THE ROBBERY OF SLUICEBOXES AT NO TOWN.

Kumara Times, Issue 3018, 6 July 1886, Page 2

THE ROBBERY OF SLUICEBOXES AT NO TOWN.

The Argus gives the following particu'ars of the robbery of sluice-boxes at No Town on Wednesday last:— Forty-eight feet Of the sluice-boxes of Patrick Finnigan, at Half-Way, No Towd, were cleaned out in the most systematic manner. An old pick was found alongside, by which the false bottoms were prised up. These were thrown on the bank, and left there, as if the thieves did not care to hide their robbery, or had been frightened before they were quite finished. Because, the owner says, if they had put the false bottoms back and tun a little wash through he would not have known that he had been robbed. He thinks that he has lost about a pound weight of gold at least, as the cleaning up of the next 48ft., most of which runs under the road, yielded 3oz. As there are only a few parties working at Half Way, they are naturally very much annoyed at the robbery, of course imagining that the public will suspect the robbery has been committed by some person familiar with the locality. On the same night, at Irish town, or Cockney Terrace, Magoffin's tail-race was also robbed of a considerable amount of gold; but it is impossible to say how much in this case any more than in the other. Finnigan had worked since last March without cleaning np, and Magoffin had also been a long time without cleaning up. In consequence of the news of the robbery the majority of the parties in No Town district at once started to clean out their tail-races, so as to anticipate a visit from any of that class of gentry who prefer to rob others of the result of their honest labor rather than work themselves. Great sympathy is expressed for the miners who have been robbed, and if the temper the miners in the locality are now in over this occurrence is any criterion, it would be a very bad thing for any thieves caught perpetrating such a robbery. From various little incidents that have occurred previously, and of which the miners are now forcibly reminded, it is thought that there have been several tail-race robberies previously. As no strangers have been in the district lately it is not easy to fasten suspicion on any one; but it would be very strange indeed if there are no suspected persons.