OTAGO.

Southland Times, Volume III, Issue 26, 6 January 1864, Page 6 (Supplement)

O T A G O.

j {skok ope ows cokuespojs'dext.) Dunedin, 3 1st Dec. The gold escort reached Dunedin on Tuesday evening with the fortnightly returns. As might have been expected, there was a very considerable deficiency upon the late totals. Christmas, with the festivities always accompanying it, had more seriously engaged the attention of the diggers than delving for the precious ore. The official return showed a total of 15,955 ozs. 15 dwts., made up as follows : — Queenstovn 3992 1 5 Arrow- River 1711 ; 0 I Dunstan 5190 0 Mount Benger 233 O Mount. Ida 3504 0 Tuapeka 1/JO9 0 Waitahuna 41(3 0 Total 15,955 15 To which may be added the weekly return from West Taieri amounting to 60S ounces. An inquest was held this day week upon the bodies of the two unfortunate men who perished so miserably nt Campbell's Gully, Each case was heard separately, and the inquisition lasted several hours. It would be too long to publish in the columns of your pnp«r, but the following is an epitome of the melanrholy affair. •' Upon the morning of the day in question, four men (mates), named W. Guillan, R. Matheson, G. Hyde, and J. Love, having a pack horse with them, left the lower end of Campbell's Gully f)r the Dunstau, arriving at the crossing at Potter's Gully, ahout noon, and leaving some two hours afterwards. During t c whole of that time, and for some two hours afterwards, when they had reached the top of the range, the weather was fair for their journey, but shortly afterwards the sky became overcast, and a storm came on. What with the fog, wind, falling snow, and drift, they soon lost sight of the track, and the snow poles into the bargain; but they still kept on. Mathfeson going a-head leading the horse, Guilian following behind leading the others as near as possible in its footsteps ; after proceeding some short distance, Hyde called out -for assistance, his hat had blown away and he had fallen down in the snow. GuilJan then took a large handkerchief from round his own neck, and bound it on tbe head of Hyde, and raising him up they again went forward. During the delay they missed the man with the hoise. Presently Hyde fell again, he was lifted up once more but could not be carried far. He was then set down near a low rock for the benefit of what shelter it would afford— the intention of tbe mates being to proceed up the hill and find a place of shelter, returning for him when they had found one. Before leaving him they endeavored to build a wall of. snow round him for a break-wind, but could not do so. They then left, and this was the last seen of poor IJyde alive- — he was found dead about a week afterwards. Guillan and Love then went up the hill and took shelter under the lee of a rock, Love getting weak and requiring assistance before reaching it about midnight. Love fell to the ground (the storm had increased in fury) he was raised up and supported in the arms of Guillan; but fell again. He was raised a .second time, but in consequence of weakness, and his being a heavy man, Guillan could not hold him, he then fell a third time' and never rose afterwards ; when daylight broke his companion found him^ dead. As soon as it became sufficiently light to travel, Guillan resumed his journey, being favored by a lull- in the storm. In the course of ten or fifteen minutes he made, a store which is on the summit of the hill, where he obtained a glass of port wine, the inmates taking off his clothes and breaking the ice off them. They then assisted him down to., the springs, distant about. four miles, when they discovered Matheson with the'.hbrse and obtained the assistance he required. In justice to the people afc the store, we must state that they,- could not render Guilhin more

assistance than they did. They had not been, able to cook any food for four days. Their place wa3 floorl«l with uater, and was a very small' building, besides, had Guillan stopped there he must have died for the want of the proper" assistance his exhausted condition required." The bodies were subsequently brought into the Manuherikia, the verdict of the. jury in both cases was — death from exposure, A very large number of diggers have arrived in Dunedin — many to spend their Christmas and New Year's holi- | days, and not n. few with the iuteution , of returning back to Victoria. We j have one great want at the present juncture of affairs, and that is a new and payable goldfield. The diggers do not deny the existence of abundance of gold and of its general distribution throughout the Province, but they say it requires more means than hundreds of them possess to prospect it. It has happened on previous occasions, when the old fields were fully taken up and no more ground was available, and when means and patience were exhausted, that new fields were discovered ; as, for instance, in the case of the Dunstan and Shotover, which set all things to rights again. Perhaps such may be our luck once more ; indeed, we have much need of it, for there are many hundreds of men who are in bad case. While the summer holds no severe hardships will be experienced, because there is abundance of employment for strong meu on the roads and public works; but should no important discoveries be made before winter turns its inhospitable front towards us, 11. ere will, I fear, follow a great amount of distress and destitution. However, sufficient for the day is the evil thereof. To-morrow, beiug New Year's Day, we do nothing whatever in the way of business. Should any one be wanted ro»inorrow resident within a ten miles radius of Dunedin, he will h ;ve to be sought out from the multitude assembled on the recreation ground, where our Caledonian sports will be in full force. It is holiday everywhere to-morrow, even for the poor scribes of the press, as no newspaper will issue on Saturday. In order to give ..you a faint idea how we can keep holiday, I may mention to you that on Saturday last, being Boxing Day, no less than four thousand people assembled on the recreation ground, to witness, Or join in the Old Knijlish sports inaugurated by Mr Shadracli Jones. The admission money to the open ground was one shilling, and to the Grand Stand, two shillings and sixpence. Seven hundred, .consisting of the elite of Dunedin, took their s j ats during the afternoon. Mr Jones' receipts netted £700 at his monger bar. This does- not look like bad times, when tlie people of a limited community can afford to spend about eleven hundred pounds to witness a score or two of shoeless boys run races for shillings, and a few amateurs leap the high leap, and do the running jump, &c, at half-crown entries. On the evening of the same day, the Christmas sports were continued at Vauxbail, and 1 believe over eight hundred persons visited the ground. But all, as yet, is as nothing in comparison to what tomorrow is to bring forth. It is expected that at least ten thousand people j will be at the Caledonian Gathering. The stewards and directors confident of this number, have made their preparations in accordance. Great is our wrath at the manner in j which the members of the Town Board are burtl.eoing us with heavy taxes. We are to be called on, on the first day of the new year to pay one shilling and sixpence in the poun>> for local rates. This itself is a fearfully heavy tax, but it is made upon assessments so Wui\~ . strously high, that I am inclined to think there will be a public cry raised, and the people will eventually tell the Town Board to do their worst, and refuse point blank to pay the rate. Shops are, many of the,rn, assessed at L 250 per annum, which at the present time do not let fur anything like the rental, and the landlords of which will .probably, in two or three months be seeking tenants for them at L6O or LBO per annum. Small cottages of two and three rooms have been rated at from £40 to £60 and £t>o, annual value, wiien they would letch little more if the fee simple of them were sold. If the community can afford to be assessed at such r«tes, then it is much richer than most of us take it to be. The All-England Eleven are expected to be in our midst in about three wet'ks from this time. It is not iikeiy they will be able to visit Inverca-rgill, and the consequence i that you will have to come this way if you wish to behold such an eleven as will not likely be witnessed again in New Zealand dv ing our time. We are really practising very hard, and have several first-class players amongst us. Yesterday a match was played between the Tokomairiro eleven and eleven of the Dunedin Club. Tbe challenge had emanated from -Tokomairiro, and we of course accepted it, and here is the result :— Tokomairiro, Ist innings 19 Dunedin, do 128 Tokomairiro, 2nd do 31 The Dunedin winning in the first innings with 78 notches to spare. The two clubs afterwards met at a splendid dinner at the Provincial and passed a very jolly night. Trade stagnant, and no business looked for until the first week of the New Year has passed away.