ORWELL CREEK.

Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 715, 18 August 1870, Page 2

ORWELL CREEK.

Aug. 16.Clarke, Evans and party have finished their water-wheel, , and placed it in its position: ft is a fine piece of workman'shipji arid it deserves special notice. It js . 18ft in diameter, with. 2ft breast, i.e.," wjdijh. of tire,. and the drum to work the pumps is 6ft jn diarjiefef. pnujps; 13in by 3in, are in 'sections of 30ftin length, to be fixed when required as the paddock is sunk, the belt is made of the. best Europe rope, «nd the oleets are fastened with brass rivits. Wheels of the dimensions of .this one are calculated to represent the power of eight horses.. The flume which will convey the water to work the machinery from the head-race to the wheel is lft 6in wide, by 12in deep, nearly 200 ft long, and fitted with valves,, &c., to regulate the water supply. The} whole (Was.set in motion when I was at the. claim, and I .was astonished, at' the small quantity of water which sufficed to ! set and keep it in motion. , The construction of this well-finished piece of 'wbrk occupied just one month, and I would be glad to give the builder's name, but his native modesty, will nob ajlowmeto do ispj The company are - now ready •to \ begin sinking their paddock which will be 30 by 30ft square: The immense beams of 'timber, each of them 50ft long, which are s to form the top. frame work, are already in thieir places. Clarke' and Co. obtained, .their grant of seven acres in January, and since that time they have taken up , a tail-, race 12ft wide at top, 6ft at the, bottom, 1500 ft long, and .boxed all th^^ay. They, have cut a head-race to carry'eight headsof water, and built a reservoir- at the upper part of the creek capable of. containing enough water to last them for months in the driest weather. The rQseryoi* has been formed by a dam thrown right across Orwell Creek, it is lOfthigh" 20ft,wide at the bottom, arid 7ft wide on the topi, and they have sawn 1 and worked up twenty feet of timber during the pro■gres's.of the w;>rk. There are six. men in the company, arid the object they, have in^ view is to find the second bottom at Orwell Creek at the spot where the Xfapoleon Lead is supposed to have crossed it.' If they succeed in bottoming and finding payable gold, they will not only benefit themselves, but .they will confer a pjtblic benefit by demonstrating it as a fact, that which is noV only held as. a theory,: yia.^ that our best leads exist under what is now taken to be a bottom; and if they; Buoceed in doing this they will deserve the best thanks of the mining community. •