WARDEN'S COURT, GREYMOUTH.

Grey River Argus, Volume XI, Issue 976, 12 September 1871, Page 2

WARDEN'S COURT, GREYMOUTH.

/Monday, September 11. ' (Befbfe'Mr Warden Revell and Assessors.) WHITE AND *AKTY (NORTH STAR COMPANY) V. BUTLER AND PARTY (LEVIATHAN WATER-RA0E._. ..,..,. This was an action to recover the sum of L^Q, damages occasioned by the overflowing of the defendants' water-race into plaintiffs' claim, -on the 26th - August^ thereby causing damage to r the above amount. Mr Perkins appeared for complainants, - and Mr Newton for defendants. Edward Butler said he was manager of the Leviatlian Water-race Company. He remembered the morning of tho -2Gth August. Came to a by- wash that morning, and parsed over it. He did not remove any stuff from it. ■ ■ ■' James Wyldo, snrveror, produced a plan of the Race and North Star Company, which was correct. The spot marked A represented where ah overflow had taken place, but it had been recently made up. Tlie opening was 7ft 6in wide and 6|in deep at the water's edge. Seven or eight heads of water could escape by it. The race was excavated from the side of a hill. The water- would flow on to the flat, as there was no provision made for carrying it away. Two chains from the overflow a drain had been constructed, which ran into a creek. A dam had been placed across the creek, which was broken through. The North Star Company had run their tail-water into the natural creek. In consequence of the;; tailings haying choked up the creek, another channel had been made, which ran into another creek that flowed at a lower level to the northward, and afterwards joined the original creek. It had every appearance of being ample enough to carry away any ordinary water. It was raining when, he saw it. He inspected the tunnel belonging to the North Star claim, and it was sufficient to carry oft the water. It would not drain tho North Star paddock, as it was 16ft 6in below the tunnel, but it was pumped out by steam-power into the tunnel. Any excess of water fram Stansell's claim would flow into the North Stair tunnel; From the point A, in the water-race, down to the bottoms of the North Star paddock,' there was a fall of 49ft 9in. He saw where water had been lying in the' claim. There should be by- washes constructed every half-mile to carry off surplus water, besides flood-gates. There was no bywash at the point marked A. It was a low place. He thought 90,000 gallons per hour, or four heads, would be discharged through the opening. By Mr Newton : Had only been a few: yards higher than the^verflow. ( Eight.or nine byr washes over a ' distance of two miles ought to be sufficient io carry off the water, if .they were properly constructed. The low place marked A would _not act as a by-wash, although if; would "discharsre. water. .The fall of the.opupjtryL was from east to west. The, tailings of the North Star claim had stopped the course of the old creek. Nine heads of water from Stansell's claim would go through the branch tunnel without entering the main tunnel. The tunnel was flowing freely. • : . Mr W. M. Cooper: W<w a district surveyor, -and knew the Leviathan Waterrace. There should be flood gates and bywashes along the course of. a race. There was no by-wash at point A. The water flowed from the outlet along the channel. If there was any excessive overflow it would go into Stansell's claim. The gap would let the bufk of the water out of thfe race. The natural "get away" of the water would be down the creek. . By Mr Newton: He never saw. the creek before the races were made*. He thought it would carry five heads of water, but some of it might get away. If the water overflowed the race a i larger quantity would get away. „ Thomas White said he was manager of the North Star claim, which was worked by an engine and tunnel. Since the 12th December, 1870, when he joined the claim, the tunnel had always worked well tip to the 26th August. The 'tunnel had worked well since then, and had emptied the claim. The paddock was dear of water now. About half-past eight o'clock on the morning of the 26th August he went down the claim in consequence of one of the shareholders telling him there was water in the tunnel. Be saw water, which he could not account for. Went along the shafts and found that the branch tunnel was clear. Went down the main tunnel and found more water there jthan . ordinary. He then found the water coming from the swamp. Stansell's paddock was full of water at that time. .There might have been a Government head of water coming over at the time, which carried tailings alopg Stansell's tunnel. The accumulation was so great that Stansell's tunnel conld not carry it so it was carried into the North Star paddock. The low place where the water came from was filled tip with three pegs and nothing else, and the water poured through. The race was overflowing. The country below the, overflow was fhft and swampy, and tbe water was running over it. He then went and asked Butler if he had turned off the water out of the Leviathan race, and he said he had at the old Stony Lead. Butler then said there might be a little coming over the by-wash, but none could be coming from the race, but he would go and see. After seeing Butler he went back to the claim and found the tunnel full of water, and that the water had broken into the branch tunnel near the wheel. The water rose to about 16ft or 17ft in the paddock. Adams, Cole, Keown and witness then went along the race to see what was the matter, and went about two miles along the race. The race was bank high, and overflowing at the bywashes. They then came to a flood-gate, which was down. Keown was a shareholder in the North Star and the Leviathan. Keown asked whether' he should open the flood-gate, and witness told him' to please himself. Keown said it was Butler's place to open the flood-gate, and then Keown opened the gate, and the water commenced to lower in the paddock. They pumped the claim dry in fifty hours. Part of the artificial channel was timbered, and it was about 3ft 6in deep, and was sufficient te carry off. the water from the swamp. They had sustained L 270 damages. There were thirteen shareholders at LI per day. and it would take three weeks to put the claim in working ordefr. There were about 300 loads of mullock washed into the claim. By Mr Newton : Could trace the course of water distinctly. The ground was a little higher to the north of the overflow. i Had been manager of the company about two months. Dixon and party asked

leave to run their water-down their tunnel, as they were washiri^he last paddock, and Keown gave them permission. Went down to the tail end of the tunnel on the 26th, and found the water running out. A shaft had given way since he had been in the claim, but it had been repaired. water couldV* come do wn CroHr^Hßrbyg^ wash except from Stansell's paddock into witness' claim: 1 They had a meeting 'of shareholders to consider whether they ifhdnldHalre proceedings, and "cighHor Wa * thorn were in favorojf.it*;: :rT T Alexander Adams : Was a shareholder in the North Star claim. Got up on^he 26th August at half-past five o'clock. Lit the engine fire, and pumped the paddock dry. Davey went down at eight o'clock, and reported: that the branch tunnel was gathering water. He then went down, and found the water making. WeritdownTfl to the mouth of the main ! tunnel,' and » found the water running freely; ; Wetftfr into the claim, again about half-past ten, and found that the paddock had com-" — ' raenced to fill. He then examined .the. .;■ race, and found it' breaking over a low place. The^race was fall, and only a spiaU { quantity of water was coming out of the by-wash. Keown said' that as the race ■"'< was doing damage he would open it ; but - it was Butler's duty to do so. The effect ■• • of it was to ; lower the water in the pad- " dook. , ; George Cole said he was a shareholder ' in the North Star claim. The water burst ." into the paddock from the 1 side of the ■" branch tunnel about ten o'clock on the morning of the 26th. It brought in tail- . ings and hoppers, with it. .He then went ,- up to Butler, and told htm that the water was coming into the claim, and Butler said it was not from the race. Witness and several others then went to look where the water was comittg from, and found Stansell's claim full of^Water. They then went to the flood-gate with Keown, and Keown said he would? lift the floodgate for Butler, as it was doing damage. . |« Robert Davey : Was engineer ; . arid J ? j shareholder in the North Star vclaim; . > Traced the water from the race , to the i south end of Stansell's claim, where, ; . it ; was pouring in for about, thirty yards on * , to the worked ground. There were'tyo.. ' openings in the tunneL ' . * r~.> ,H''> i'■ 'Alexander Gifford : Was a miner Work-' ing on the Stony Lead, and had been';; called by the North r Star party to see their claim on the 26th, when ie was f nil of water. Saw it op the 31st, when there were about 300 loads of dirt in it. . It would take three weeks to repair it. The cutting made by the North Stair wsuld take off all the water from ffte ! / ; swamp. , ■' ■'** ■Alexander White : Was a miner workv. ing on Stony Lead. He saw atont 2500 ir J ''- 300 loads of earth in the elahn. IHe considered the storm channel 1 was sufficient to carry off the water. .. t . ..; „-,_ ;i -? This closed the plaintiff's case. r; .;.'.< j : ?y~ , Mr Newton urged that what had been called a, ',' low place" was in reality a by-. , , wash. The race; had been -constructed long before the plaintiffs took up foe ground, and the creek that had been . 'topped by the. plaintiffs was sufficient £? carry off all overflow from the race. If the creek had been left,;-, in its < ; V; original i state the -plaintiff*' claim would ■.; not have been injured. He called;;; the following witnesses Butler, Beauchamp,M'Grath,Ander|on,StraHger, Brown, Jones, Byrne, . IBf . Brown, Ryan, and Keating, who -supported the view taken by him in his opening, ad-j; - 'dress. " ■■■■•■ ■- : ■■■■•-.■• , , Mr Perkins having replied, and Mr 'Warden Revell, after recapitulating. the facts of the case, summed up at some length, the assessors found a verdict for the plaintiffs— damages; LSO and costs. ,; „