The Golden Horse-Shoes.

Manawatu Herald, 20 May 1899, Page 2

The Golden Horse-Shoes.

The tale of how a newly*elected legislator in Victoria made a triumphal entry into the principal town of his constituency riding a horse shod with golden shoes, has been told in many ways. What purports to be the true version has just been pub* lished in the " Argus," in the series of articles, and like most " correct accounts," it is not nearly so impressive and interesting as the stories which have now to be pronounced legends. The story, says the chron* icier of truth, " has been cited always as an illustration of the wild spendthrift qualities of the men of the Oven* goldfield. In plain truth it was uDly the bold advertisement of a circus proprietor named ' Tin* ker ' Brown.'* The election was the first held in the district for the Legislative Council, and the diggers selected as their candidate a man named Daniel Cameron, for who?e monetary qualification they subscribed in a very short time the necessary £2000. One of the subscribers to this fund was Johnston, a digger known as the "King of the Woolshed," from his remarkable success in '• striking it rich ," in the Wool* ahed Valley, where his claim returned him between £50,000 and £100,000 in a few months. This worthy, besides subscribing £100, " shouted " for all hands after Cameron was elected, the first round of drinks costing him £145. Then everybody turned out to escort the newmember to Beech worth for the official declaration of the, poll. Every digger owned a horse in those days, and rode regardless of his neck. " Eye witnesses have described that wonderful spectacle of the cavalcade of red-shirted diggers clattering down the range, and at their head Daniel Cameron, riding his horse shod with massive shoes of gold." Unfortunately, nothing of the sort ever hap. pened. What did occur was far lass im. posing. One of the attractions of " Tinker " Brown's circus, then at Beechworth, was a horee which would lie down on its back in the ring and flourish its heels in the air, to show the audience that it wore golden horse-shoes. The shoes had been made by a local jeweller, and were " fairly -solid." The enterprising circus man made an offer to some member of Cameron's Committee. that for a consideration he would put these shoes on the . horse— they were always taken off after the performance—bring out a circus car, and drive the new member through the streets. The offer was jumped at, and the drive duly came off, through streets packed with people. In the excitement, however, nobody seemed to have remembered that the affair was intended to do honour to the diggers' choice, Mr Cameron. The golden horse-shoes were what the people came out to see ; the actual -cause of all the commotion passed almost unnoticed.