A VISIT TO MABAKIPAWA.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXII, Issue 240, 11 October 1888, Page 3

A VISIT TO MABAKIPAWA.

v : Leaving Nelson in a Bulky on a fine morning en route to the Mahakipawa we stay all • R : ght at Piokering'a Hotel, Havelook, the a«t morning we pay oar fare for a pssaago in the mail boat (2s 6d, very reasonable) and mako a s;arfc for the now El Dando, arriving after en hours sailing at the port, and having obtained the road v?e walk for two miles and reooh the tented town of CuUcnsville at; tbe month of the valley. Everything looks bri-k and lively, sf.or«keeper§ selling tbeir gcod? to tbe new comers 10 tbe field who intend Bwapging' it np tbe oreek, butof ers bu*>catting up their meat, bskera with their bread coining ont of tbe oven fresh and iioi, disposing of it all in a Bhoib space of lime; a pabliO'hoasd which seems to be almost a bank far those foolish enough to trust, tieir money or epare nuggets iv it fer they get no internet, but the landlaly who is the only woman on the field is just coining money now tba license is graotei, and if not ma?,y are making money fide is oaa of the lucky ones. There is latt o£ all but not least a temperance Biall whoro noQ-iatcxicating liquors may be obtained from our old towns- ' man, Sberwood. Having f-pant & huppy hour in Cu!le>:£Ville walouiDg the different manoeuvres which amus: d m< greatly— and I think they would amuss anyone not acoustomed to life such ob you Bee it there— l purohoßid my provisions and made up my SWag and mado tnysslf look like a perfect. digger. I did tbis for tbe reason tfca; I did not care to go up to the claim and intrude on my host's hamper, and before going W»y further I would advise any person going over the ground to do the same, not bacause they would git none f 10m any of cue persons having olaims, bat teoauso they have to hump all their w.ek'd provisions on their back ovsr a very rough track, and lose ti«n» as well. I now make a s;art up the creek and the first olaim seen is tba of Davis and party on a terrace; at this claim they ore doing well, the prcapeoiors claim is iho next of importance and they are doing very well, so the diggers say, bub they want mere men to work it, tbis is a oreek claim. Newman and party are doing wonders in their terrao* olaim; tepoct had it that, they obtained 40oze en ttaturday, but Mr Newman told me ho had only get 13oes. Thin olaim is next in Tajne to that of Gorrie and party, wtioh we ■hall come to soon, only Newmans is a terraoo olaim on the main oreek, and Gorrio'a ia a creek claim xm ihe rigbt band branch just above the junotion of the lef c and right hand branohec. In Gorrie and party's oluim the heavy work is done and it is all straight going. While I was there on Saturday the first washing from a terrace which Mr Gorrie had joes bought, and adjoiniDg the creek, was commenced and for the afternoon's work 70E3 lSdwts were obtainod, amongst the gold feting a nice 2£ozt nugget. Mr Gorrie tells me that up to that date, Oo ober 7tb, his party have obtained lHozs lljdwts for five weeks washing, and they hold enough ground to keep going for fire months. His claim 1b muoh admired and bio party (thiee) »re iv the best of opirit*. Having stayed all night, at hia camp and learnt all the news regarding the difforeit claims, I was ready for a food. night's rest, as I had had a more than •rdinarv walk. Above Gorrie and party's claim ti one worked by some Maerite from the Xt toon Pah, tad judging from their facts X had good reason to believe that thay w*re doing well. I coold not hear how Locky«r ■md patty were faring at all. John Scaifa and party who are right up the right-hand branch are making good wage?, and as I learned from Carter tbe big nugget gave them a good pmh up tho hill, end they have no idea of coming homo for soma time. Baauchamp and party have obbained 43ozs for their labour in a creek claim. Two claims which were the posse^on of Charles Turner, and duriDg his absence jumped by .Other parties, are yielding gool gola, j and there are many other claims both j terrace and creek which ore paying good wageß to those who are working as them. I bad intended giving ihe reefs a look up, bat time and strength are required to roaoh them and nob having a great deal of either I thought better of it and did nob go, only bringing a specimen of the quartz home. The diggers seem to be a very courteous lob and only too pleated to aid a vieicor in any way they can. They are one and all very bitter against the authorities for not making a proper track, for the one formed by the i Pelaroß Road Board is of no usa and very little ufted, and it wonld not be safe to walk an it at night all the way along, so the old track made by the first swaggers going to find fro is the one used the most, On Monday tbe Minister of Mines was to be there and a deputation was appointed to wait on him re traoksand roadfi which are muoh needed. I may say the track op the oreek, about four tailes, requires two hoars fast travelling to corar, being across the oreek from rook to rook, up the hill, and through thick bush with plenty of supplejacks. Ou Sunday I left for home doing tho distance dowu the oxeek muoh quioker. Tbis is the day of rest, but not an Culleneyille. The shops wer« open all day and doiug more business than ever; diggers had come cLowb. for their provisions, games were going on, a fight or two, a last night's drunk lying about, a minister with a choir of diggers singing Sankey and Moody, then yrhea he had gathered about 1500 men ! Around, he began a short sermon, but having to catoh the mail boat I left the busy town of the diggings and arrived in Havelock that Sunday evening, haying spent a very interesting two dajs at Mahakipawa. i. forgot to mention that no one has yet bottomed in the flat though a trial was made' »ut it was found that machinery was required, and for that purpose a steam engine had just oome on the ground, and before long we shall know if gold is deposited in the flat of Oullanaville. It would be worth m&j person's while to tak« a trip such as I - Jbave done if they have not seen a diggings before, it ii easy to reach in a short time,