THE SCANDINAVIAN RUSH.

West Coast Times, Issue 289, 27 August 1866, Page 2

THE SCANDINAVIAN RUSH.

(*EOM Otß SPECtAt BEI'dRTER,) lii my first report lipon the new rush' ill the Waimea district, I called the place " Stafford Hill," from the township of that name oh the Wainiea track. This. was a mistake^ as the prospectdre decided upori naniing It v Scaridindviriri, 1 ' all of them} with one exception, being natives of northern Europe. The designation is oppropriate in another sense ; for J remember..that;the famed rush of '59, to Back Creek 1 , Daisy Hill; in Vietdriaj r^deiWa ' th§ Oariie, and afterwards proved to be some of the richest ground ever opened in that locality. Whether the Waimea rush will yield as well, yet remains to be proved ; but of this there can be little doubt, that, it constitutes the main lead of that distrifJb and that the gold hitherto worked there was merely outlying patches neither par.1 ticularly rich nor extensive, Of course I exclude the Ballarat itill \vorkings, whi^h form part of the Same lead, and; front thg course it takes, and cou.tiniiity of .the" wdrkirigsj. tfcefe is an existing .-certainty that it will be traced miles further, until a junctioti is formed with the lead now in hand at the New River rush. The lead at Ballarat Hill was traced almost unbrokenly to within one mile and a half of Stafford town, and then ran partly across the inter* vening space in shallow ground, which afc present is occupied by sliiicers, whd subceed irt making excellent .Wages when a supply df v available Pretty woman's Guily intersects the run, and there gold has been traced into the terraces, .and tunnelling in consequence is 1 extensively resorted td as a lnfiaud whereby to extract it. The majority of your readers are doubtless aware that Stafford Town, alias " Pe.g leg,!, 5 alias the ',' Halfr way T.ownship,; 1 situated on the Waimef. track \ a c'oi'deroyed Way connects it witn the sea beach and the old Waimea, or Six Mile township It is equi-distant from both — say three miles — and is built upon the nortJi bank of the Waiinea river, which runs past it some twenty feet below, a turbid stream, muddied by the quantity of debris wabhed into it by th«f sluicera who are at work higher up. A few weeks aj?o saw it an insignificant place comprising an hotel and store, the litter by .the redoubtable " Peg-Jeg^' an individual niidus pne of his underetahdingsj from 1 whbm it derived the name, Since then it has xisen rapidly^ and Js daily extending; it boasts an Improvement Committee which has already effected great improvements', and is now urging upon the warden the necessity of surveying tfesh streets, to make room for the influx of business folks, who have already occupied every inch of available space. At present frontages are at a premium, and fetch as high as £100, that sum being, I believe, offered, and refused, for an advantageous " stand M the other day. I am not surprised at this, for the prospects of the rush warrant the belief that many months of, permanent prosperity are before it Stores; hotels; bakerip', drapers' establishments, &c, are" springing Up with mushroom rapidity, and a slaughter .yard has been erected which is in full work from morning to night. The site of the town is swampy in the extreme, but as it is so high above the river the construction of a few ditches is alone needed to effectually drain it. The dis* tance from Hokilika to Stafford Town is between ten and eleven miles, eight miles" of which is along the sea beach until the Carriers' Arms is reached at the old Eight Mile township, and there the cordueroye^ track brjinche 1 ? off through the bush. , A track it is, and nothing more, being pass* able to horses and pedestrians only ; but a wonderful improvement upon its condition a few months ago, when the Six Mile track was a by-word in everyone's mouth as the worst on the West Coast. But the other day and the new track was deemed sufficient, but now matters have materially altered, and on all sides save one it is con* demned as utterly unsuited to the require^ ments of the district, which, from the extent of its mineral resources, as exemplified by late discoveries, takes precedence of every other on the coast, and only requires a little fostering care, by the judicious expenditure of capital, to further develope them to an extent little dreamt of_ By any save the experienced miner who has traversed its recesses, and whose practical knowledge assures him that much gold lies hidden , therein, which will eventually be brought to light. But to effect this, the district must be opened up, and no time should be lost in constructing a good dray track from the beach to the old Waimea township, and a substantial pack track from Stafford Town to Scandinavian Hill. The country may be likened to a, huge fortification, the salient points of which must be carried in detail, and the last place stormed will then form the basis for further operations. From Stafford Town to Scandinavian Hill, the distance is not more than a mile, but such a road to travel — ye Gods ! How the wretched pack-horses manage to scramble through it without breaking- their limbs or necks is a mystery, and they present a most pitiable appearance on arriving with their loads at the Hill, where, by the way there are a number of stores^ of which more anon. Although the dig* gers abd storekeepers grumble furiously " at the abominable track, they admit with their usual good sense that there has not been time to provide a better. Aware* however, of the known procrastination and apathy of the Government in all- matters relating to the real advancement of Westland, but particularly in track- j making, they shake their heads doubtingly, and fear that the Waimea district \ will fare no better than the rest. Comparisons between Nelson and Canterbury — anything but favorable to the latter — were drawn by parties I conversed with who had lately been working in the Nelson portion of the Grey district, and one and all were loud in their praises of that province j for the liberality and enterprise it discovers in track making. One enthusiastic individual lamented that its " goodness . was not rewarded by a greater extent of auriferous country." A few hundred yards above Stafford town the river bank rises considerably, and forms a high perpendicular terrace, in which the Scandinavian lead commences ; for, since the date of my first report, Taylor and party prospected the face at a spot as near as they could judge, in a line between Ballarat and Scandinavian Hill, and there struck the lead, cropping out of the side, on a pipe-clay bottom. The h'i>t dishful of wash dirt yielded Jdwt., and they at once commenced tunnelling, and . afterwards washed as much as ldwt. to the dish, with from a foot to eighteen inches of wash dirt, granite, and sand-, stone gravel. This of course caused a"

rush, and the ground to be staked off close |lp to Scandinavian \ but, .as the" sinking is deep, ahd in some places wet, too holes ,have yet bottomed. Taylor ana party have not proved the width of, the lead, but as the tunnels on either side of them are poor, some are inclined to imagine that it "cannot be above 100 feet, if indeed so much- From the brow of this terrace to Scandinavian r the country gr»du : ally rises, is densely bushed, raid extremely fwajp.py, and a most abominable road to travel. Taylor and party are undoubtedly pn the main lead} whioh I anticipate will be traced to the '' hill" in a fortnight or three weeks. But it mußt not be supposed that this lend constitutes the only workings on the large broken flat which bounds the river, for at the back of the town a party of men are working shallow ground, and can make high wages when water is plentiful for sluicing ; and encduraged by this fact, the miners have scattered themselves through the bush, and are thoroughly testing the ground for "patches." t heard that several small prospects had been obtained, but as" the ground is difficult to sink through, work progressed somewhat slowly. ■ , j On Teaching Scandinavian Hill, I observed a marked change had taken place in its appearance since the date of my first visit, so much of the timber having been cleared away for mining purposes and to make room for tents, stores^ &c. On the east siSe of the hill} which is proved to be non-auriferous, as the reef rises high and barren to within a few feet of ihe surface, a township is in the course of formation, knd already contains several good sifced Stores. It is struggling manfully to raise its head to a level with that of Stafford Town, and demands that the site shall be»suiveyed, and a street properly laid put. I nave no doubt that the warden will find such a course absolutely necessary to prevent interminable disputes amongst the occupiers of stands, who are already quarrelling about their holdings. Besides the change above alluded to the hill presents another' feature, which was not observable a fortnight ago, as it is covered with heaps of gravel thrown up by that busy tribe, the miners, who now ocCUpy every inch of available space there, and have bottomed shafts from side to side along the entire length of the lead, and in nearly every instance good prospects were obtained. From north to south the hill is between a quarter and half a mile long, the surface being fiat, with a dip to the westward. The prospectors' claim is situated on the south, side of the hill, where, the lead jniist have left it ahd dispersed in the flat, leaving, however, substantial traces of its course in the small blind gully up which the prospectors traced gold yard by yard into the hill. As I stated in my first report they bottomed a shaft at 60 feet, and struck washdirt which yielded ldwt. to the di&h, although I have since heard that 3dwts. would have been nearer the truth. Sufficient; however, that they considered it payable, and opened a drive along the lead, which looked so well for gold that they were induced to sink another shaft upon thsir northern boundary to guard against encroachment. The bottom of this shaft proved no less rich than the first, and the party, one and all, expressed themselves perfectly satisfied with the ground, confessing that it would yield from to 1 flwt. the dish out of a stoup of washdirt from 1 foot to 18 inches thick. At this fend of the hill the lead is about 120 feet wide, but it gradually contracts towards the north. The prospectors have secured hearly the whole of it, but next them the run is divided by Gardiner and party to the east and the Cumberland patty on its west side. The former have, I believe, the richest claim on the hill, as they struck three feet of washdirt in the shaft, which after it was broken-up and heaped, yielded from 2 dwts. to 3 dwts. Ibe dish. The Cumberland party can " raise" 1 dwt. and 8 dwts. the dish. Both parties are vigors oUsiy driving, as each is desirous of saving the precious " boundary.*' Next to Gardiner, Londhal and his mates, who struck gold a fortnight agOj have since logged up, and are now in good Working order. They have driven some distance across the lead westerly, and find that the vein of washdirt runs from 1 foot to 3 Icet in ( thickness, and will average from 24 to 3025. to thg load. On their boundary, and occuping the western half of the land, are the " Germans," who washed 1 dwt. to the dish, when they bottomed, and next them, as the lead runs, Cook and party were rewarded with prospects, which ranged from 1 dwt. to 3 dwts. the dish. The bottom of their shaft was a " duffer," being too far west, but gold was struck (in driving) a few feet from it. In a line with tliis claim, and adjoining it, Lidstone and party bottomed at sixty-three feet, and wer£ rewarded with ?i £ dwt. prospect. Being also to the westward they opened a drive in the opposite direction and as they proceeded, the dirt improved until it yielded as much as 3 dwts. the dish, with a foot to eighteen inches of wash. A party of Sydney men share the lead with Lidstone and his mates. They bottomed at sixty feet, and washed from 1 dwt. to 3 dwts. of gold out of the ordinary pan full of dirt, and on driving towards their neighbors found no diminution in the yield. Corner peg and corner peg with this claim is another held by " Lankie's" party, who found the lead at the same depth, but not so rich as the " stoup" of washdirt — although three feet thick only yielded £ dwt. to dwt. the dish. Jim Jack's party occupy the other corner of the square formed by theirs and the three claims last mentiomd They have just bottomed and struck three feet of dirt, which yielded from 3 grs. to J dwt. the dish. A share in this claim changed'hands at L9O. The next section of the lead is held by Joe Nailor and party to the west, and some South of Ireland men on the eastern side. Nailor struck bottom at 51 feet— the last three being washdirt, which, taken in the rough, will pay about £ oz. to the load. The Irishmen had better luck, as their dirt prospected from 1 dwt. to l^dwts. the dish. The next two claims^ are both sunk too far west, and are consequently duffers; but ahead of them Smith and party bottomed at fortysix feet, and found two feet of washwhich gave from £dwt. to ldwt. the dish. A drive was then opened to the westward, and in six feet the lead was crossed. In the opposite direction, the gold is still being followed, and it is believed that a shaft which is sinking on the boundary, will strike the lead, as another claim in the same iino, held by Carter's party, has given small prospects. Ahead of Smith, Jones and party sunk and bottomed a duffer at 45 feet, but oh driving to the eastward struck the wash two feet from the shaft, and obtained £dwt. the dish.

The last claim bottomed on the lead is held by Cpok and party, who at 42 feet sjfcritck a layer of gravel tw? feet thick, Svhich will pay fair wages". Twd or th'r^ee duffers haying been sunk to the eastward of thiS claimj It js inferred that the lead swerves here, and, in consequence, ground which was considered " outside, 1 ' is now closely held. M'Gregor and party are sinking on one" of. these once despised claims, and have, in my opinion, a very fair chance to catch the gold. They expected (o bottom in a day or two. 1 have now reached to within- a very short distance of the terrace brow, the intermediate space being occupied by one or two claims whiph have not yet been bottomed. The gold, however, must continue, as a tunnel at this end is paying very well ; indeed, thus proving that the lead runs fairly through the hill, although it decreased in width j very considerably towards the north, and the ground runs shallower^ for, whilst the prospectors are sixty feet, and the claim adjoining them seventy, Cook and party, the last who struck gold, are only fortytwo feet. The rise in the bottom is not sudden^ btit there seems to be a gradual ascent from South to north. This difference in the dep t th of the various clairhs is proving Somewhat vexations, for,- .according to the Goldfields Regulations, the area* of ground in alluvial workings allotted to each miner, is 45ft. x 45ft. where the ground is less than 50 feet deep, mit when it exceeds that depth, 60ft. x 60ft. is allowed; Now, when it Was known that the prosbectbrs's shaft was sixty feet, the miners staked off the ground in accordance with that depth ; four men thus holding 120 ft. x 120ft— and the whole of thejjill was so taken up. But as soon as the secret leaked out that a shaft had touched bottom within the prescribed depth, tape lines were, again in requisition, and parties holding the larger area, but whose claims were situated upon the shallower part o* the hill, were dispossessed of the surplusground by the lynx-eyed " jumpers." This of course occasioned disputes which called for the interference of the warden, who decided them according to the strict letter of the law as laid down in the goldfields rules; I think Mr Keogh might have very judiciously used the discretionary power vested in him by deciding against the " jumpers,' 1 as the shallow ground is the more difficult to work, and requires slabbing—in some places from top to bottom. Throughout the hill the ground contains more or less water, but not enough to warjrant its classification under the head of " wet sinking/ . Whilst such satisfactory progress was making on Scandinavian Hill, the country in a line with it towards the Kapitea or Three Mile Creek has not been I neglected, and a range of terraces were discovered similar in formation to the hill I have already described, and three of them proved auriferous. Standing on the brow of Scandinavian, the first can be seen across a large flat, which separates the two at a distance of about half-a-mile. It was no easy matter to reach it, however, and whilst I was g-azing wistfully across the intervening space, «p came Mr Keogh, the warden, accompanied by a " sturdy chiel,'' who looked very like a recent importation from the Highlands of Scetland ; and the marvellous agility he afterwards displayed in ascending and descending almost inaccessable places, quite warranted this assump- ! tion on my part. Both men were mud to the middle, the warden having been engaged in settling mining disputes, which obliged him to traverse many uneven and mirey ways* He was then on his way to the second terrace, his companion having volunteered to guide him thither, and hearing I wls bound in the same direction, proposed that it would be expedient I should take advantage of the local knowledge at bis- command, and follow in their tracks. Our way first led down the almost perpendicular side of the terrace, which we descended by the aid of roots and branches ; and although inconvenient to contend with under ordinary circumstances, in this instance proved of infinite service in staying our otherwise too rapid progress towards the bottom. Down we went, sinking (where footing was to be found) knee-deep in mud, until the descent became more gradual ; and directly afterwards the flat was reached, covered with (if there Wa3 any difference) a denser growth of timber than that upon the terraces. Not a single vista was there to relieve the eye, the spaces between the trees being closely packed with the different varieties of fern, interspersed with shrubs and creepers. The sun's rays never penetrate these gloomy recesses, and the vegetation in consequence is ever wet, whilst the ground is all marsh, which is soon converted into a very superior description of mud by the passage of a few diggers. A small creek runs through the centre of this flat, and winding round the terraces, joins the "Waimea River about two miles from the sea beach. | Immediately after crossing this creek, the i ground rises, and the ascent of the second i terrace commences. A quarter of an hour's severe climbing brought us to the top of it, and our guide then led the way to the hut of a party of miners who were the first to strike gold on the hill. In idue time we reached it, and found ourselves overlooking the south part of the terrace, and immediately opposite that point on Scandinavian Hill, where the lead of gold crops out of its side. Some pfty feet beneath us in the perpendicular face of the Hill was the prospector's tunnel, which we -were invited to inspect, and accordingly descended " stern first" as the sailors say, holding fast by roots and stumps until the level was gained. Here we found a tunnel about fifty feet in length, driven upon a laminated clay bottom which carried a vein of brown cemented gravel, eighteen inches thick, constituting the washdirt. From end to end of the tunnel tliis dirt zvill prospect ldwt. and Sdirt. to the dish. Upon our expressing surprise that this particular and almost inaccessible spot should have been selected as a place where the lead was likely to be found., Hopley, one of the party, stated that they had taken the bearings of the lead by compass, from the opposite hill, followed the direction thus gamed as nearly as possible, and after a . little searching struck the "outcrop," which yielded ldwt. to the dish. I don't think the lead here is more than sixty or seventy feet wide, as the adjoining tunnels so far are duffers, and the prospectors themselves crossed the lead in a branch drive to the west, eight feet distant from the main tunnel. As the warden considered it advisable that this hill should receive a distinctive name it was "decided by the party that henceforth it should be known as Hopley's Hill, that individual being the first to strike the "outcrop." I found the whole of this bill marked out, and many shafts sinking

upon it ; but one or two only had succeeded in reaching bottom, as the ground proved extremely wet at forty-eight feet, necessitating the me of slabs to keep the ground up, Graham and party, after sinking that depth, were compelled to suspend operations and get timber ready, whilst Ft aser and partf were less fortunate, as their shaft caved-in, and they are now engaged sinking another. The lead has not yet been struck in the body of the hill, but on the side immediately opposite Hopley's claim, the outcrop wUs found by a party of Welshmen, who obtained therefrom Adwt. to the dish of washdirt. This I consider as convincing proof that the lead runs through it. lam further of opinion that another lead ot gold is contained in this hill ; for some two hundred yards east from the Welshmen, another party are tunneling, and can trace gold as thej r go. Besides Scandinavian and Hopley's Hills, three others in the same line towards K?ipitia Creek, have been tested, and proved auriferous. . But as the day was rapidly closing in, I reluctantly relinquished my original intention to visit them i 1 was, however, informed, on reliable authority, that the hill next to Hopley's vvas ndt So rich, but that 4 dwts. to the dish had been obtaiDed-otlt of the one nexfc to' It again, and that the fifth terrace, as it is termed, was also payable.- This takes the gold close to the Kapitia Creek beyond, while towards the Teremakau river many miners are now prospecting, who will doubtless again strike the lead there and eventually connect it with the New River diggings.

We publish in a supplement, to-day, further extracts from the English papers. It will of course be understood that tho dates of these are not ,so recent as those covered by the special telegrams.

Telegrams in the Melbourne papers announce that "the bills of a large tobacco merchant," in Sydney, are dishonored; and that Mr Michelmore, of ,Porfc Adelaide, ship chandler, has called a meeting of his creditors — liabilities, about L4OOO.

A public tea meeting is advertised to bo held at the Wesleyan Church to-morrow evening, at -which Mr Sale will preside, and several clergymen and other gentlemen deliver addresses. A telegram from Adelnide, in the " Afrgus" of the 1 4th, reads as follows :—": — " The foreign correspondent of the " South Australian Eegistei*" says that Austria ceded Venetia to France in trust for Italy."

A Bill introduced into tho Legislative Assembly of New South "Wales to legalise verdicts in criminal cases by a majority of jurors, has been rejected on the motion for its second reading.

An annuity of £2000 per annum has been voted by Parliament to the Princess Mary of Cambridge, in addition to her present annuity of £3000, on her approaching marriage. In the House of Commons, June 15, Mr Ewart moved an address to the Queen, requesting her to cause to be placed within the precincts of the House a bust, offered by his widow, of the late Joseph Hutnei who for nearly forty years ably, laboriously, imd disinterestedly served his country in the House of Commons. The motion, after a short discussion, was agreed to nem. con.

A testimonial has been presented to Captain Maiiry, late of the United States Navy, in the shape of a purse of 3000 guineas, in slight recognition of his valuable services as the most distinguished nautical geographer. A public dinner was given to him on the occasion, at Willis's Rooms, Sir John Pakington, M.P., in the chair.