THE WEEK.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 66, 17 March 1877, Page 2

THE WEEK.

*f Off to the diggingsl" Such has been the cry during the laat few days, and, although the number of those who hare started is not great, all classes have contributed their, quota to the exodus that has taken place. Old and young, rich and poor, army and navy, .storekeepers and cabmen, the brayvny-fisted and ■^tha. white-handed, the fit' and the unfit, all hare despatched their representatives to the Tadmor, . And some hare come back.; not" , only the visitors who, prompted 1 by curiosity and t«mp£ed' by the easy drive; ware ndt ! proof against the inducements held out to spend a few hours on a goldfield, a sight to •'; many of them quite new, but also the men who went with the intention of making a living, that is if the gold lay on the surface and was sufficiently easily obtainable. It is wonderful how great it the allurement of the term "diggings," and how soon those, who have only read of them in novels are disenchanted ; and disheartened, and how eager they become once more to exchange the open air or the tent .for the comfortable, draught-proof - house and the rough blankets for the soft' sheets. For this reason it is that some of the would-be diggers have returned, bringing with them not glowing but .depressing accounts of what they saw, what they heard, and what they had to (undergo during their few hours or possibly few days stay at "the rush." On the other hand, there. are. aome scores of hardy determined men who went and .have steadily working on, not frightened by trifling inconfenienijea 'hbr ' " ' .' ■ - < -ijSj ':::r,;i;-- '■

deterred from following 'prifc the course they had set befqre^theia, bywant of success at first, and it is to these 'that; we have to look to test the new field, j Days must, weeks may, elapse before the yalueof the ground as a field ipt mining enterprise can be thoroughly knovstnf,| aai in^hej meantime 'the accounts that reacb'Tisv whether .favorable or the re- s verse, may be takeu for what they are worth bo far as the probable permanency of the diggings is concerned. In the meantime we can but hope that all the anticipations that have been formed will be fully realised. I heard of jOneunfortunate.ainateur miner -for whom piyheaii Meeds whenever I think of the terrible disappointment he has experienced. To hi« own Mary Ann he made a solemn vow before starting that he would ii 66 raturn until he had beenenabled- by the work of: his own hands to bring back to her soiri^pg : the gqjd-^no niatter/ Ko'w smalt the amount— that wai to be" wrested fr6m" tTad.mor?s..ioil.^lS"early v tvr.o. days did ha spend in digging and panning, and one n'igtft in "discomfort, and at last his labor, unscientific though it was, was rewarded, and from four to five grains of the precious metal was his own— his own, by the work of his hands. , Gleefully did ihe start! back, with his .two . ,days',.gearningjj carefully wrapped in patter. • On Spooner's 4?ange feeinet a friend fronOhe ' city, «uid having, as was only rigjht, enquired 'hesitatingly aid bashfully about Mary AJnn, and learned that his*lengthy absence had in -no way affected her health, he opened- his „ hearty told hisjfriefia'Tiow" faithfully he had • performed his vow* ajad ; took i out from" his the little paper parcel in whicti^his "gold was so carefully wrapped. : But alas for his happiness! At -that; very i moment, : no ohe'knew why, up came the glorious, refreshing, invigorating sea breeze. Its advent was announctd by. a powerful and unexpected puff, and away went,, paper, gold and all. The digger was left. ; lamenting; tearing his hair , : and talking about the sea breeze in a tone of ■ voice that was quite inexcusable, even under such tryingfjjjrcumstances. The particulars of! his meeting with MaryfAnn, and whether aha believed his story about how ha got and hojer ha lost his gold; I have not yet heard, buf whenever^ want to hear him talk without minding his stops, I have only to nufke, mention of tl(e> gentle zephyrs that Bweep:i6ver Blind Bay,^ and thence across Spooner's Range. | •;■ Many are Ithe enquiries that have been made ;byj people curiouirtp learn what is the meaning and' probable use of that neatly fenced plot of ground in front of the Government Buildings. The sombre color of the paint on the palings and the general appearance of tl?e .enclosure make it look so like an extract froma Tceraetery that I accepted without hesitation, the assurance gravely made in reply to my question'by an old man who^has been knocking, ahout the Buildings for a great many years that it was a 1 grave. Seeing that the, veteran was disposed to-be communicative, I/ entered- ffito' conversation with him, and the following- was, as nearly as possible,. what passed between vs :— F. — "A jgrave, is it, but who or what have been or are going tds bej buried -there?'? ; Veteran (solemnly) — " Provincial Institutions." 'J\— " Provincial Institutions! J The expression as generally used does not convey the idea 1 of a substantial something ' than can be buried. Hw is it to be done?" V. — "Shows how little you've thought about it. Hadn't the Super been in office long enough to become an institution?" F. — " Never thought of it in that light. You can't say the same of the othersj however, the Provincial Treasurer, for instance." V. — " Well, he'd have stopped long enough in office to have become an institution if he'd only had the chance, wouldn't he?" F.— "Ml right, old man, I'll give in I in the matter, of institutions, and hot say another worfchabout them. But what do they wanta grave a chainlongfor?", ( jV"i. — * c Well, next comes the Provincial Solicitor." F. — " Yes, but he's not so long but what an ordinary sized pit would do for him;" V. — "Stop a bit. Then there's the Provincial Secretary. He's lengthy enough in all conscience." F..— That's all very well, but here you'va got to the end of the members of the Provincial Government, and have only filled about half your grave. Again I ask, what is it so long, for?" ,Y.—r" Who said anythiug about members of the Provincial Government ? Didn't I say it was for Provincial Institutions, an' 3 do you think I they would all be buried if O'Conor's chestnut, horse wasn't laid there as wellj?'.' ,F.-7",0h! I. see now, and probably Peter will' be put there too." V.— "Kjghtfor^oqce. Of course he will. I see you're beginning •to "understand what Provincial Institutions are.'' F.— * Well, I think you've got to the end of tham now, j but still there's room for one, how is that to be filled?" . V.^Ah^that's a bit of a secret at present, but I don't mind tailing you ; because I know , you, won't. bli£tir ( You 1 'Enow what a fussy, ' o restlesk''ls6rf- of "-'a fellow O'Conor-is/and'theyfre not at A all sure ;he'll keep quiet even when the. breath is out of his bjody and he's got five or six feet of earth on top of him, so they're to put somebody alongside of him' whp"ll : keep him quiet." F.— "And who 1 is that agreeable billet to be coi^farredjnppn?" Thomas Johnstone Jones of course. He's the' only chap •a^ icould'eve'rbburicffO'Conor ontpp of the earth; And so he's tfie. pToper ! man to mind . himbaiiSath' fty*- /'Having rec^aved a. deal : more' information than ever- 1 bargained for ll turned to leave, and just then there came up a surveying ga^tj; (jarrying thgir, chains in their hands. Asking them. where they were I going,' tney^pUed, t " Dqn't- you- see -this grave like enclosure.- This was. put up as a test place for our chains. We're going to see that they are all right." I picked up a big stone and looked for the Veteran but he hadffed. :-:. .1,.. - . :..;':..• :■' ; Fwoaderif any Nelson man or woman ever enters the Odd : Feil6ws' Hall jon the occasion of' a theatrical - entertainment-being given without experiencing a feeling of shame that one of the? oldest .towns in New Zealand cannot boast of 1 a 'building better 'adapted forsuch: purposes.' > - Its unfinished bar nlika appearance i 3 enough to damp the 9pirits ofthe audience as thay^take . their seats on the miserably .. ancomfortabls. /benches ; provided : for them, and what its effect must be. upon [ the performers it is not diff cult to imagine. ; Surely enough "people could be found in NelsoH to} fprm[ :a Company, for erecting a decent theatre, in which'the actors might feel that their efforts to please were not completely Warred .by the surroundings, and the audience might sit out the evening in some sort of comfort. F.