The Londonderry Reef.

Manawatu Herald, 4 August 1894, Page 3

The Londonderry Reef.

The story of the find of the above reef is an illustration of the " luck " there is in gold- seeking. As Messrs Carter, Dawson, Mills and Gardener of New South Wales, and Messrs Elliott and Huxley, of Victoria, were returning from an unprofitable pioneering expedition disheartened, dispirited, and poorer in pooket, they pitched their camp on the Bth May last about 12 miles from Coolgardie, in a south-westerly direction. The country was highly auriferous, and as was the custom with prospectors, after camp had been pitched, they went out to test the country. They tell me, says the Perth Nevis reporter, it was Mills that made the discovery, with which almost the whole civilised world is now ringing. He was about a mile or a mile and a half from camp, when he came across one of the many large blows, which are so characteristic of the country. He was astonished, on rubbing his hand across a protruding piece of stone, to see the gold standing out prominently. Quicker than it takes to write it, he had knocked a large piece off the boulder, and at bis feet lay a magnificent specimen, literally studded with

coarse gold, while before him/ dazzling his eyes with its brightness and richness, was a magnificent reef of almost pure gold— a fortune ( Thus it is tllat all our richest gold discoveries are made— unexpectedly, suddenly. Mills lost no time in taking several pieces from the reef. Shese he placed ifl bia bosom, and carefully covering the reef With earth, 1 he fou,nd his ipates, and ccmmuiiidatecl tci tiieffli the startling intelligence. The camp was next reached, hastily struck, and removed to the locality of the discovery. Next morning a lease of 25 acres was pegged of!, and the adjoining blocks at each efid Were also taken up during that week. In the meantime, they set to work to farther examine the reef, and stored the precious metal in their tent. They also commenced to systematically develop the property. One of the partners went in to the town and bought a dolly— the largest one ne could procure. Then it was that the richness of the mine was made apparent. In one day, working on some marvellously-rich stone, they dollied 1000 ounces, and in a short time they had between four and five thousand ounces itl the tent, On June 23, the partners decided to place this large quantity of gold in safer quarters. They describe how they packed it up into several swags, and in a cart, in charge of two of the party, safely landed the treasure at the Union Bank. The manager weighed the stone in the presence of the lucky holders, and it turned the scales at 4,230 ounces. It was a few day3 after this that the discovery became known to the public.