THE GREY.

West Coast Times, Issue 166, 31 March 1866, Page 3

THE GREY.

[fBOM OUR OWN COriflESPOTtoßliT.] March 29. The Grey is unprecedently dull just now. What with the, bareness of the river (one vessel, the Goldneeker, and two steamers being all the shipping that is here) and the exodus of miners down south, the streets and wharves of this town are almost deserted. It is not astonishlng therefore that the spirits of the traders ami res!defi(ft', are p'foportionatefy flat. Property, which a few weekd afto was eagerly s tight after is now a dreg, there heing scarcely anyone, who in the face of the present depression, cares to invest money nntil he can see his way very clear. Still the cause of this prevailing uneasiness is more imaginary than real, for th • diggers, as a class, are doing very well —in fact are earning wa^es higher than the average returns on any other goldfield on the West Coast. But the digger cannnt resist the temptations held out by new rushes, and on the hare chance of making a " pile " at once, they desert gdnd payable claims anil scamper off to any place which for th j moment holds out particular attractions. Just now Bruce Bay is all the talk, and the" most ludicrous exa'gKerations are afloat here concerning the discoveries at that place. It was currently rumored, and complacently credited, tlie oflfer day that among the other wonders of the Bruce Hay diggings, a nuirget weighing 'J4lb« (poundf?) had been found ! And it is on the strength of such yarns as these that men, earning a comfortable living, rush off on a long and difficult journey, involving great hardships and loss. To set again-t the news from the South I have to report that the rush to the Little Grey. (Ma-whera-itl) has turned out much more important in its tesults than was anticipated. A large, and from experience ho far, a rich goldfield has been discovered, embracing, six miles on the one and three miles on the other side of the river. The sinking is from two to ten feet, the washdirt averaging from four to six feet in thickness, and the smallest prospect obtained is 2 dwts. to the dish. I saw a miner 'from that district yesterday who had come down for provisions for his party, and be told me that a great many men were flocking to the scene from the adjacent diggings. The beach claims on the North and South Beaches still continue to produce large quantities of gold. Some of the earlier opened " pile claims" are on the eve of being worked out, but others almost as rich are being opened in the vicinity. Judging from my own observations I should say that the beach diggings will for a long time to come support a much larger population than they now enjoy The great Greenstone case was heard at the Police Court the other day and resulted in the committal of Reynolds for trial, bail being however taken. The Maori claimant put a most extravagant value on the stone, viz,— £3ooo, and I am assured by one learned in such matters that the quality of the stone is much inferior to that of which the natives manufacture their favorite ornaments. Talking about Maories, I fancy the advent of the white population on 'the West coast has very much demoralised the wretched remnants of the aboriginal race on this parts of the coast. The Maories here, both male and female have adopted very freely the worst vices of the lowest Europeans. It is a wretched spectacle to see the women dressed in chrlnoiine and flashy garments, reeling about all day in a state of semi intoxication with drunken diggers. The rest may be conceived. The men are pome of them very decent intelligent fellows, but there are others who spend their whole time plaving.hilliards and drinking, just like their dispipated white brethren. It is vastly amusing to press into some of the lower drinking shops and see a lot of Maoris playing pool, another Maori acting as marker They play tolerably well, and make quite as much ado about a fluke as the swell players at the Albion. S >me of the men have got very comfortable wea-rher-hoarded. houses, hut they appear to have very indifferent domestic habits. The registration of voters has, I am afrnid, not been sufficiently attended to in tliis district, although Reveral persons interested themselves so far as to go round with forms, and procure the signatures of such as cared to attend to matters political. The alleged theft of gold^y a gold smelter has assumed a fresh phase, and one that I hear puzzles those learned in metallurgy not a little. On Monday morning a digger brought some gold to be retorted— or smelted, I forget which— and it was necessary to use the same apparatus that was employed in the other case. But on applying it ti the fire, it was evident something was wrong with the tube which conducts the mercurial vapour into the condensing reservoir. On examination, it was found to be choked up with a deposit of gold, which, on being poked out, weighed several ounces. The explanation volunteered by the operator was, that the amalgam had- been placed on too hot a fire, and* that the mercury, in rushing up the tube, had carried the gold with it, and and deposited it there. I believe the inspector of police was sent for to witness the novel accident.

March 29.

The private smeltera itiH Mt ltatainuch' to do so hi, as the Union Bank mH dertrly completed a Inrge smelting furnace, aiitf the Bank of New Zealand is about following suit. Each of these institutions announce that no charge will be made for retorting or smelting. I enclose fuller details regarding the Little drey diggings, as published in an exir'a iv^ued by the Grey River Argus this GMlUifr The. new? has created great excitement, &M hundreds of men are preparing to' start Off. ■