MINING" NEWS.

Grey River Argus, Volume XV, Issue 1908, 17 September 1874, Page 2

MINING" NEWS.

" GREY VALLEY Cf6l.b-FlELps| [from oxjil' joim correspondent.] AHAURA, - . . "'..'" . .' : : ' 'September 16. "The first item of riewsj' audonethat is likely to hold out well for I'some1 'some time to come, is the condition, of the., roads, both main and branch. The mail road is in a bad enoiifi;li ; statebeloW ? Ali^ura/Du¥Ht is positively scandalous aboveit and theTiown itself. The portion through <Totara Flat is in such a state that .ther idea of-the.;.con-tractor ever getting it into apassahfoform of repair is out ibi< the question, Awhile above, the' junction the tra/sfc is worse than it was at any time since : the 'discovery of the reefs, On the Saddle it is not- only bad, bin' dangerous, and if 'sdme^fearlul accident does occur -it willvinofcT'cfeate much surprise. This portion of/.theiroad belongs to the fnangahua Road Board properly speakij^'biitjit seems that that body, like our bwnf Board, is content to let matters drift anywhere so long as the members can cling to, .the .positipnajof doubtful importance they occupy^' fThe state of ; the main street ofr.jihis rtown, which is also a portion "of the main Grey Valley/road, is simply, a disgrace-r t6 the supposed conservators >■=■ of : - our . highways and bye ways. -Not long- since,- -a^fourwheeled American -waggon disappeared partially from view in the centre of .the main 'street, accomspnied by therojbfjurgations of the driver andTbis Mends on jthe Road Board. The lock-up^keeper^caine to. the rescue then, and told off a number ot prisoners to patch up the damage, but now the ,atreet' has cayed?agaih';in r; ljrpnt of Kennedy's Hotel, and as there ,^re motr not any prisoners on hand now,^ Iciore than are required for fatigue duty at the Wmp, the, street must remain in a state of collapse until, by process of law or the act of Providence, a few delinquents bring themselves under the cbntr O rof Constable Meredith.. . • -...-•'■ : ., . ;.,»-«.. A young man named Thomas Cochfane, son .of Mr William Cochrane, qf.Totara Flat, had a narrow escape from-drowfling yesterday, while attempting . to : fordothe Little Grey River, opposite; Mirfin'sfarm.l Horse and rider were washed :\ddwn stream, : , and after rollings over several times, caught in a snag at last. The rider succeed in setting his horse free, when the animal made its way ashdrej andTthen with great difficulty from the sriags|and cv rrent, h e swam to land himself. "^ Mr John Reid, of : the Sawmills,., while driving, a mob of cattle off his/premises, was rushed by a bullock. ; , The : bld^;genOeman,: .with great presence of^Baind, measured his length on' the swarj|,^and the infuriated beast rushed over hisprostrate'form, leaving him untouched. Mr Reid,;with3till greater presence of mind, made tracks for the house without wait- , ing to , see if . his - antagonist ..returned to the charge. After .the door was 'securely bolted, Mr, Reid. was- in a positioh to calmly survey his' adversary through the window, which heidid.; . , „,?-r Mr. Warden Whitefoord, is preparing to take his departure by;, the. end; oj| the mohth^ or ! rather to; relinquish^ possession to hiß successor. A preliminary meeting of the residents has been ! held-'to arrangeabout presenting Mr Whitefoord f with a testimohiarof 'some descriptipn On'his retirement from office! -;''-H WIG The gravel ravine through'the'ce'inStery is gradually extending, and the effect of another ; flood or two will' be carry away the cpntents.of some of the graves. It would be more decent, as far as appearances go before the living,-and far^more respectful to' the iSdead, if their remains had been 'cremated,"- espocially as there is plenty of timber lying around to form faggots for a funeral pile, when they were buried in this sand-pit, and exposed to probable desecration as they are at present. Alexander M'Laren's body is not yet found, and as there is now very little chance of it turning up, his property is about r being realised upon, r and a distribution made among his relative^! It is rumored that, aKcurious; complication is like to arise out of the winding-ud of this estate T from_ the peculiar nature of the claimaolspmeof the probable, claimants to apportion of the property," " i Work is; at the Orwell. Creek ■■ Company's leasehold, and -it is afulkoomplement of hands will find room for work in a week or so. 'The' mining nianag&ta reports

Bhow the amount of work done from time to time. There is talk of a new alluvial rush to one of the tributaries of Orwell Creek, but the particulars are not yet to hand. There is also a rumor that new ground is opened somewhere near the Grey River, between Langdon's Ferry and the Blackball. The present wet. weather is sure to bring something to light in that belt of country, because for years, whenever water is plentiful, a few who know the lay of the locality set into work at spots where good wages can always be obtained; but as nothing can be done without plenty of water, it is only in weather like the present that the place is heard of. This is one of the few remaining places in the Grey Valley which has never been properly tried, or been the scene of an extensive rush. The Rev. T. Flavell is to deliver a Jecture on Monday, at Ahaura ; subject, "Burke, as Statesman and Orator." The congregation of the Church of England here is getting too large for the accommodation afforded at the Court House, and there is some talk of building a church. BRANDY JACK'S CREEK. The shareholder s in the Union Company, Brandy Jack's, are engaged in driving a fresh drainage tunnel, which will be the means of enabling them to work a large portion of their valuable lease, without shifting the machinery at present erected. The dividends from this claim have been first-class for some length of time. The good fortune of this company is another instance of the benefit of the Gold-mining Leasing Ragulations. The lead in this creek was worked to a certain point in 1868. The ground got poorer, and at the same time very difficult and expensive to work in consequence of the great quantity of water in it, and it was at length totally abandoned. The claims allowed under the ordinary regulation were too limited in extent to induce individual miners to take them up, and the ground lay for years idle and unproductive. At length a company was formed composed partly of working miners and partly of business people of the HalfOunce district, who secured an interest in 1 the result of the working men's labor by paying sustenance contributions every week in proportion to the value of the interest held by them. Before these contributors could be induced to come into the venture, they wanted to see some Bhow of getting a return for their money, Beeing that it was estimated the probable expenditure before a dividend could be at all expected would amount at least to LIOOO. Accordingly they applied for and were granted a lease consisting of 10 acres. Machinery was erected shafts were sunk, prospecting drives were made and other work done, and at the end of two years, and at an outlay of nearly L2OOO, instead of LIOOO, the ground is only beginning to pay for the investment. What have the opponents of the leasing system to say to a case of this kind ? If the sleeping shareholders did not get that security of tenure which can only be given as the law is at present under the leasing regulations, they would not risk their money in the speculation, and if they did not the working shareholders could not commence operations. It is understood the first outlay is now paid back, and there is yet a good block of ground left to work for dividends. Had an outcry been raised when this company applied for the lease, or had any opposition been made, it is more than likely the objectors would be successful, for the ground being utterly valueless as it was, the promoters could have found an equally good investment for their money, and the place might still be lying untenanted. Instead of the wilderness Brandy Jack's Creek was when the Union Company commenced operations, there is now a thriving settlement of workingmen and their families, who are getting paid for their labor and who have a fair prospect of several years remunerative work before them. Altogether the mine gives employment to and supports between fifty and sixty people, and new claims are getting into working order.