The Eager Search for Gold.

Manawatu Herald, 12 January 1895, Page 3

The Eager Search for Gold.

No small amount of excitement was created in Lambton quay yesterday morning when it became bruited abroad that gold had been discovered in the rotten rock which is being excavated for the cellar of Mr Bodley's new premises. The rumour, as it flew round, increased the quantity of the supposed precious metal discovered in direct ratio to the square of the distance travelled. What were at first mere specks gained in size until they became respectable nuggets, worthy of the palmiest days of the West Coast goldfields. The despised prophet of other days came on the scene, and reminded those around that he had always predicted there was gold in Wellington, notwithstanding what ■" those scientific fellows " had said. Knots of men and boys gathered on the ground during the forenoon, and discussed the matter in all its bearings. Several amateur diggers took a hand at washing up, but their efforts were not crowned with success, whilst their methods were irreverently criticised by onlookers who had been on one or move goldfields. A native of the land of the flowery Pekoe, who had evidently done some dry blowing in his day, shrugged his shoulders, after prospecting the locality of the supposed lode, and exclaimed "No gold there !" The prospect of a goldfield in the centre of Wellington was eventually dissi» pated by the matter-of-fact opinion of an expert, who declared that the specimens were only the shelter of zinc, &c, which were melted when a fire destroyed a building which stood on the locality many years ago. — Times.