THE The Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 1872.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1091, 25 January 1872, Page 2

THE The Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, JANUARY 25, 1872.

The news from the Inangahua that the miners intend to take measures to induce his Honor the Superintendent of Nelson to refuse to grant any more gold-mining leases in the reefing district, has been the means of sending a good many miners to Murray Creek within the last week. There is no doubt the leasing regulations were never intended by their framers to be applied to new ground in populous localities, when there are plenty individual miners to occupy and work such ground in a bona fide manner. It is not at all likely his Honor will grant any of the new applications, in the face of a wellorganised and legitimate opposition ; but the cancelling of those leases already granted is another matter. If the holders of these leases comply with the conditions of their titles, especially in the matter of the occupation and representation clauses, they should be protected in their rights, and very few real miners will be found to jssert the contravy, so that it is more than likely that the reports coming from Reefton during the week, that the leases had all been forcibly jumped, are exaggerated. Most people residing for any length of time on the gold fields know that this forcible jumping of leases or other claims is illegal, particularly with respect to leases, and entails hea\y penalties on the jumpers ; therefore, it is not probable there would be many found to run the risk. After all, the advantages to be gained by these leases, either to the grantors or lessees, are veiy doubtful. There is usually a large area of ground locked up within their boundaries which the holders of the lease do not require, and which outsiders dare not touch. The only real advantage of a gold-mining lease is the good title conferred by it ; but eveu then it is not indefeasible, for the Superintendent can cancel the title on a great many pretexts, real or imaginary, and the law with respect to these leases is such that it would be impossible to comply with it if it were strictly enforced. It is the popular opinion that holders of leases can claim all minerals discovered within their limits ; but it has not yet been decided in New Zealand whether a line of reef, besides , the one for which the lease was applied for or granted, can be claimed or worked by the lessees, if such should be discovered within the leasehold. This knotty point in the law relating to quartzraining has not been definately settled, although the question has been argued often enough, with respect to alluvial claims or water-rights. If some simple system could be devised of amalgamating frontage claims held under miners' rights, with .granting a title direct from the Governor, or from the Superintendent as his delegate, it would meet aJI requirements, and do away with the present clumsey and expensive plan of monopolising ground by means of the present leasing regulations.

SEVERAirecent travellers from Greymouth to Reefton have taken advantage of. the new route opened by Messrs O'Malley and Jenkins, and it has been found that the representations of the discoverers have been fully boine out. The new road leaves the present one about twelve m ;i es from the Little Grey Junctiou, at a place known as the Old Man's. Shanty, which, during the first rush to the Little Grey and Inangahua, in 1866, used to be the end of the first day's journey from the Old Ahaura. The distance from this point to Reefton by this new and partiallyexplored track is under seven miles, and it is the opinion of practical men that the distance will be found considerably shorter, when the line is properly traversed. It is already known that there are no engineering difficulties to be contended with along , the course of the new track, and that a pack track, or even a good dray road, could be constructed at a reasonable cost. The average cost of the dray roads at present existing in the Grey Valley is, we are informed, under 1A per chain, and the expenditure required on the proposed road would not exceed the average, and there are good grounds for calculating the cost at below the average. Taking the absence of the necessity of making culverts or expensive bridges into consideration, the cost of the new road would be under L3OO a mile, or about L2OC) for the whole distance, supposing it to be seven miles, which, as has been before remarked, is open to dispute. The opening up of a practicable means of communication for the carriage of merchandise, machinery and produce, from the port of Greymouth and the Grey Valley to the Inangahua has now become a question of vital importance to the residents on this side the Saddle range. The Westport people have the advantage, inasmuch as the road from Reefton to the Boat Landing on the Inangahua is already surveyed ; and that tedious but necessary preliminary work has yet to be peuormed

in the direction of the Little Grey from Reefton. The expenditure wiil, to all present appearances;* -be -first commenced on the Westport road, and it behoves the residents of this town and district to bestir themselves to secure their fair proportion of the. money to be expended before it be too late. All previous experiences go to show that where public money is begun to be spent under similar circumstances," the place or -district in which the outlay is first made usually conies in for the lion's share, and the excuse is that public works, when once commenced, must, on grounds of economy, be finished before new ones are undertaken. " It is satisfactoi/ to kno r that the inhabitants of Greymouth have at length resolved to take action in the matter. It 13, we understand, the intention of a number of our most influential citizens to convene a meeting to-day, for the purpose of considering the best means of haying this new road made, and of utilising the recent discoveries by the track explorers. A proposition will be submitted to the meeting to request the General Government to proceed with the Grey Valley's share of the vote, on the approved security of the residents, and we ere informed the necesi sary guarantee will be at once available. We trust this project will be earnestly taken up, for the present and future prosperity of the town and district will in a great measure depend upon its success.