PERILOUS PROSPECTING IN SOUTH WESTLAND.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5366, 8 June 1878, Page 3

PERILOUS PROSPECTING IN SOUTH WESTLAND.

The special reporter of the) Qreyißiwr'Argtisi gives the-followingaceount of the prospecting j for gold that has lately .been, carried on in; South Westland-:— kjlk ■ ~-io a ! FIRST TBIT OVER,THE GLACIER. -J j

Your readers-. have heard the .rumour which; has , be^n ; .ourpont for.some. time that, a. email: 'quantity of , ooareo gold had been obtained by, two.lfjrothers ,Spencer, iwhq went down on a 1 mission of) photography to the, Waiho glacier. ; If will!be,,remembered ..that .the report was; .magnified .to. Borne., extent, in ho far that the Spencers , wore said to,.have, given up their l original calling, and- had taken to, mining. This . was contradicted by. a letter,frqjn Mr. Charles ; Spencer, dated from Okarito on the 26th April, which . was, mentioned in; q paragraph/in thla; 'journal. They did mot abandon their work altogether, but ( tlioy thought, they .had.met ■ with sufHcient indications to warrant them in; giving tho .ground, a little, further trial. \ \ .Jl'heir = first trip may thus be described. .The two .brothers Spencer ' and man named, j German Harry succeeded in .getting, into’ thp,.Waiho; Gorge—the left-hand, brunch, of 'the JWaiho. i They loft the forks of thu’ Wiuho ou the Bth of i April, and reached the top of' Mount;Mueller,. They travelled along the leading spur ,'about five or'six miles'that day, camping for the night, after having"walked' for .eight.;hours. . Next day they travelled along the leading spur for four hours, whpn they, catuo.foi a pass between the Waiho and’ Totara rivers, .though about as high as tlio top of,' Mount -.Mnollor. Stretching away.fronj tho passtoth* Waiho ■

there is about-a'‘mile of open grassy slopes. They , next'wentl’doivh' jtlie - slope until they reached the head of one of the numerous creeks, that run into the Waiho. - Proceeding still farther they reached the’river,’where they camped that - night. Next day they started back,' and . after three hours’ walking they reached the grassy slopes, again camping, and getting nearly frozm . during the, night. They left again next day, and got back about 5 p.m.; being away four days, and ’ three nights; ' When they reached the 'Waiho :aa .described oh the second’day, they picked out gold’fiom the crevices in the bed of the Waiho with their penknives. ” They-had ho tools whatever with them, and very little tucker. They got* eight or . ten small pieces of gold, in flattened discs about a quarter of an inch in diameter., The gold was water-worn, l and had apparently travelled ; ■ some distance. The crevices were - mostly filled with 1 iron pyrites and‘slate, mixed with small stones, the whole ■being cemented very hard, 1 so that they could not get'down more than a few inches with their: penknives, Where bedrocks were uncovered, they consisted of - quartz and slate mixed, there being well-defined rehfs generally from two to three feet thick; though they did not see gold in ; any ■of the 1 outcrops of the reefs. The small veins of quartz were reddish in l appearance and ’loose hr’parts from the action of the air and slips. They describe the •Waiho as very much rook-hound, and it'is impossible ip l many places to reach the river. The general run of the river l is 'a point north of magnetic east for about eight or nine miles; it then takes a turn to the N.E., and disap-; pearsiin;what looks'like -a pass [through theranges.; fit;passes Mount Tyndall in a N.N.E. direction.',; There are two "glaciers coming from; Mount (Tyndall, l one on the north and- ; another ;on: the. N;N.W. side, divided by a spur running; about NiW.'- .TheNiN.W. glacier jis the longest, reaching nearly to the river, and-,is-,very much,covered-with* moraine. The Waiho Is halt aS. long again as the Totara after .entering the gorge. il/Their journey- into the ■ gorge' was: almost .'dangerous one, and not fit for any man to undertake; ,• If a party was on .•the gorge when -the: snow came down they would most certainly starve. I .7 ~.. .■- .'•*.;.--THE, SECOND.IBIP.'ii .TUT

A second trip was made by German Harry, a miner named: Nisbett,; who has been Working at the foot of the Waiho: Gorge'for some years past, and the; Spencers;'also, a miner named Waimer, known as'Waiho Jack. Xam notquite certain' whether: both or . only one of the Spencers went over the second; time.:-'They 1 took tools and some-more provisions than on‘ the former 'occasion,u but -with; 1 the perilous places they had to get over they were unable to take-’muchof a swag. - ’They -reached thesame spot after running terrible risks, and re-' turned iwith 'five ounces six pehhyy(eights of gold, l which They l had obtained in’ a. - very small: compass. They were on the grouhd on the second occasionfor.a’day and a-half. They first obtained three penny weights'oh the bare crevice, and subsequently’managed to pipit,out the quantity: ‘above 'stated; the' heaviest piece [being; between four i and 1 five pennyweights. Those* who'have- seen the l 'gold ’describe it as; shottymnd net very/much water(worn.’ ,; lt is reported to, -have hern 1 sold : to Mr. Benyou, 1 storekeeper at Okarito; frdm whomthe'party; procured a fresh supply of provisions,;’and two of them, namely, Gorman Harry and Nisbett, have started again,.. Qn this . : -

third trip, -, Zala accompanied them up The gorge and to the top.,of Mount Mueller,going about two miles beyond the trig station;:, After leaving the trig station, ho says they, had to. go up •nearly 2000 feet,' when they ’came to’apass, which in paint' of'danger is almost'beyond description. -For a ; considerable distaiice the ridge -is - only about '22 inches' wide,, and is .in parts undermined towards, the, smith •’ and ■■• as-: steep as ' the,’ wall of a house ‘oh ’ the north side,, with; hundreds of foot * underneath,'■ so 'if ah accident .happened there, would he‘ no possible'escape. German-Harry took the lead) and got over in safety,‘but' under:great .risk. "Nisbett fol-' lowed, and,had to creep’along on hishands' and'knees 1 for' two 6f( three hundred‘ yards.* Zala'had "only six "pounds weight of flour and' ‘a few biscuits,- and seeing the danger, hopre-' feried' returning, which he I 'has done with theintention of returning with,two of his.mates, from Ross. I. believe’ho started again yesterday overland, and will, if'possible, try .to discover some easier,track than the .one referred to. . German Harry and Nesbitt have sufficient tucker, to last them for three orfonr weeks;'and they .only; got over on Thursday last.. The. .worst-part' of the journey is said "to bo! beyond that portion* just described,’* in getting.over what has ’ been , called Mount Burster. ) There in parts they' had to slide 'down on the, 1 icy boulders with , nails-in their boots an .inch long, andfrequently by the assistance of a rope. ’, Threeothersare • reportedto have gone the‘length- of * Mount Mueller, . but returned rather , .than face the 'perils that appeared .to (await them 'bey'oud that point. Among these was a’ man namhd Samuel Harper.' , Frqm'.Okarito to the Gldrga. may be’ said to'bo a'day.’s tramp, from the'Gdrge to' Mount Mueller (-'another' day, and,from Mount Mueller down''a third day. The foregoing is- the unvarnished tale of those 'who l have;visited the', ground and obtained the gold; "-And now'let’nie add a few words oh(: ! ( '■ THE DANGERS OP'THE JOURNEY.* (, ' lest, any should be, {tempted to venture in that direction;'' Mr, Charles Spencer’s concluding words' to a/riend.here ’are—“.Be cautious’how you'make this public, as if a rush ..were to.’take plaoo’now They would very likely jiave thbre 'all'* the-' winter( ! ahd without "a' track, , there would certainly be loss of ’life. ll I do not say there v is a,payable goldfield, I just give you the facts that , we , picked the gold out of the crevices. It would take a lot of gold to turn me into a .miner,’/ . - Zala, who has done ■ more roughing' on the Coast, fully endorses Spencer’s, remarks, as' to. tbe dangers, and. in a hofej /I.received previous to this reaqhiqg town | on "Tuesday,'he concludes, “ You may safely say j that, ,it j is-useless-for- any one ,tq-go .until q ’better track is " ’ ’■ j ‘ IN' OONCLTJSIbN, I desiro/tp; say, .though -tbej news of gold! having been discovered in a locality hitherto unknown, ulceady, made some; talk in Okarito, yet to those who are best acquainted with the pathoy nature..of i many,; of ..the; rivers'and creeks in that neighborhood, the circumstances reported are -not; Buffloientrto createany great [wonder or' undue* excitement.'; It .may 'possibly,'be, nothing’ more: than..a" mere'pocket of. alluvial^'gold which bib'‘ luckily'‘been stumbled 'upon, and upon the ground being further tested,’ the. limit, In'iy be’.'proVed to (be "exceedingly” cireum‘senbed.’*'' Though this,'report 1 is! made up of threads and' patches,’ ! aud is .'consequently incomplete, should the ■ wolk (progress, and 'any further finds -be disclosed, arrangements' are/'made'-that the latest ' and' reliable ao-; -counts- will 1 be given'in this journal from a correspondent who has no "aim or object to serve beyond prospecting the locality on; his J own" behalf:/and '. communicating such; news; 'as -'may ‘ ‘interest the ’ public. 1 EVcn 1 the' firmest -'believers in the' undevelopedi ivealth *‘of - tha ‘ South must’ ‘ hot ( forget. ; tlio, ■ihad > - stampedes;which took place ', to Bruce Bay,' r the' ‘Haast," and•, other' parts' of, (that district; and'-the very' unsatisfactory' results' which* attended-/them;'" -In ' afew : .weeks something ! moire l * authentio'. as to'-(the "baluei ‘and * -extent '.of the (ground may be ascertained.*