The Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 1. 1869.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume IV, Issue 282, 1 December 1869, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 1. 1869.

Mining- affairs at Auckland have of lute assumed a serious aspect,, as the reaction that invariably follows a season of fictitous prosperity lias set in, and has apparently taken by surprise many ._w.ho', fondly believed that, not by any merit or patient persevering energ j of .their own, but by the more easy method of lucky speculations,,they were aibout to realise handsome fortunes. Such a stated things, however, as now "exists at Auckland, painful and fraught wiih misery though it. may be to hundreds, is not altogether without its advantages,; as the reckless, speculation and. wretched mismanagement that bave prevailed, have nt last arrived at such, a pitch that the evil now promises to'cure itself. As we are. sanguine enough of the future 'of our own gplcl fields to believe that we shall shortly see a -large influx of people, and' that scrip, .calls, dividends, and such lil_e^ \viir.« become^ "familiar iv our niouths 'as household. s wordsj" we believe that the clearly bought experience of bur northern neighbors may prove of service to us, and 5 that- by taking warning from their mistakes, and' carefully avoiding the errors into which they bave been led, we may save ourselves the losses and disappointments that have fallen to their lot. We shall therefore endeavor to show to*our readers bow tbe depression which now obtains in Auckland.has been brought about. So far as we can learn from a careful perusal of the newspapers, it is attributable, in the first place, to the fact that the Auckland people, led on by the passu n for speculation, bave rashly invested every pound on which they could lay their hands in tbe purchase of scrip, not with a view to obtaining fair return, from the working of the claim or claims in which they had become shareholders, but merely with tbe intention of re-selling at a profit. The whole community has thus been busily engaged in preying one upon another, but, as might be expected, this could riot last for ever, and the time has arrived when such an unhealthy state ot affairs must come to an end, and men, grown wiser by bitter experience, have at last come to their senses, and are now beginning to estimate the scrip, which has ,been selling at-such absurdly high prices, at its true value,- which value, perhaps, is not co great as it might otherwise have been, for this reason, that not content with holding shares in a 'few claims and seeing that these, were properly- worked, investors have, been, purchasing in small quantities all over the district, and thus have so divided their interests that they have been unable to devote the necessary amount of attention to any particular mine, the consequence being, that, the mismanagement has been so great that .but small returns have been realised aud calls have . become far more ; frequent than dividends. f v * /.'.,".' 1 It is this_systemof gross mismanagement which may account in the second place for the present unsatisfactory ~ state of ;tbings, and; measures are now being taken for remedying^that which has.~proved so great anevil. Shareholders are beginning ■ to discover that they must look more to the working of their claims, and less to .the sale of their scrip, for their profits; and .a meeting of those interested 1 has lately been held in Auckland, when a committee was appointed r to prepare a report upon the present system of managing mines and compan ies at the Thames. Up to our latest dajtes this report had not been published, but from what we can gather it will take (the form of recommending the amalgamai, jtion of lour or five claims in one (as at the i l; ; Thame^ the cl^ ' As'ebd 50 yards alppg,the^eeC : and 150 yards I : ! 'W: either; side <of tb^appointmen t ? jfj^!y&%>inpe^ ' v»the man_iger.iW

] yet are in 'bur infancy with regard < to mining matters^' will.'do well to^; keep in remembrance. In the Mining Journal of the 20th instant there is an excellent article on "Mining Managers,'' andas the matter '. seems to us .to be one of great importance, we shall; although it is somewhat lengthy, publish it- in* our to-morrow's issue, and we trust that it may prove serviceable as a guide to the directors of the companies that have already been, and those that may yet be formed in our province.

Supreme Court.— The sittings of this Court will be resumed to-morrow, when the prisoners will "he tried for the Charlston murder. .The bigamy case will likewise be tried. '■.-.'•'■■ Sports at the Coi.LEGE.«Tliese sports commenced this afternoon, aud will be resumed on Saturday afternoon, commencing at half-past 2 o'clock. ' Flax. — At the meeting of the Scientific Association this- evening Mr. J. Mackay will read a paper on the " Preparation of Flax." The Association meet iv the Government Buildings the first Wednesday every month, at 8 o'clock p.m; . ; Manuka. — By the Rangitoto last even- , ing we received Melbourne papers, from which we learn that Mr. Redwood had disposed of Manuka/" He returned in the Tararua, bringing with bira Peeress aiid I Misfortune, which he purposed leaving at I Christchurch for the races. j ' WANGAPE___ ,, GOLDFIELDS.-r-On Sun-' day last Mr. Warden Broad arrived from Charleston, ,and; will proceed to Wangapeka to-morrow morning. He will* be. accompanied by a staff of surveyors to lay but as speedily as possible tbe purchasers' land^ H, J. L. Au garde, Stock and Share Broker, quotes Culliford's Shares (£l ss. paid) at £2 per Share of £10 ; Perseverance, £5 Shares (£1 paid), at £1 7/6. per Share. ' The late Whirlwind. — We are sorry that we subjected Mrs. Polglaze to the inconvenience of condolence from her numerous friends for a misfortune which luckily did not occur. We likewise regret, that we should have misled our. two con-. temporaries, who copied their details from our paper.