KIMBERLEY GOLDFIELDS,

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume VII, Issue 1312, 20 May 1886, Page 2

KIMBERLEY GOLDFIELDS,

The following further particulars, with regard to the new goldfields will be read with interest :— Mr. C. E. Deeley, of the firm of Adock Brothers and Co., merchants, Palmerston Derby, who is stationed at the latter place, gives the following interesting particulars relative* to the Einiberley goldfields* and also, to'thg town,- of j. Derby itself. Writing to a f riend t in M Adelaide on March 30, Mr. t)eeley says : — " About eight men have made their way in from tie supposed goldfields ; they roport about 40 men , up there. They have come to buy rations. 1 It is going to be the biggest field in Australia: in his opinion. All the men who are in have gold with them, but they are keeping it dark, and have only brought in enough for their wants. I bought 84oz. from two men yesterday y 220z. from another, lloz. from another, and 7oz. from another.' Wo heard of another party close here who have 24i00z. with them, _one i pic.cc weighing 19oz. It is a beautiful sample of gold, quite as good as the 3?almer. What we have runs from soz. to ioz. pieces, . all water-worn except one parcel, which was evidently got on the surface from aTotigh leader. All lam afraid of is a big rnshi with a lot 6f men with no money. This is the nearest port, and the best road is from here, but the field is -300 miles in- - ' land at least, the poor men cannot get there. It will never be a poor man's diggings. They must have horses. In another letter to his wife Mr. Deeley \ remarks that in Derby the mosquito, ant£ i and all sorts of insects are very troublesome. The laboring white man demands 15s a day for ordinary work,; an.d it is very difficult to obtain the services of blacks. There are mataV, blacks 'in the neighborhood of Derby, but they are not dangerous to associate 1 with. Mr.«Deeley says that the gales that are sometimes experienced there are terrific. Thpj come - on very suddenly, -and 'are accompanied ' by loud thunder and ra jn,. and it is impossible to hear any sound about you while they last. The native rats are a serious trouble, iThey are veYy large, and have a tuft of .hair on the tip of the tail. The common -name applied to "them is the " bottle bush rat. Everything R they can get neaar enough; to they destroy/ A few lniles from Derry Mr. Dejeley, saw* / a number of alligators .in ; theriverj and '/ .snakes were also frequently seen, some 0f ,,, ' them being very long. He says that 160

miles of the 300 whicn divides Derby and , the diggings is over a boggy track. He adds^ rt There is going td T>e an awful rttShi 'I ap ! hope tfce /papers will warn the popr^— l mean the 7 impecunious men. Uhere will be heaps of gold found, but ,t£iqr# will be .a lot of misery. Decently, in: Derby, as much as 15s was paid for T{jpjeallons.of water. ' ' The correspondent of- the Perth Inbuirer at Roebottrne, telegraphing on Ist x Mkf, reports that the latest news from DerbY states" that ttntiggetof gold weigh4ng<2£lb ha* been found by a man named Morgan. Several other smaller nuggets ha^ef also teen obtained. The goldfields are pronounced to be a success. , A Perth telegram hi the Argus of May 4th says:— The large nugget mentioned by the correspondent of the Inquirer was found with others within 100 miles of .Derby, and vras discovered by Morgan and. Angus while scratching the surface. The gold inpossession of the two men is valued at £250. Immense excitement is prevailing throughout, the colony in consequence" of the reports. A number of city properties have been withheld from safe pending further Kimberley news, which is expected by the steamer Albany this week.