OUR GOLDFIELD AND HYDRAULIC SLUICING—Letter III.

Kumara Times, Issue 536, 15 June 1878, Page 2

OUR GOLDFIELD AND HYDRAULIC SLUICING—Letter 111.

[to the editor.] S!R—ln continuation'of my letters regarding sluicing on Kumafa, I may. be excused "should I be too enthusiastic-in' the eanse, but by ray.signature it might be expected.-. There are many men on

tills goldfield who are as cognizant of the great benefit to the community at large as I am myself ; but, when-? the subject is taken into proper consideration, they will admit that we are labouring under difficulties which require no .common energy to overcome. First, there are the claimholders, who, in common justice to themselves, will not surrender their rights ; secondly, the race-holders, who go on the same ticket; thirdly, and last, is the vast amount of “ vis inertia ” to be overcome in any eftbrt to effect the end required. Could it be possible to cany into active operation the simple hint thrown out already by myself, I have no doubt but that fime would be a great tell-tale, and prove the efficiency of the system which I so strongly advocate. To be slightly descriptive, I will give an instance. When gold became scarce on the Greenstone and miners one by one left for “pastures new,” a system of hydraulic sluicing was introduced which, to the uninitiated, cannot be comprehended. On th 6 grand scale on which it was carried out, it was possible to wash away an acre of groundmore or less auriferous, in the short time of four weeks, earth averaging in depth 60 feet, by a width of 250 feet on the'surface. The ground, to the sorrow of the holders, proved unfortunately to be not; payable ; but with such a style of working on the Kuraara, what results might be anticipated? Only think! Gold from the surface—we dont know how deep ! Could the miners themselves not undertake a grand job (not meaning jobbery), and bring the much-required tail-race in ? If they do, they can take the word of an . old digger that it will be, a financial success.—No more.—Yours, &c., Old Sluicer.

P.S.—Any assistance or advice which I can render is always at the command of any who may first undertake the first open tail-race. Some may laugh, but you do not. always get wisdom out of the mouths of sages. O. S.