The Westport Times. FRIDAY, MAY 16, 1873.

Westport Times, Volume VII, Issue 1072, 16 May 1873, Page 2

The Westport Times. FRIDAY, MAY 16, 1873.

The sudden but most welcome rain- ■ fall, succeeding an unusually long spell of dry weather which had well nigh exhausted every available supply of water for mining purposes, and as an inevitable sequence caused a greater depression of trade, by reason of the scarcity of money in circulation, than lias ever before been experienced on "the Nelson Gohlfields, suggests the ■ thought, or rather recalls the opinion very often expressed by practical •miners, that until 'somo good and •comprehensive scheme of Water • Supply for the Gohlfields is perfected, • both mining and trading'interests must periodically suffer depression. The work 'performed by private mining companies to bring water on their claims, represents in the aggregate a large amount of invested capital and labor, but, comparatively speaking, it does not represent anything beyond the merest, fractional part of the work necessary to be accomplished to utilise the water supply now everywhere running to waste >lt redounds little to the credit of 'the colony or the colonists themselves that in a country so abundantly watered by running streams nod pluvial supply, Goldmining the chief industry of the colony should be permitted to languish and that all other 'interests dependent thereon should become deadened and depressed by Teason of no effectual provision being made to secure the one essential element whereby the Gohlfields can alone be made of permanent commercial value. TJbe Bubject has received some serious

consideration on the part of the New Zealand Government, and the result has been that under the Immigration and Public AVorks Act certain'regulations are prescribed whoroby applicants may obtain " advances of money to aid in the construction, extension or improvement of works for the Supply of Water on Goldfields." The conditions upon which such grants in aid are offered seem, at first perusal, fair and equitable and easy of fulfilment, but in practice so many difficulties crop up. so many formalities aro found necessary to observe, and so many apparently unnecessary, and hence vexatious, delays arise that very few projects based upon governmental assistance have resulted in aught bevond disappointment to the projectors. It is but right, as a precautionary measure, that the Government should insist that the promoters of any scheme for securing Water Supply should duly register themselves under the Mining or Joint Stock Companies' Act, that definite particulars should be given of the nature of the proposed undertaking, its estimated cost, the interests to be affected by the diversion or storage of the water to be dealt with, and that a cash deposit should be paid as security, but these preliminaries satisfactorily arranged, practical miners find their greatest difficulties commencing. No advance is ever granted except on the certificate of the District Engineer, or other duly appointed person, that such work has been executed in accordance with plans and specifications, 'and detailed estimates of costs approved of by him, or the Engineer in Chief, or assistant Engineer ; but to ask for and to obtain such certificate, and thereupon the needed money, are different matters. Press of departmental business, the requirements of strict routine, or some other good and sufficient official reason stands in the way, and the value of the subsidy becomes seriously lessened by reason that it does not ensure what to miners is of most importance, namely, promptness of action. This is a subject that has already engaged the attention of Mining Associations on the Npw Zealand Goldfields, and among other suggestions made it has been proposed that the Warden of a mining district, who acting as locum tenons for the Minister of Public Works, is authorised to receive applications for advances, should also in the absence of the District Engineer, be authorised to receive certified reports as to the progress of worksinjeourseof construction, from any civil engineer or surveyor of. good repute practising his profession in the district, and that on such report endorsed by the Warden, instalments of the sum advanced might bo paid without delay, If at any time that nnrtinn of the- mining community working the alluvial portions of the Nelson Goldfields should summons sufficient resolution and be of one mind in convening a Mining Conference to consider questions affecting their particular branch of industry, even as quartz miners have of late met to their own great advantage,the subject of government subsidies will no doubt obtain earnest discussion. The need for such conference is asserting itself, there seems no present possi-. bility of a miner escaping the meshes of litigation under the present regulations, and the threatened infliction of a new Goldfields Act of "two' thousand clauses," should arouse miners to united action in the protection of their own interests. Referring more particularly to the subject matter of these remarks the suggestion is offered that the district miners might do worse things than set their wits to work and devise some good scheme or schemes, which reduced to practice by the aid of governmental assistance under the Public Works Act, would secure at all times a steady supply of water for mining purposes. During the coming winter months races, creeks, and dams will bo filled to overflowing, and thousands upon thousands of tons of water run to unredeemable waste. With summer drought may como again sad repinings and unavailregrets ; possession of the merest dripplings and runlets of water may be greedily contended for, and heaps of wash dirt o'er grown with weeds bear silent testimouy to the owners uuthrift and lack of enterprise. The columns of the Westport Times are open to free discussion on this topic.