GOLDEN SICKLE NUGGET

Greymouth Evening Star, 23 March 1929, Page 10

GOLDEN SICKLE NUGGET

A MYSTERY OF THE GOLDFIELDS

The history of Australia’s goldfields is rich in material for stories and novels. The germ of a book is contained in the incident of the Golden Sickly nygget. Among those who participated in this extraordinary event was Mr Albert Martin, formerly fourth member of th© Naval Board. Mr Martin went to Western Australia from

England as a youth, and although on landing he possessed only 1.5/- he rapidly made a fortune on the goldfields —and as rapidly lost it. This is his strange story of the Golden Sickle nugget.

More than 30 years ago Kanowna, about 25 miles from Kalgoorlie, was a, lively township with a population of 10,000 supplying the thousands of miners engaged on th© alluvial diggings, relates “Collins Street” ip the Melbourne “Argus.” There were some rich finds, one of the richest, owned by a. partnership of fo.ur men, yielding

more than 10,.000 ounces of gold from an area only 150 feet square. One day the rumour ran like wildfire aroupd the town that an enormous nuggdt of gold weighing more than 1000 ounces had been found. The excitement was fed next day by the announcement ip a pewsp.apei’ that a public man (who was named) had seen the nugget, which was pure gold and shaped like a sjlckle. Two prospectors, the newspaper account said, had discovered th.e nugget, but the man had been pledged to secrecy about the position of the find. This mystified the miners, because it was necessary for tli.o discoverers to apply to the Warden’s Court for a license.

After a few days a miner was found burned to death under a lonely tree, apd this tragedy was immediately connected with the Golden Sickle nugget,

as it was called. Had the unfortunate mjuei- been murdered so that he might not disclose whence th,e nugget came? Th© miners held a meeting and formed a deputation to ask the warden to use his influence with the possessor of the secret. After the interview, it was announced that the man had seen tho discoverers, who had consented to the position of their discovery being ’ disclosed. The announcement would be made from the balcony of tho leading hotel in Kanowna at noon. The story of the nugget had brought miners from all parts of Western Australia. .Some hud travelled 1000 miles overland in expectation of a “boom.” Kanowna, which had been declining because many of the alluvial diggins had been worked out, enjoyed unprecedented prosperity. On tho day of the promised announcement thousands of people gathered in the street outside the hotel. Horses, saddled and attached to carts of all descriptions, bicycles, and tricycles had been bought, hired, or stolen for the race to the field. Nearly all had provided themselves with wooden pegs ready sharpened to stake their claims. Punctually at noon the man

appeared on the balcony, his face pale and drawn. He had no need to appeal for silence; the crowd was intensely quiet. Ha said he had been released from his pledge of secrecy, but he was still pledged not to identify the discoverers. Raising his voice, he shouted: “The nuggest was found about 20 yards from the west side of Lake Gwynne,” There was only one lake near Kanowna, about three miles away, and most of the hearers had begun their desperate race before the ■word “Gwynne” had be.en pronounced.

The country was soon pegged for miles around.

Although the proper procedure after pegging a claim is to apply to the warden’s office and then to do no work until the application is heard, thou-

sands of men began to dig feverishly as soon as they had driven their pegs. Gold hunger is too urgent to wait upon legal forms. In two days despair settled on the prospectors. They had

struck bedrock and they knew that (he field was worthless. In the calm that followed experts declared that it

was impossible that the nugget had been found there. Suspicions of a hoax were confirmed when it was found that the man had left for the coast immediately after making his announcement. Some months later he died. The mystery of the Golden Sickle nugget was never solved. The general opinion was that he had been shown a large block of smelted gold which was being taken to Kalgoorlie from one of the large mines at Kanowna. Either he was hoaxed or he told a few friends about the “nugget” in jest. The story grew to such proportions that he determined to carry it through to the bitter end rather than incur the anger of the miners.