THE BEACH DIGGINGS.

West Coast Times, Issue 72, 18 November 1865, Page 2

THE BEACH DIGGINGS.

(prom our special correspondent.) No. 1.

Tho road to tho Groy nlone tho poa boaoh is so woll beaten, and has occn so often traversed by many of the business men of Hokitika and by so many miners, that on first thought it seems almost unnecessary to enter into a detailed account of tho points df interest; to bo met with in travorsing it— not that it abounds with thorn ; on tlio contrary thoro is a very great clcgrco of indnbtdny to bd found in that part of tho coast lino., , , Itravorsod on Wednesday nothing but sandy beach, bounded on tho ono side by low thick scrub, which at the first glanco scorns imponotrablo, . and 'duly broken in thoso placos whoro creeks or rivers burst

forth from the forest to mingle their waters with thoso of tho ocean. Still, as a great number of thoso who havo traversed tho road wore urged to do so by tho pressure of business, and doubtless hurried over it without taking particular notico of any tlnng savo the distance that lay botweon them and thoir destination, a few remarks upon what there really is to bo seen, and on tho progress made by our beach minors, may not bo unacceptable to tho general pxiblic. Travelling on foot along tho beach is not pleasant uudcr any circumstances. I havo tried it in solitudo, and then it was unbearable, the dull everlasting roar of tho surf, varied only by tho scream of tho seagull, giving rise to anythingbut acheerlul train of thought, and, causing the first view of a human habitation to bo aposi. two relief. To-day, howover, thero was no lack of company, tho beach boing lined with podestrians, heavily ' laden with a digger's paraphernalia, nearly all of whom • had their faces turned Grey-wards. Afew howovor would occasionally como galloping past iv tho samo direction, evidently in hasto to roach thoso rivers so difficult to dtt'oss ovon at low water, at tho most favorable time of tide. . After leaving Hokitika and passing the Two-Milo Creek (tlio first mot with) a certain peculiarity in tho appearance of tho bush was tho first thing that caught my attontion. • Tho forest, mstoad of presenting an irregularity of outline, caused by the difference in tho height of the trees, in many places had a smooth unbroken appearance, totally at variance with ono's ideas of forest scenery. This could bo caused only by a wonderful uniformity in the length of the timber, from the top of which spreads that donso mass of foliage, and which loads to the idea that it might bo almost possible to walk with ease on so level and inviting a surface. Botween the Two and Three-mile Creeks a considerable amount of mining hns been carried on, tho beach above high water mark being pretty woll torn up tho whole distance. At tho latter.a few. parties aro still at work. The sinking is about six ft. deep, the wash-dirt consisting of black sand lying on a fine drift, winch forms a false bottom. Quicksilver and copper plates aro in groat request to ' extract the gold, winch is ronmrkably fine. Some use sluice boxes lined with plush, and a short length of Venetian ripples at tho hoad; but in spite of tho assertion that it answers tho purpose I much doubt its efficacy, to. save the lighter flakes of gold. Ido n6fc think tho returns hero arq yoiy brilliant, %5 best I . heard of being £1 per day por man. The Threelr ilo crook, a small insignificant stream, can bo easily crossed on friot by thoso who havo no objection to wet feet ; there is, however, a ferry for tho convenience of travellers, and a solitary store, which I should imagine did anything but aroaring trade, it having a most dilapidated look, only equalled by the appearance of the telegraph, which here offers a strong proof of the caro our thoughtful Government shows for works of public utility. Many I believe imagine that this most 1 necessary adjunct to a civilised community is in a forward Btato of completion, it having been commenced somo four months ago", and I am sorry that I have to undeceivo thorn, thore boing only abqut four miles of it finished, and thegroatost portion of that is levelled with tho ground, the damage mado by tho storm of somo weeks past never having boon repaired. Scores of yards of tho wire lio corroding on tho ground, it boing apparently no ono's business to take tho most ordinaiy precautions for its preservation. Fivo 'miles from, town, and the Arahura Eiver is reached. This is an oxtonsivo stream, and, like every other river on tho coast, is subject to sudden and violent flooding, at which period it.is unfordablo ; but that difficulty is now obviated, there boing plenty of boats plying to convoy travellers across. Tho ordinary charge is 6d, but when the river is swollen by a freshet, double fare is demanded as compensation for tho extra trouble and risk. Horo thero 1 are three public-houses and a store, whero refreshments can bo obtained at moderate rates. Tho establishment wherein I obtained my noonday meal was presided over by a bustling landlady, goodtonvpored and communicative, who confessed to mor6 years of colonial life than tho 'gonef ality. of • ladles' • care • about acknowledging. She showed herself, however, -perfectly conversant with the wants of the hungry souls who choso to patronisb her establishment, serving us a good substantial meal, which she seasoned with somo of her past experiences in Victoria and olsowhoro. Thoro is no mistaking tho thorough colonial women when you meet them. Hiirdend4. by rough usage, they at first sight appear obtrusive, which, however, is more than mado up by heartiness, of, demeanor, sterling hospitality, and a desire to oblige. The Arabura river makes a very considerable break' in the coast hno, and. foir some distanco boforo it joins 'the' sea, .runs through a tract of low marshy; country. On tho Grey sido {horo t i^ (i lagoon which -rims for 1 noarly a mile, when it mprges into a pwamp thatpxtondstotho Waimoa, separating tho ; line' o£ bdaoh from the'high terrace which, at a greater or loss ■ distance from }t, runs all the way from Hokitika. , Just abreast .of , the place whero the dbovp 'change bocurd there is a cluster of stores; called thd EighKnile Township, although I do not consider they aro nioro than at.tiie very^outsido sovon miles. ' And ljero it is that tho workings of the now, or Auckland, rush commences. . Tho workings are situated botweon the top of <;he sea poach and tho swamp, the slip of ground botweon being narrow, in somo places not, ;iuucji more than, a plaim wido— ;in others, -two— rrirhning, of courso, paratlol to tho, "coast Krio,^ and extending to within ' a 1 very short 'distance of the Waimoa. • ' Tho sinking varies in depth, being shallow oloso' to tho edge of tho swamp, gradually deoponing towards tho beacli, thefalso bottom dippinginthatdirection at an angle of nbout 20 dogroos. Tho 'deepest paddock I looked down was about sixteen feet, and tho shallowest about sovon', but towards tho boaoh it was much deeper and becomes very wot. No hole has succeeded in striking tho bottom, a 'perfect soa of water boiug. mot with. This is not to bo wondered at, thoro boing water so cl6so on both sides. Tho pronpectorsi , fiingham and party's, 1 claim is situated about a quarter of a milo bcj'ond tho tomr, and like tho rest is boing pnddocked. I found thorn most communicativo, shdmng no hesitation in making known thoir* returns ; they informod mo that during a former lournoy to tho Tovomakau rush, they had tried this .place rind 'found 1 a small prospect, which not satisfying them they, pushed on td 1 !,. • | ''•

thoir destination, on arriving at which they woro so much struck with the similarity existing in tho outward appearance of the two places, and hearing of tho oxcecding richness of tho Toremakau rush, that thoy all at onco despatched two of thoir party back to give it a further trial, and tho result was taht tho existence of the present lead was mado known. Thoir claim is not an ox6ocdingly rich one , it will pay, howovei', good .wagos ; tho last paddock they . stripped, in,' size 6x6, yielding 5 oz. The lead of gold* is supposed to bo narrow", 'but to .form' an opinion, on this subject now would b? pronujtuve, as little work liaving'yet been clono; and although a groat many paddocks aro sunk, nearly ovory claim on- tho fancied lino having been tested, hardly any of tho dirt has boon washdd, tho' miners possessing no appliances for extracting tho gold, its excessive fineness rendering ordinary methods perfectly useless, Nothing but quicksilver and metal piatos will savo it. Whilst walking down tho load I saw many a familiar face, and < of course mado every onquiry concerning tho valuo of this new discovery, and I must say all seemed satisfied with it and ( sanguine that a largo quantity of gold j would bo taken out. Touching tho direct f returns from thoir claims, mon, howovor, were somewhat reticent, som6 confessing to LlO and Lls por week, while ono part/ admitted thoy could wash occasionally 5 dwts to tho di«h; and II 11I 1 savf another wash' four pennyweights to • tho same amount of wash dirt; and on examining a small portion of black sand thoy handed mo on tho point of a shovel, gold could be plainly scon distributod through it. Nearly every claim, howovor, is moro or less payable, but it must bo borno in mind that tho lend is only ono claim wido; inno instance did I hear gold- having been struck in payable quantities outside of it, The waslidirt consists of black and grey sand, and a cementy drift deeply stained by oxide of iron. It varies in thickness say from four inches in some claims to a foot, and fifteen in other. My opinion of this placo is, that a rioh lead of fmo gold has-been Struck, which has already beon traced for nearly two miles, but 1 am inclined to ■ believe that the very best portion of it is in hand, and that towards tho Arahura it will bo found to run out. Perhaps instead of a lead it would bo mora correct to call it a long patch, between the rivers, which is considerably ovor rushed. I would, therefore, caution diggers at a distance from- leaving anything they may have in hand to come, unless they aro propared to go ahead and prospect the beach for themselves. On my return from tho Grey I shall report moro fully on this rush, as it will then be nmch further developed, and in. my next letter I shall touch upon several matters I am obliged to abstain from commenting on in this.