SOUTHLAND. FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 309, 16 December 1862, Page 6

SOUTHLAND. FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.

Inyeucargill. 6th December, 1862. From the Nokomai there has been no news of any importance lately. It would seem that a good many people are still at work in Victoria Gaily, the bed of the Nokomai and adjacent gullies mo-tly doing well, thongh noshing particularly brilliant. A very fine ••pecimen of beautifully purn gold and qnartz, weight, ing in ail about 3 ozs, was brought down last we.k from the head of the Mevis; the gold, winch is very bright, cropping out of the quartz, resembling in appearance the comb of a cock.

From the i^hotover aud Arrow . ig ings nothing very fresh has been heard. A person named Daniels took down to Riwrton the other day about 71b weight of gold from that, locality, describing the richness of the field in glowing terms Numbers of drays with provisions have left this for the foot of the Wakatip Lake, during- Jast week, and a good nvmy me loading still. The boat for the navigation of the Lake, sent up by the Association, ought to be pr> tty near its destination by this ; the last news of it was satisfactory, .as lvganis its sate portage. Another has been sent up as a private specula ion, and the men to huild the stenmer on the Lake left this last week. Lighterage across the Lake will be reawnable and abundant.

The ali-ai>sorning topic hrre at present is the railway to the Bluff. There is an experienced railway surveyor at present 1-ying off the line between the Muff and Mokomoko, taking 1 vels, &c ; and so soon as we can git an efficient staff together, the. Council will meet to pass the act for raising funds for its construction. The Government anticipates getting the assistance of Mr Dunrias, lately arrived from Scotland, his long practical exp- rience in the construction of railways at home, will be of material importance. I trust ere a month goes by, we shall be in a position to start with thia all important work. The road from Inv^mirgill to the Bluff is wonderfully improved, tor about nine miles out of Invercargill. it is so well gravelled that a coach could be driven at. fuli gallop over it, indeed at low water, it might be so ail the way to Campbell Town, for wi;h the exception of two bush cuttings, «.f about a mile and a half; it is a perfectly tound and hard road The new line, which is being so constructed that the same outfall drains will answer for the railway, will be open in about two months; this sho tens the distance by about six mil's, and renders the traveller independent of the tides. In C;>mpb<U Town itself, signs of progress are evident, so much so that the <?reary, miserable township, if such it could then have been called, is become a t! ing of the past. The Eagk Hotel now offers ample and clean accommodation ; a butcher's shop, at witch, good fresh meat can be dai'y procured, is a striking contrast to the mutton bird and salt junk diet of yore; bakers' bread ha* replaced sodden dampers; good beer, wine, and i-pirits, bad rum ; so that as far as creature comforts are consumed, the visitor to the Bluff has no occasion to bemoan his fate.

The new Court House, situated on hi«h ground, is a nice looking building. Th re are also the n<?w Custom House and Post Office, Police Barracks, Immigrant's Barracks, a commodious Bonded r^tore, and luggage ditto, and I believe ere long, Churches, both English and Presbyterian will be-built on well-chosen commanding sites. Property there is rising rapidly in value, the streets are being formed. Lee street is already, and Gore street is in course of construction. The Government, I believe, intends constructing a jetty of suitable dimensions to enable vessels of size to discharge alongside, waiting only for boring apparatus, to ascertain the nature of the bottom before fixing the site. If found to be rocky, a temporary jetty of wood will be built a little to the east side of the site, so as to be included in tilts permanent, jetty, which will have to be 'if iron piles, and consequently must be sent for from home.

I But the greatest improvement is the easy and rapid j means of communication with Invercsirgill. Mr J G. Hughes, the spirited pr-prietor of tie Eagle Hotel, runs a four-wheeled American tsap daily, ile expert* a regular Tonr-horse coach from Melbourne; he preBi>nt conveyance cnies eight ; the <>ne expected, double that number. The long vexatious delays ■ whichmany an earlier visitor to Southland found so annoying, will not occur again. 9th December. The Storm Cloud, from Glas-gow, with immigrants for Southland, entered the Bluff' yes-terday morning, making a fine passage of eighty live days, only three deaths (children) during voyage. The Aphrasia brought 125 of the passengers round and lr-nded them at the Imercargill jetty this afternoon ■ of these, thirty live had taken thei'- passage to • 't;igo, but at their own request were landed here. Interim accommodation has been provided for all at the !mmicrrants' Barracks. They seem to be well pleased with their treatment on board, and speak highly of the captain.

The last news from the Digdncrs continues good ; gold .seems to be determined to be found in all directions. The recent discoveries on the borders of Messrs Switzer's and Swansea's runs, at the foot of the Umbrella Ranges, about ninety miles from In\«rcargill, promise to turn out a'remunerative and permanent diggings. At present the diggings is con lined to working* in a long creek running into the Wakaia Creek from the direction of the Dunstan. Those at work are officially reported as doing well— about 200 on the ground. This rush, together with that to lice's has considerably thinned the Nokomd and Victoria Gully, where there an; only thirty, doing very well ; at the Nevis fi;ty, doing first-rate ; one party of four 1 heard of made, iv one month, as follows: l*t week, 142 ozs j 2nd week, 163 oz*: 3rd week, 100 ozs ; 4th week, 196 ozs ; totai, 601 ozs. Not bad ! The average of those at work there is reported from one to three ounces per day per man. From the Shotover, Arrow, &c, the accounts are almost fabulous. I hear that one of your poUee, Sergeant Baily. waaaed out of two tin dishes, in a claim in the Shotover, about 2£ ozs, which was given him aa a sample (gold dust being no object.) Provisions at preseut high, though the number of boats which will be shortly placed on the Lake will soon reduce prices. There are rumours also of a Southland gold field being discovered, the exact locality not yet stated ; good samples have been sold to storekeepe-s, with intimation by the finders' that the natives will yet be astonished. Tl<ey are anxiously waiting to be so. I htar large orders for goods for the diggings have been sent to Jnvercargill within the last day or two. The last escort from the Nokomai to -k 1,008 ozs to Dunedin ; one of our troopers accompanied it, by request of the < ommissioner, nearly to Popotunoa, as additional protection.

December 10. We are going in for ship-building. A man named Price has leased from, the <*overnment a capital site for the construction of a patent slip, at the Horseshoe Point, Mokomoko, New River : he has advertised that he will be prepared shortly to repair vessels of any. tonnage and build, &c.

December 11. . The Titania came in yesterday afternoon from Dunedin,

The Immigrants recently arrived per Storm Cloud are charjof engaging; the contractors ior the Bluff road arc giving 10s per day for good juon.-and this kepps thsm aboat town in preference to any permanent eßgag«inen%. . i have heard of one married couple enKBg»ja for L?3a-year up-country; many of tlie pintle fesaa!«g ajrs nominated passengew. and consequently notia a hurry to eugage as servants. ....,.'. Tfesxoia a rutn>r that -300 ounces of gold was bro-aghfc <kfm last night by a man from Rees'B. He *y» a^.<J«@c«it»d it in any of th.i banks, but states ,«***■«<* ?Wp4 a«ll it wlien his mates came d<>wn wirh t&«ir^r~4ao tetfel got by the party amounting to 800 '.'. Tb» MJ^fts kft the Bluff yesterday. ' fVoftu^fiae. ■■ ' ' ' "

- v&A&I&HRks Relief: Fund,—a meeting of the 'Mfr&V&m MUitJ Committee' was held la*t week. W» BaaaVra vere:-The Lord Bishop, the Her. Kb Hao&fo, &r : Fitzgerald, Mr Brittan, and Mr «*#**■. • .-.&* secretary stated that, in accordance .mtaiattSa^Mibns of the; last meeting of die com.^*^ft^.?®iaof:Lsooliadheen transmitted to Mr \m%,j®!t as; he might think most ,grcS6«a& •■ "Saa,treasurer stated that the amount ot v|wyfc«KJs-I^oa.actually paid was Ll.O'iO, whereupon it "W&^^mti that a second remittance of I,soo'should .|W.iSB&fSS to Eaglaud by ihe uext mail. It was re.:»BrlMfli fe^i the fubacriptions from the outlying ','asferiete dM-not come !a.with.the prdinptitude tUat :itf&i. fessw.befa «xpe<jted.~Xy<^w 2Vw«.