MINING.

Southland Times, Volume 2, Issue 73, 17 July 1863, Page 2

MINING.

On the first discovery of gold in the Lake District it was a very commonly received opinion that the miners would have to seek other quarters during the winter months. It is a gratifying circumstance to have it fairly established that such is not the case. In spite of wet and cold and a hundred hardships of which town's folk have but a very , faint idea, the diggers contrive to maintain their ground, and c 'en to interest themselves largely in the matter of self-government. "Without the slightest regard to public ojinitn, the Otago authorities some time since took it into their wise heads to r( move the Governmenfbuildings from Queenstown, which isa large and flourishing place, to Frankton, one of very secondary importance, and by no means so well situated as the former. The inhabitants of Queenstown, and, indeed, those of the district generally, did not feel disposed to sit down quietly under their grievances, and accordingly, atter the manner of Englishmen, they «' agitated." Large meetings were held, and strong resolutions, condemnatory of the course adopted by the Government, were passed, and finally, in order that nothing might be left undone which would tend to a satisfactory settlement of the question, a deputation was despatched to Dunedin to wait upon his Honor the Superintendent, and place the case before him, praying that it might receive further consideration. Subsequently, Mr Vincent. Pyke visited the locality, and, in consequence of what he then saw and heard, ordered that the head- quarters bhoald be re-

tdOYed back , again '..to- dueenstowrij Whj6h was accordingly' done. The afiaTr is not permanently settled up to the present time, but there will piobably be a court-house, &c"., at both places. Great credit is due to the Wakitip Mail for the manner in which the subject has been .handled in its columns. Apropos of the Mail, perhaps there can be no stronger proof of the vitality of the Lake district, than the fact that it can maintain a newspaper which puts in so creditable an appearance. In mining matters there is nothing of any very great importance to report, if we except the recent flow of population to the head of Lake Wakatip. Our correspondent informs us that a population of some hundreds is already on the ground, tnd each day the number is increasing. The gold is, as a rule, very coarse, and one sample which was shown to him (about 34 oz.) contained Beveral pieces considerably more than an ounce each. Whilst it is gratifying to be able to give a mining report of the Lake district which is, as a whole, highly encouraging, it is, on the other hand, deeply to be regretted that much loss of time and money has been occasioned by heavy floods in the Shotover. There have been several of these dv - ing the past month, and the damage done will probably amount to some thousands of pounds. No labor or skill on the part of the digger can furnish a safeguad against these sudden risings in such rivers as the Shotover ; one hour's rain will sometimes cause the destruction of the work of weeks, and the unfortunate claimholder has no choice but to begin de novo. We reprint below a paragraph from the Wakatip Mail, containing an account of the last flood, which appears to have been worse than any which has preced d it : — " It is again our painful duty to record one of those disastrous floods against which the miners have had to contend so frequently of late, though in point of magnitude, and in the extent of damage done, this latest freak of the weather excels anything that has hitherto occurred. The oldest residents concur in stating that such a humid season has never yet been known in this district, and that in ordinary times all communication with the outer world is generally cut off long before the winter is so far advanced, by snow and j ice, which lowers these golden-bedded J mountain streams on which so much capita] and labor have been expended, to a minimum. " From the noon of last Saturday, .the rain has been pouring down, almost without intermission, till Thursday evening, though for the first two days but little apprehension was felt of a flood, as the superabundant moisture appeared to be .deposited in the more elevated parts of the district in the form of snow. On Tuesday, however, the temperature sensibly increased, and the snow becoming melted on the ranges, converted mere rills into rushing torrents, and every gorge and gully into a watercourse, all tending to the pomt — the scene of so many hopes and fears, of sturdy labor and bold enterprise — he Shotover River. To describe the scene would be impossible — scarcely can it be imagined. Issuing from narrow gorges, the angry flood burst with the force of a cataract upon the low-lyin<jr beaches, bearing everything before it, and driving the miners to seek for safety in the upper terraces and mountains, where they were forced to endure the pitiless torrents of rain, and see the fruits of months of hard labor torn away and destroyed before their eves. " AtMaori Point the river rose rapidly, and on Thursday morning attained its maximum, whic h was between 25 and 20 feet above its former level. About 1 1 o'clock on Wednesday night, the river rose sufficiently to swamp the lowest tents and huts, and men might have been seen rushing in all directions with lights, assisting one another in res cuing what was possible of their provisions, miningimplements,&c. The.time ! allowed them was short — the merciless pursuer was close upon their trail, and forced them to abandon their efforts to save their property, in order to preserve life itself. The tents and stores on the higher levels were crowded with men, anxious to obtain some kind of shelter from the furious storm, which raged continuously till the next day, the deluge of rain being accompanied by vivid flashes of lightning and deafening peals of thunder, forming with the roar of the torrent and the ceaseless patter of rain, a chorus of sounds trury diabolical. By the time that morning dawned, a- melancholy, though withal grand sight was presented — everything was submerged, and only here and there could an occasional glimpse be obtained of the ridge of a hut, standing above the water. Of the largest and most substantial races and mining works not a trace of course was to be seen — they were swamped eti masse, and the water was some feet above them, At Stapleton's Beach the flood has made a complete sweep — huts, provisions, &c, being entirely washad away. Wilson's Beach has suffered comparatively little ; but every one of the numerous workings on the Shotover will feel the effects of this fearful visitation more or less, and long remember this second Black Thursday of tbe colonial calender. From Stony Creek and Skipper's we have at yet received no accounts, but there is every reason to believe that the, destruction there has been equal to that .above r ecorded on the other workings of the Sh otover. At Arthur's Point the flood rose from 20 to 40 feet, and deluged everything; and even the Kawaru was unable to carry off the water poured into it— of \yhich some idea. may. be formed when we state that at^the Falls which have a clear descent of about 2'o ■feet, the river was so choked with the

that : iewas ; <bsblutely for! - v bsck into the Lake, raising; that laii volume of- water^perpendicular! y. soM „ "three or : four feet above -its former levl > and floating^ of~timber and*boatsdra|| ; up on th^bank. 11 /* The Arrow has sX been floaded and'^seVerJ deaths f»|«: drowning; are reported. •-• il Ihere have been some changes ▼||§ recently amongst the . governmJK.. officials in the .Lake district. Ql|'Queenstown people have to regret t||L removal of Mr Warden Wood, who IK. for months discharged his by no ™fjjjk light duties in a .manner most credit* lv .to°himself. It is perfectly true that P Wood has given considerable offence g a section of the mining population M some of his decisions in reference ||, river claims, but it^ is equally cert l|| that any ill feeling that "may hag arisen must be laid to the door g mining laws concocted in a manneri! absurd that one might almost fai lM that the legislators had been a parcel||| schoolboys. Mr Beetham steps vM Mr Wool's shoes, and the latter geng man will be stationed at. the Nokdn§| Mr Justin Aylmer, who was some tii|| since the gold receiver at the Waipj^ township, has been offered (so it is || mored) the wardenship at the Arr||| and his previous experience and g great popularity will ensure him:^ ; dial reception in his new sphere q|g v^ tion. Complaints have reached usT^| several quarters , of the inadeqffl | amount of police protection througlji £ the Lake district, and we beli6ye|t| q the Otago Oovernnoent contempji i making some considerable additionil ? the present force. We learn frofng S Wakatip Mail, that a very considera| ■ reduction has been made in the prl of the chief necessaries of life— -bri and beef — the former is now selling , Queenstown at 2s. the fonr pound 1(1 : and the latter at Is. per pound, pri||j: which we fancy leave a very fair mann ' : of profit for the butcher and bakg ;: Stocks of flour on the diggings arul ported as full, which will account|| the large reduction in the price |p bread. M , Tht amount of gold exported fM ■ t Invercargill between the 19th JuneaS ( '' 16th July, has been 5828 ozs. 1 dm ., 12 grs., for which duty has been pp, : to the amount of nearly £729. Si|| :.-, the 19th June, we have had no forig escort from the diggings, but the ba& have been large purchasers from priv|| , hands. $ l