed by Grace and party.