KIMBERLEY GOLDFIELDS.

Te Aroha News, Volume III, Issue 155, 22 May 1886, Page 5

KIMBERLEY GOLDFIELDS.

Latest Official Information. The following; official information from the Government Resident at Derby (Dr Lovegro\ c) and the officex* in charge of the police force at that port (Sergt. Troy) has been furnished to the Perth Enquirer by the lion, the Colonial Secretary of Western Australia :—

The Resident's Report. " I have the honor to report, for the informa tion of his Excellence the Governor, that several parties from the Ord Gold Gelds have arrived in Derby during the last two or three days, The first to arrive were four men of Carlisle's party, consisting of the leader and Messrs Harrold, Candish, and Edmonds, who bring with them 56 ounces of gold. The remainder of this party, ivhich was the one that got the survey horses from Cambridge Gulf last October, are on the other side of the Fitzroy, as yet unable to cross, as the river is running bank high. " A man named Keelan, from Port Darwin, piloted Carlisle and his men down from the fields, as there were no bushmen among them. He brings 240z., and he has left his mate at w ork on what promised to be a very rich gully. "Another man who left here some four or five months back— l. Edgar — returned on Sunday, the 28th, bringing with him 19oz. of his own. He and his conipanion, a man from Port Danvin, are said to bring Sooz. " M'Dermott and party, whose departure was repoitcd to you in my predecessor's letter of 19th September, 1885, have been on the other side of the Fitzroy for nearly three weeks, and are daily expected in. They are reported to have brought back from Soz to lOoz. "The last reports from Hall and Slattery's party were not very good. On returning to the spot where they found the first gold they were unable to discover any more. " Moore and Morrison, who left here last April, are said to be doing exceedingly well. Reports as to their takings vary greatly, some saying 900z., some lotoz., but no one knoA\ s exactly w hat they have got. " The gold is scattered over a large extent of country— almost every party has been working in a separate gully. The richest finds have been made on what the diggers have named 'The Black Elvira,' and the gullies round it. The creek is said to be about 39 miles south-east of Mount Barrett. " When these men left there were about 40 or 50 men on the diggings, and men from Port Darwin and Queensland were arriving every day. In view of this rush overland, on which we have no check, I would venture to suggest that as there now appears no doubt as to the permanence of the fields, a warden should be appointed as soon as possible."

The Police Sergeant's Report. "I beg to report, for the information of the Superintendent of Police, that about twenty-two men have arrived in Derby from the gold diggings since the 26th of last month. All sorts of wild reports are being spread as to the quantity of -gold discovered by these men ; but, so far as I ha* fc been able to ascertain, they have brought in about 150oz. " Charles Carlisle, who was supplied by the Government "with a number of survey horses at Cambridge Gulf, is in. His party divided into two: one party got about 30oz. of gold, and the other party but one ounce. "The most reliable amongst the diggers informs me that there is a large extent of auriferous country, but that the gold is not in payable quantities ia the localities he visited. "It ia said that water is scarce and the natives hostile. All agree that the most practicable road is from Derby, and not from Cambridge Gulf. "The residents here arc of opinion that the news brought in by the diggers is good enough to cause a large rush to the field. Should this occur, the police force at present in the district would not be adequate to the increased duties they -would have to perform; more men and horses would be necessary. "I am infoimcd that there are at present about 150 men either on the field or en route to it from Queensland and the Northern Territory."

The Derby Route. We extract the following particulars of the Port Derby route to the diggings from the Western Mail of April 24 :— Mr A. E. Malet, who was commissioned to make an expedition from Derby to the goldfield with a view to laying out a road has sent in his roport to the Government. He states that he left Derby on January 1, in company with Mr E. M'Ewan, and was provided with four horses and rations for six weeks. There having been rain just before he started he found the roads in a very bad condition. In the first week, however, he got to Mount Wynne, about 100 miles from Derby. From here to Mount Abbott. by keeping along the edge of the pindan and river flats, they got good travelling. After getting abreast of Mount Abbott he kept away from the river to a small hill with a good pool of water about seven miles from Mount Abbott, and thence easterly over open country with occasional billabongs until ho struck the Forrest branch of the Fitzroy River about the middle of Alexander Island. Several of the billabocgs had in them water, which in one or two places appeared to be permanent. He found the plains in many places very swampy after the rains, but otherwise the travelling was good. Here he saw natives, but they appeared to be friendly. He camped that night (Jan. 8) in full view of Leopold Ranges, through which the Margaret was seen to run m gorges which were quite as practicable as a road. The next day he started south-east, again making for the point where the Leopold Ranges appeared to break off suddenly, and by nivhtfall reached two springs close under tho south Bide of the Range, where he found a tree marked F 139. This was the only mark of Mr Forrest that he came across. From this point he travelled eastward for some fifteen miles over very stony country close under the main range. The country further south for some distance appeared broken and stony, and although it could

easily ba crossed with shod horses, would ho a' moat impracticable for a bullock teanit At last he struck a creek running north-east, and by following it down he got on to the Margaret river, just at tho point whero it entered the Leopold Ranges. Ho was unprovided with any maps of tho country east of this, except a copy of Mr Forrest's maps, which he found to be very vague. Mr. Johnson's maps of his survey of 1884 were not procurable in Derby wli9xi he left, and on his journey he was obliged to lose valuable timo in making out his position, when ho might have saved it had ho possessed a reliable chart. After starting tho Margaret, east of the Leopold Ranges, he kept away south and s uth-oast until he struck tho Mary River. Ho followed this river up south and southeasterly for somo fifteen miles, getting very good travelling. About sixteen miles or so from the Leopold ranges the river turns eastward, there being a stony hill of good size just at the head or tho south side of the river. For some eight or ten miles from this hill ho found good and easy travelling until low stony hills were reached, which crossed the river and appeared to extend away to tho southward for somo distance. In order to avoid theso it would bo necessary for a team to cross tho river and keep away ' to the north-east so as to get on to the Nicholson j Plains lying about Moxmt Barrett. ! He continued to skirt tho river, and for two days travelled through rough stony country amongst low hills cut up by a network of small gullies, in which veins and reefs of white and grey quartz were very numerous. Not being a practical gold-miner, he was unable to say if gold was there, but tho country appeared to him to answer the description of what ho was told was gold-bearing cotmtry. After travelling through the country for two days ho came to some hills, the highest of which he climbed. From this point of vantago ho made out Mount Barrett some 30 or 50 miles to the northward. "When on his way to Mount Barrett he came upon some tracks of shod horses that appeared to have beon mado a few days before. Ho decided to follow them, and did so, and after travelling for some days, lost them a' together, lie then found his rations running low, and turned back when about 30 miles south by east of Mount Barrett. After many difllculties and hardships, Mr Mulct and Mr M'Ewan reached Derby on March 8, having been away for two months and eight days. Mr Malct says, in conclusion, that he is sorry to say tho expedition failed in its chief object— that of tinding out if payable go d was being got at Mount Barrett.