THE GOLD FIELDS.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VIII, Issue 645, 8 October 1851, Page 3

THE GOLD FIELDS.

um the Bathurst Free Press Correspondents.] , THE TURON. ! n great haste I throw a few particulars toper for your use, if you deem them of suf|nt importance for publication. > p e ? uron 1 * ver * s 80 much flooded that I ‘Hie good in the digging line will be or the next month, and one consequence iuff St - ate thin S s be a large amount t ering amongst those who have come Lf X .?® ct * n *f evei y day to provide for itself, L j c^ass there happens to be a rather umber. There are a few whose digi Bre e ’ e vated abpve the bed of the river,

whom the floods do not affect, or if at all, they anect them favourably, inasmuch as the water is brought nearer at hand. The large body, however, are making slow progress, and are spending an uncomfortable time in their wet gunyas, looking imploringly at the skies for flue weather.

It is true that, as your Turon correspondent observes, there are great numbers here doing nothing at all just now; but I think he takes rather too desponding a view of the state of our diggings, and does not lay sufficient stress upon what I conceive to be the principal cause of failure—the superabundance of water, I am by no means of opinion that the general ill-luck of the mass springs from the too great proportion of the population to the surface of country containing gold ; for go in whatever direction you may, from the beds of the creeks to the tops of the mountains, on the alluvia! flats or along the slopes of the ridges, you find gold, and in numberless places in sufficient quantities to pay for working. But unfortunately, on the Turon we are likely to be troubled with either too much water or too little. The former causes a loss of time, inasmuch as a portion of the day has to be spent in baling the holes dry • and the latter is a loss of labour, because the earth has to be carried so far that, in some cases, it will make a difference of one man’s labour. - But, in numberless instances, the water springs so fast upon the miners, as to rendei the hole, if I may so express myself, altogether unworkable. Another prime source of failure is the utter ignorance of everything connected with gold digging amongst a very large portion of new arrivals. Even with the most experienced there is a large waste of the precious metal, and I can well understand Mr. Hargraves when he states that it would pay a skilful miner to go over the washed earth which has been thrown aside as refuse, and will give you a reason for the faith which is in me. Not far from where I was at work, a party of Germans were employed, who had being doing extremely well, having taken out of their hole as much as lOoz. in a day on several occasions. After watching their proceedings for some time, I gave it as my opinion that they were losing a portion of their gold in the washing. In reply, they shook their heads incredulously, and offered to give me all I could make out of their “ tailings.” 1 accordingly went to work with my tin dish only, and in a short time netted a quarter .of an ounce of the precious metal, and with the help of the rest of my company cleared l£ozs. in an afternoon. At this these children of the Vaterlandt opened their eyes with astonishment, and broadly hinieu Inal iney would prefer our room io our company. A little boy made a quarter of an ounce in a day at the same place with a tin dish. It would thus appear that it would pay many parties better to work their ground a second time than waste so much of their time prospecting.

The most successful party besides the Halls, with whose progress I am acquainted, is the Wests. For a considerable time they made 15ozs. to 20ozs. a day, and up to the time I write, am told they Lave about £3OOO, and their gound appears to be as far from being exhausted as ever. You have most likely heard that the Halls got £lOO for the good will of their diggings. There is a party of Newcastle colliers at work not far from our diggings, who have sunk fourteen feet and found gold every foot. They are doing remarkably well, but I cannot furnish you with the particulars.

The ground in the vicinhy of the Wallaby Rocks is now nearly deserted, a few straggling parties only remaining. There is, I feel confident, plenty of profitable land in that locality unoccupied ; but nothing takes except the Golden Point and the vicinity. When worked out many will be glad to return thither and remain satisfied with their yoz., or ounce a man per day.