The Goldfields.

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume I, Issue 23, 15 April 1890, Page 2

The Goldfields.

Mahakipawa. Monday. It has been raining here on and off since Friday morning, but it cleared up early this morning. Nearly all the wheels are at a standstill. The only wheels that are still going in the lower claims is the Alice Fell on the flat, the Last Chance, and the Bide-a-Wee in the little creek under Davis and Carr's terrace. The principal cause of the wheels stopping is the tailings blocking up the flume boxes, and several claims have only, to clear away the boxes and two or three days pumping will put them right again. The Lucky Hit, the Te Ore Ore, and the Maori Girl have worse trouble, 'as the creek is filled up with tailings almost level with the shaft, and consequently they will get very heavy drainage from the creek. They are hard at work this morning lowering the tailings in the creek, but it would take them a long time to lower it to its former level. The Hibernian stopped the wheel at five o'clock last evening. The manager was afraid the tailings would get into the flume boxes and cause a break down, as with their powerful pump it will not take long to pump out, no doubt it was the best thing to do. The sluicing claims above have all benefitted by the flood, and there should be some good records from the upper claim this week. Several parties having two or three months wash dirt ready to put through. The National Bank bought a hundred and odd ounces this week. The Just in Time got 15oz and 6oz respectively for the two weeks. The Long Time are still on the metal.'

The Never Surrender and Te Ore Ore have very good records. The influenza epidemic has spread rapidlv this week. I know of twenty men that are down with it, and I expect there are more that I have not heard of. It is to be hoped the rain will clear the air and stop it from spreading further. I interviewed Mr Alex. Hill from the reefs this morning, he tells me that the stone is still as good as ever.

They have knocked off getting stone out of the Kapai for a time, and are paying all their attention to the Mahakipawa and the Waikakaho reefs. The Mahakipawa has seventy feet more to drive to strike the reef, and they expect to reach it in about two months. They expect to start the tramway and erect the battery very shortly. No body that has been on the hill and seen the stone that is being brought out can have any doubt of the splendid future that is before this Company. I am sorry to have to chronicle a death in our little township last week, Mr C. Nelson losing his little girl on Friday last. The little one was : nine months old, and was burried in Havelock on Saturday. The road through the township is formed and metalled, and you can now walk from one end to the other with dry feet. This is a great improvement, as before, we had nothing but mud and water in wet weather; but I think in common justice the Road Board ought to finish the track to the Right-hand Branch.

The Hen and Chickens and the Egmont are getting some nice gold. Mr Simpson, of the latter claim, showing some nice gold, one piece weighing seven ounces and a half.

He couldn't live on souls. —A clergyman whose salary had not been paid for several months told the church wardens of his church that he must have his money as his family were suffering for the necessaries of life. ' Money,' exclaimed one of the church wardens noted for his stinginess, ' Money. Do you preach for money ? I thought you preached for the good of souls.' The.minister replied, 'So I do, but I can ; t eat souis. And if I could, it would take a thousand such as yours to make a meal." The following is from the Cambridge News:—"The Government office at Wellington is rightly named , the; largest ■wooden buildingin the world, and it is crammed from top to bottom with civil servants. There are no less than eleven thousand civil servants in this country required to govern five hundred thousand people. One to every forty-five people. And then on the top of these, ninety-five members of the House of Representatives, who do nothing, and five and thirty Legislative Councillors who help them. Then at stated times and seasons there come round, travelling at the expense of the coutftry, these members, thinking it time to scare up their constituents for fear they should think them dead," at every township on their route, practise Parliamentary debates before an audience which does not listen to them, does not want to hear them, does not care a dump if it never sees them again, and has not the faintest idea why it elected them. All this needs changing, and unless the alteration is soon made, New Zealand will go to the wall.

Road to Mahakipawa.

TO THE EDITOB. Sir, —Through the medium of your valuable columns I beg. to suggest to the Chairmen of the Pelorus Koad Board and Havelock Town Board, the advisability of immediately calling a public meeting to bring under the notice of the Public Works and Mines Departments the necessity of making a dray road to Mahakipawa. Parliament will shortly meet, and our member no doubt will be honouring his constituents with his pre-sessional address, and we (the people) most directly interested in forwarding this necessary work, should by all the means in. our power show a feasible way by which this connecting link with Mahakipawa may be accomplished. The time has gone by when we must expect the Government to do everything for us; let us earnestly show our willingness to assist as far as lays in our power, and I am confident we shall receive substantial aid by way of Government grant. The Pelorus Boad Board has unexpectedly found itself a most important body through the development of the goldfields. Miners and settlers alike look to that body to agitate, and ever keep in view and assist as far as their means will afford in carrying out such a work as the one lam now drawing attention to. It is 1 useless one and aU acknowledging the necessity of this important connecting link unless steps are at once taken to carry it out.—l am, ; &c, . Progress.