The Stew Point Saddle opal mine

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32566, 27 March 1971, Page 12

The Stew Point Saddle opal mine

(By

PHYLLIS KERR)

When I first Went up the Rangitata Gorge to live, I was told many stories that taxed my credulity. I expect the new chum, male or female, was fair game. One story was about an opal field high up on the mountain tops.

I’d heard of musterers tripping over survey pegs. But I didn’t really believe even my husband when, one evening after a muster, he announced he’d fallen flat on his face when his boot caught on one of those "damned survey pegs.” But I fell in there, in my disbelief about such a near bonanza. For an opal field was surveyed away up there near the Stew Point Saddle. And later, much later, I came to know the real story of the Record Reign Opal Mining Company. Mt Peel is sentinel at the opening of the Gorge, and its range runs Westward. The river terraces, far below, give clear evidence of a once mighty glacier. Now a glacier-fed river, the Rangitata, tumbles to the sea. Aclands for three generations have owned the hills and flats—tussock covered, and with bush in the gullies, good country for sheep and cattle. And Stew Point was one of the blocks of this large station. Now it, and five other blocks, are individuallyowned runs.

When I heard recently of stone-fanciers enthralled with the lovely stones on Stew Point, I was curious to find out more of that old opal mining story. I asked Sir John Acland if he could give me any idea of a starting date for my inquiries. “You’d never believe it,” he said, “but I’ve found among the old man’s papers, a share certificate for ten shares given to him by the Record Reign Opal Mining Company, and the date on it is June, 1897.” “Fine,” I said, "that’s grand,” and off I went on my search. From various sources the story unfolded. Licence granted From the Mines Department records I discovered that in January of 1897 “licences for opals have been granted over the Mt Peel and Acland districts. Applications have been received for six leases covering 239 acres.” And a survey team was set up to peg out the claims for mining rights. On February 1897 this notice appeared to the Ashburton “Guardian,” “Information reaches us of an important discovery of opals in this country.” What excitement there was. Everyone’s thoughts flew to the Rand and its precious diamonds. Will South Canterbury be the opal Rand of New Zealand? How wonderful for the whole country it would be. In September, 1896, two bearded Australians had arrived at Mt Peel homestead. They were geologists, they said. They were walking, and had their gear on two pack horses. Could they go on to the property up the Gorge and explore the rock formation?

Mr Acland gave them permission but impressed on them the necessity for extreme care with lighting fires. “You burn my tussock,” he told them, “and I’ll bum your hides. A spark in the dry grass with a puff of wind means a fire of thousands of acres. And my sheep if they don’t bum will starve. So you be very careful.” They promised; their whole idea depended on their being able to dig and delve privately. ’ £

The fossickers, Stan and Ray, with their packhorses laden with shovels and picks, and a tent and provisions, and a boring kit, after a few weeks of climbing up hill and down, found the place they were hunting for. Under a snow tussock bending away from the wind something glistened. It was an outcrop of milky-looking rock shining with faint blues and greens and altogether lovely to look at. 4000 ft up They were on a flattish rocky plateau about 4000 feet up, a bit east of the Stew Point Saddle. “This must be it,” they thought. It was very like the rock Stan and Ray had seen in Queensland. They had met an old former musterer there, on the opal fields; and he told them “Lads, I’ve seen this sort of rock before. I’ve walked over it many a time bringing sheep over the Stew Point Saddle for old Acland in South Canterbury. I never thought there might be opals it it.”

The idea simmered in the heads of Stan and Ray. They’d got bored with the Queensland life, and anyway the grass is always greener over the fence. They decided to come to New Zealand and maybe this place they’d heard of would be a bonanza. They had managed to get a few opals for next to nothing, and they bought a few good ones—“just for a nest egg” —they told each other; and so they came to Mt Peel. It was high summer, but the nights were cold. So they were glad of their tent pitched in the lee of a big rock and quite near a little spring. They had lots of work to do. They had to find how much of this opaline rock there was, and how deep it

went. They had hand-boring equipment, and well below the surface they set out charges of gelignite blasting away the overburden. Musterers scoffed

Everyone on Mt Peel knew they were up there, of course. The musterers thought they were a little cracked in the head “Opals there,” they scoffed. “How damn stupid can a fellow be!” But they were kindly folk and didn’t tell the Boss when they saw a skinned sheep hanging up in a matagouri bush. A few. Wlii the tally of theshehring muster wouldn’t be noticed. Anyway ■the death rate is high in the back country, snow and keas take their toll. “And the poor sillies can’t starve.” Each month one of them came down the hill to the roadway, three miles down, and down the Gorge, 20 miles, to the Peel Forest store for provisions. The arrival was the signal for the village people to congregate at the store. Speculation was rife. “Were they finding many opals up there?” But Stan and Ray were close-lipped, and gave nothing away. They went back to their claim each time, leaving the village wondering. They were running short of ready cash, though. One night they read, by candlelight, in an Ashburton “Guardian” that was wrapped round their bread: “A gold mining company is formed to work a West Coast field' with Mr Henry Zanders as chairman. He holds 70 per cent of the “He’s the bloke for us,” they decided. “He must have plenty of dough—seems interested in mining.” So off Stan went to put their propposition before him in his Ashburton office. Shares at premium He had persuasive powers because I learned from that wonderful paper that "the prospecting party, consisting of young Mr David Zanders (it would be too tough a climb for Papa Zanders), Mr Morton and Mr Hart returned from the opal fields. They brought with them several nice samples of fiery opals, and it is to be hoped a company will be formed to carry out the work in proper style. Syndicate shares are being bought at 50 per cent premium." Stan was designated Manager—and the pair were in funds again. “Opal excitement is high” the “Lyttelton Times” Peel Forest correspondent wrote in May. “I hear of nine companies already formed but strange to say I have not seen a specimen of the precious stone. The matter is being kept very quiet.” Then I read to the Ashburton "Guardian”: “Splendid 'specimens from the Record Reign Mine were brought down this morning. The stones are of a magnificent colour, and are said to be more valuable than Queensland opals.” The shareholders must have been joyful at the sight of such fiery beauty, because the report states that “libations of champagne were poured in honour, and a share in the company is not now to be bought at any price.” I did hope the faithful reporter was offered a glass. The experts in Queensland had told the prospectors that the deeper into the ground they bored the finer the opals would be. So they had lots of work ahead of them, and winter was approaching. They had to have something better than a tent. Hut for miners The good Ashburton “Guardian” told me that “a hut had been constructed, and was to be carted up to the foot of the hills by Mr Bull of Peel Forest. Mr Lorgelly, another contractor had to take it up to the claim. It was only a track for horses—steep in parts where it zig-zagged across a rosecoloured face beautiful glistening red rock it is still —reminiscent of “Petra’s walls, that rose red city, half as old as Time.” Mr Lorgelly decided to use mules to pack the hut, and firewood too, up the hill. He borrowed those from Mr Acland. He kept them for' packing out to the mustering camps. They were far more sure-footed than horses. So the miners had a warm home while, snow storms whirled and eddied round them, and lay feet deep for a week or two. It was a front face, though, and cleared pretty quickly. The ■ground would freeze hard, and only after a thaw could they work. But they had to stay up there, with brief and separate trips down country. They did not want anyone prying into their claim. At the end of September, the Ashburton "Guardian" reporter, he was a tenacious fellow, says “Interest in the opals is how awakened after the cold winter and a rush of miners to the area is expected.” A vision of hibernating bears emerging, flew to my mind. On November 6, his horse must have almost known the way alone, our reporter states: “A good deal'of work has recently been done on the Mt Peel opal fields. And it is to be hoped that good results will be obtained shortly.” He did so want that scoop. Inspector’s visit In December, I read, Mr Wilson, the' chief Government Inspector of Mines visited the opal fields. All be said was that he was present when some stones were

taken out of the mine. That, though they were of no great size, they were of the valuable kind known as fire opals. The Inspector would be coming to Wellington and advised the member of Parliament for the district to get in touch with him. . Now, what tremendous pronouncement was to come? Settlers had plans for hotels and shops to serve the rush of miners. Surely a mining town will spring up? “What’s the news”? was on everyone’s lips. The Peel Forest store was the nearest gossip shop. Conjecture ran riot Our reporter was'jump-" ing mad with exasperationno news was forthcoming. Then suddenly he had a headline. The manager of the Record Reign Mine was arrested for larceny! When Mr Wilson was up at the field he took a stone with opal in it (it was about the size of a man’s head), as a sample to bring to the Ministry of Mines for assay. It was given into Stan’s charge to carry down the hill to the waiting trap for the party’s journey down the Gorge. On his way down the hill

Stan had substituted for it another similar stone, but of no value, and hid the first one. This wasn’t discovered till the evening, when Mr Wilson and his party arrived at the Rangitata Bridge hotel. Manager sacked Stan was accused of stealing it, and arrested. His excuse was that he’d had no wages as manager, and was determined to have something. So in January 1898 he was charged. But the directors of the company withdrew the charge provided he brought the stone back. For, without it, the opal field could not be established with the Ministry of Mmes. Stan was released, but then refused to produce the stone, and was dismissed by the company. In February I discovered a report of the Record Reign Company where it was decided "to sell the whole assets of the company as speedily as possible.” How they must have regretted the cost of that champagne. And the Mines Department was kind enough to

copy for me from their records, the final report in their statement for 1898. "Samples of stone were found there; although of an opaline nature, they were of a different and distinct variety from the stone previously stated to be unearthed at this place, and have no commercial vahie. It is to be feared that no importance can be attached to this discovery as an addition to the mineral wealth of the colony.” So the bubble burst, and a prospective industry was stillborn. Though mother nature did put rocks of an opaline kind away up there on the Stew Point Saddle, and they are still there, she never did put those fiery opals there. They came from Queensland hidden from the sharp eyes of a Customs Officer, somewhere in the swags of Stan and Ray. And in that rock they planted them.

It was a bold bid to a fortune. To hood-wink a collection of apparently hard headed business men was one thing; but a Government Mines Inspector wasn’t quite such easy meat.