Gold-Fields Intelligence.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume XIII, Issue 552, 17 February 1868, Page 2

Gold-Fields Intelligence.

THE THAMES GOLD-FIELDS. (From the special correspondent of the Evening -5"3.) Short! and, February 10. , Ok Saturday last the adjourned meeting of the committee appointed to draw up a code of mining rules and regulations was held in front of the Court-house, Mr Commissioner Mackay in the chair. There was a large number of diggers present, and after a lew preliminary observations had been, made, the chairman proceeded to read the j rules, one hundred and one in number. The reading occupied some considerable time, and was not concluded without considerable interruption and discussion on the part of the assembled miners. It is impossible to give any summary of the rules here, but I may say that, on the whole, they appeared to give considerable satisfaction. After they were read, it was proposed that they should be printed and brought into operation j but objection was at once made to this, and considerable discussion arose, but ultimately Mr Rowe proposed an amendment to the effect that the meeting be adjourned for a fortnight, and that in the meantime four or five copies be posted iu various parts of the township and on the flats, and one or two of the ranges ; also that any of the miners should be at liberty to make any suggestions or additions in writing, to be left at Mr Muckay’s house, and brought before the public on the nest meeting. The amendment was put and carried with acclamation ; so that the meeting stands adjourned till nest Saturday week. A long discussion then took place as to the formation of a Mining Hoard for the Thames district. It was moved and carried that a committee be formed to draw up a petition to forward to the Superintendent, for tho formation of a Board, and the names of six gentlemen were proposed, and placed upon the committee. The business of tho meeting being so far over, Mr James Boyd, on tho part of the miners, asked tho Commissioner whether ho could give them any information as to the throwing open of the Upper Thames. Mr Mackay said he should be very happy to give them any information in his power. He had now great pleasure in informing them that he had succeeded, after great difficulty, in getting some 10 or 12 miles of ground thrown open further south. The boundary lines would be cut on Monday next, alter which the miners would be allowed to go at once with pick and shovel and try their luck. (Cheers.) One of the miners present a=!ced it’ Ohinimuri would be thrown open, and wished to know how Air Mackey was getting on iu his endeavours to throw open this much coveted ground. The Commissioner replied that he was sorry to say that i'o Hira was as fir off opening his land as ever; but it all lay with the miners themselves. As a general rule, their conduct |on this goldfield had been most orderly, (but there were one or two instances which jhad come tinder his notice, which had been j very strongly disapproved of by the nai lives. For instance, the burial ground at I Tapu Creek had been invaded, and fires had been made over the bones of some two hundred warriors who were calmly sleeping beneath. This kind of thing was not right, and would do more to keep the land closed up than anything else that he knew of. How would the miners like to have the graves of their friends and relations lying in the Auckland Cemetery treated in such a manner ? Then, again, instances had come before his notice where persona holding miners’ rights for this district had gone on to the land of other natives who received nothing whatever from the Government, and cut down timber, of which they (the natives) had complained to him, !t was therefore necessary that every miner should ab-tain from this kind of thing, or, fihey might depend upon it, they would have considerable difficulty in getting any other land thrown open. The meeting being now concluded, three hearty cheers were given for Mr Mackay by the miners, who then dispersed. There were a great number of people in town on that day, and the appearance of Polk ?n street in the evening was something akin to the concourse of people in Queenslrect on her palmiest Saturday evenings. Air Clifford, the old Auckland favorite, made h;s first appearance at the theatre iu the evening, and was received with thunders of applause. There was a crowded house, as an entirely new change of performance had been promised. I have no time here to give you a detailed account of the performance, but will simply content myself with saying that if was remarkably good. The characters were well sustained, and the music was admirable. The manager of the company deserves the best thanks of the population here for placing such an entertainment before them. The All Nations Claim sent 230 ounces on Saturday from seventeen tons of shine. They expect to send up 300 ouiroes of gold per month. They are very lucky if they can be sure of crushing so much, and are to be envied by other claimholders who have plenty of quartz but no chance of getting it crushed for many a long month to come. The best thing many of the claims can do is to follow the example of the Banbury Cross claimhoidera, who are about to put up a machine on the Waiotahi Creek, and have already sent iu an application for a race. From Tspu the news continues encouraging. The old claims are yielding well, and two very good new ones have been taken up and are-paying well —eighteen grains to the dish of mullock.