THE COPPER FEVER IN QUEENSLAND.

Southland Times, Issue 1642, 1 October 1872, Page 5

THE COPPER FEVER IN QUEENSLAND.

_ m -< The copper fever (says the Gympie Times) continues to rage with unabated violence in local mining circles, and even gold, the •* king of metals," has to hide his diminished head for a short time. Our lists of mineral selections are quite sufficient proof of the activity of the contagion ; and the fact that " new finds," " specimens," and" selections" of copper are the common and most frequent topics. of conversation on tbe gold-field, need hardly be stated to persons who have been resident here for even a few days only. This kind of thing is not calcu- ! lated, in our opinion, to promote tho progress of the gold-mining industry, I and it is not strange that there is not at present a great deal of activity in the market for gold shares. But it is a fine thing for the district, as it will be the means of rapidly developing the enormous natural wealth of this portion of Wide Bay, so long and so unaccountably neglected. It is also a remarkably fine i state of affairs for the Treasury ; since the 15tb of July the Local Land Agent has received no less a sum than £1,789 as deposits on mineral selections. We are very unwilling indeed to damp the enterprise of those interested, directly or indirectly, in thia pursuit of mining | property, but a timely word on the j probability of overdoing the copper "movement" will do no harm at least. It seems to us that in this hasty scramble for copper-bearing lands, a large number of inexperienced "parties are engaged, and that besides many undoubted prizes, a serious proportion of blanks may turn up. We are informed that selections have been taken it p. upon the strength of '* specimens " having been obtained from the land, the said specimens containing only as much trace of copper as some of the stuff got in several Gympie gold mines — very little indeed. As regards the present effect upon gold-mining, there can be no doubt that industry has been unsettled by the rage for copper.