Hawkes Burn 1st. Augt. 1861. My dear Sir, Since I last wrote you, I had the money remitted from Mr. Shennan from Mr. McDonald he kept Dunns Mare; Mr. Shennan was telling me of a new diggings found in the Tokomairoro district doing wonders, every man making from £2 to £10 a day, it is about 70 miles from Dunedin and every one is going, Mr. Shennan could have got £2 a head for wethers and Beef in proportion, cattle will get very dear here as the Pleuro-Pheunomia is broken out and all importation of cattle is prohibited from every quarter the disease has not spread farther than the immediate neighbourhood of Dunedin as yet, it will he a serious business should it get among our Bullocks Carriage to the gold diggings is £90 per ton and I think working horses must rise in price should such prices continue, if so I will go down with Samson and try. We have got the two fillies quieted and rode about for a few days they are very quiet and I mean to leave them now for 5 or 6 months to get up in condition, the other Horses are improving; Thomas leaves tomorrow he goes to the gold fields he could have got a shepherds place at Strodes but he prefers the diggings; we had a fall of snow 4 days ago which completely hemmed us in it was 4 inches deep down here and only today beginning to remove the flats on Eains Cleugh are all clear again and there is still plenty for everything to eat as yet but I have never seen such frosts as we have had since I left Scotland the ice on our water buckets was yesterday morning an inch and half thick, and the Hawkes Burn in some places is nearly frosen over, Mr. Strode has been up. I did not see him but Mr. Low was telling me had changed his mind about leasing his run and that he expected somesheep on terms, however the difficulty to get or keep shepherds from the may make him change his mind. Mr. Strode has had dogs among his sheep they have not done much damage, we have not seen any appearances of any with us as yet. I dont recollect anything more at present to communicate and remain My dear Sir, Yours truly, Thomas Cordie.