TEE THAMES ADVERTISER.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXIV, Issue 3352, 14 April 1868, Page 3

TEE THAMES ADVERTISER.

We mentioned yesterday that we had received the first number of the Thames Advertiser and Miners' News, a paper which is to be published at Shortland three times a week, and is to be devoted to forwarding the mining and commercial interests of the Thames district. If we may form an opinion from the copy of this paper which we have, it will be a great acquisition to the mining community of the Thames. It is very well got up, and contains much useful information concerning a number of the claims. Under the head of "Mining Matters," it is intended to give reliable intelligence about each claim, and a commencement is made in this issue with the claims about Murphy's Hill. As this information will no doubt be of great service to persons in Auckland, we shall, therefore, from time to time reprint it from our contemporary. In the opening article the i following notice of the progress of the Thames goldfield is given :— The Thames goldfield is only in its earliest stage as yet. It remains to be fully developed by the energy and enterprise of those who are on the field, and of the thousands who are yet to come. What was the state of the district twelve months ago ? It was a purely native district, strictly shut against Europeans. The native owners had not come to see that it was their interest to throw their land open for gold prospecting ; and they viewed with jealousy any encroachment by the white man. But better counsels at length prevailed ; and now see the result. On the 17fch August, 1867, the Thames was proclaimed a goldfield, on which day the pioneers of recent discovery here first set foot upon the Karaka. Hunt's reef was discovered; other discoveries were made about the same time ; and the success of the Karaka goldfield was assured. The first miner's righb was issued about the same date ; there are now 4,778 miners' rights issued. The population, which then consisted of a score or two of men, now numbers about 7>OOO, of whom many are women and children. A large and populous town has been formed, and homesteads are dispersed everywhere throughout the districts open to prospecting. When it is remembered that with very imperfect appliances the Thames goldfield has produced over 15,000 ounces of gold, worth more than £35,000, in the last six months, ib may be readily imagined what the yield would be if adequate machinery were in the district. There is no doubt that a population of this size is ample for the support of a paper, and there is a necessity for a local organ in a place of such importance as Shortland has now become. We therefore wish the Thames Advertiser every success, and feel confident that, if it carry out the principles avowed in its first issue, success will not be wanting.