ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

New Zealander, Volume 9, Issue 731, 16 April 1853, Page 3

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

To the Editor of the New-Zealander. Sir, —In to-day’s issue of your paper, I find a report from some gentlemen passengers of the good ship William , who have been prospecting our Gold Diggings. Their report reminds me of the King of France who marched his army up the hill and then marched them down again. Of what use is their report; they tell us nothing but what we knew before ; in fact we know a great deal more than they can tell us—we know the creeks will not pay for working, we know the gold lies in the flats, in the hills, in the gullies, and the mountain tops, we know likewise there is gold on the bed rock, for we got it from all these places. We also know from actual observatn n and prospecting, that from the Kapanga, and 10 miles up the Thames we have gold ; we likewise know in crossing the mountain to Mercury Hay we have gold the whole distance. —The whole of the Thames would have been prospected long ere this if the Government or their official who is so lauded in the report of these gentlemen, had not thrown so many difficulties in our way, and treated us in so. scurvy a manner. The choice of Commissioner was most unfortunate. Sir, there is one item of much more importance than the report of these gentlemen, viz., —that out of a few yards of ground so much gold has been dug that has realized (£400) four hundred pounds. 1 have no wish to throw cold water on the prospecting of these gentlemen, but from the flourish of drums and trumpets that they went down with to our diggings, I thought we should get some information valuable and important ; no doubt they did their best, and so I thank them. Sir, if yon will allow me to trespass a little further in your columns, I will state what appeal's to me the apparent failure of our gold fields. Ist. —Hasty and arbitrary rules and regulations, quite unsuited to the nature and circumstances of our diggings. These rules and regulations were, 1 admit, laid before the representatives of the people who sold us like sheep at the shambles. The license fee was so premature, so uncalled for, so tyranically unjust, that it drove nearly all the diggers and prospectors off the ground. The first time our representatives were called upon to act, they considerately assisted to crush ns in our efforts to developc our gold field. 2nd.—The small space within which our diggings are confined, covering an area of about 10 miles, is so ridiculously small that no one who knows anything about gold digging, wonders at our failure. I would ask in the gold districts of California and Australia, how many 16 miles they prospect and dig over and not find a tithe we have obtained, but they don’t feel it because of the thousands engaged in digging. 3rd.—The wet, the freshes, the almost continual rains we have had at the diggings, has been a great bar to our suc- ' cess. But, throw open the district, throw open the country, let us get the diggers on the ground, and the difficulties of the water will soon vanish. The least of the gold is to be found in the creeks, at least on creeks that we have been working. We want space for thousands of men to work ; and, in conclusion, sir, allow me to observe that from what has already been got, our digging s

1 show's indications of wealth second to none that lias as yet been worked. All we want is room and fair play.—l am. Sir, Your obedient servant, Jerome Cabman. [Although, as our readers are fully aware from our frequent comments on the subject, there is much in the foregoing letter from which we must entirely disagree, yet Air. Cadman having, from his early and persevering services as a pioneer in the Coromandel Gold Field, obtained some right to be beard in the case, we do not feel free to refuse the insertion of remarks authenticated by his name. We should however assure the passengers of the William , who, we believe, at the request of some of our towns-people, incurred the expense of visiting the Gold field, that their services and report are more highly appreciated by the public than Air. Cadman’s letter would indicate. Those gentlemen were obliged to make but a short delay at Coromandel as they believed their vessel was to resume her voyage on the Saturday. But that they have formed a just estimate of the gold-field, even from their very cursory inspection of it, is evident from their report being so entirely in accordance with the opinion expressed at the beginning by the Alessrs. King, and by almost every practical digger who ha visited the mines since the discovery, including Air. Cadman himself. — Ed. N. Z. J