BETTER WORDING OF THE MINES.—PUBLIC MEETING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume VII, Issue 1839, 6 December 1869, Page 5

BETTER WORDING OF THE MINES.—PUBLIC MEETING.

A meetixg was held on Friday, at the Theatre Royal, to take into consideration " the better working of the mines on this field;" also to consider the resolutions passed on the above subject by a meeting in Auckland. There were several hundreds present, comprising a number of legal managers and mining managers. On the motion of Mr. E. Matthews, solicitor, seconded by Mr. J. B. Haxxau, Mr. C. l< , . Mitchell was called to the chair. The CiUimiAX, having read the advertisement convening the meeting, said that They were all aware, he presumed, that a meeting had been held in Auckland to consider as to the best means of -working the Thames goldfield. It appeared that the miners were blamed ; first, for not working properly, and secondly, with stealing, to a very great extent, the specimens, or the gold-bearing quartz from the claims. Now, this matter lay with tho miners themselves. Neither he nor any other man could say that they did not do that, but the miners must do it as a body. He (the chairman) could only say this : that, as one who had been on the Thames goldliold from the first, he gave it a most unqualified and uuhesitating denial as far as his experience went —(cheers) —that having been in some of the best and some of the worst claims, he had never known anything of the sort. He believed that, while there might be specimens abstracted from some claims, there was nothing like a general system of theft on the Thames goldfield. (Cheers.) Nor did he believe for one moment that the depression which nowexisted had anything whatever to do with the abstraction of specimens from claims. The Cn.vrnMAJf theu read the resolutions proposed to be considered by the Auckland committee, and proceeded to say that it appeared to him that there was no question in many cases of the desirability of amalgamating with a view of increasing the area of claims. There could also perhaps be little doubt of the desirability of having some persou who was responsible for the working of the gronnd. As to having the oflices removed to Auckland, it was something like what was said some three or four years ago, when it was proposed to remove the seat of Government., that the further you n*ere from the helm the better you could steer the ship. He did not think that practical men would come to the conclusion that the claims could be worked better by having the persons who were more immediately concerned in the working residing at a distance. The fourth resolution was, " That payments to men should be made by some other method than through the working manager." He did not kuow whether by mining managers or not, but it appeared to him that the money ought always to be on the ground on Saturday at noon, and the men ought not to have to wait for a week or ten days before getting their wages. That was his opinion, speaking as a working man to working men. He h;id paid wages for many years on behalf of himself and others, and he never, till he came here, knew of men having to wait so long for their wages. He thought that it certainly was a bad system when men had to wait for a long period to receive the remuneration for a week's labour. He thought himself that the working manager was the proper person properly guarded, to pay the men working under him. The fifth resolution was — " That the working manager furnish weekly returns, showing amount of work done, with plans and acconnt, to legal manager." He (the Chairman) thought that was quite right. If work was done and was to be paid for, there should be a clear account of it. The sixth resolution was—" The necessity for some system of auditing companies' accounts." Of that resolution he might make the same remark. The seventh was —" To devise some method for preventing pilfering specimens and gold." That he left to themselves, simply saying that his experience on on every quartz field since there had been qxiartz iields, did not lead him to believe that that there was any system of stealing specimens. The eighth resolution was—-"The cause of the present depression ou the Thames G-oldfield." On that he would remark that, for instance in one case, property had been purchased for £6,000, and then had been extended to £210,000, or within £10,000 of a quarter of a million, and he thought it ought to bo pretty evident to those speculators, and those who had interests at the Thames, that if they go on adding water to their grog, the grog will be very weak in the long run. If they had a dividend to pay on £6,000 instead of £10,000, the dividend would be much larger in amount, and there would not be so much said about depression. (Cheers.) Mr. H. E. Jury said he had come to the meeting unprepared to make any statement, but he would move, "That a committee be appointed from this meeting to confer with and assist the Auckland committee as to the best method of working the goldfield." He might say that he fouud no fault with the resolutions, except that one which branded the miners and those einployod at the machines as thieves. He considered there was no warrant for making any such charge, nor did he believe that those who made tho charge could substantiate a single instance as proof. If they could prove a single instance, they ought to have brought it forward, and not have branded all the miners on the field as thieves. Mr. Caelyke asked if Mr. Jury would not give the meeting a sketch of what he considered the best method of working the goli field. Mr. Jour thought he had not sufficient practical experience. There were others present who could far better inform the meeting on that subject. Mr. E. Matthews said that he would second Mr. Jury's motion, although it was, to a certain extent, indefinite. He thought that the gentlemen in Auckland, without consulting those who were at the Thames, had taken too much upon themselves. (Hear, hear.) The matter was not merely an Auckland matter; and the gentlemen in Auckland, if merely as a matter of courtesy, ought to have consulted with some of those at the Thames

before they took upon themselves to point our what the defects of working in the field were, and what the remedies should be. (Cheers.) In reference to what had been said about stealing specimens, he might say that the gentlemen who made these remarks knew very little about diggers. They possibly came down here occasionally, but possibly these stories • —«re the invention of some persons in Auck- — —-»tions were nonsensical, but land. Suchacu..... '-■' briag the at the same time tliey ' *— large mining population at the Thames nit*, contempt with the inhabitants, not only of that province, but of the colony at larn-e. Ho (Mr. Matthews) was glad to see that one gentleman who had not been at times thought to be altogether in favour of measures 0 that pleased the diggers, had, at the meeting in Auckland, stated that the diggers did "not pilfer specimens—that lie himself had carefully inquired into the matter, and could not find a single instance of the stealing of specimens. That gentleman was Mr. Thomas Russell, and he thought all credit was due to him, for he was the only individual who in that meeting repudiated and contradicted the statement that the diggers stole specimens. (Cheers.) 1 Mr. Cuua-l-e rose to move an n-or.'lment as follows :—"That; this meeting do not interfere in any way whatever, either bv word or deed, with the Auckland committee." (Hear ) He had been two years on this field, working as hard and as long as any man, and he con* sidered that his character had been assailed, not only by Mr. Thomas Russell, Mr. Beet-ham, and Mr. Morrin, but bv a journal which had been called the leading journal of the province—he meant the Herald. He believed that what was said at the meetin<* at Auckland was the result of what had been stated in article after article of that journal —namely, that the men at the Thames were daily and hourly, and at every shift, robbing gold from the claims. More than that, it said that receiving houses were common, and they knew that the receiver was as bad as the thief. It also spoke about one man who had been working eighteen months at the Thames at 355. a week, and who had got in his house —whether the editor saw it by secondsight or not he coidd not tell —liiid got an ingot of gold weighing 70 pounds. (Laughter.) When they were asked to form a committee to meet and consult with the men who had so branded them, he would say that they ought to meet them with contempt". Let them prove that the miners were the thieves they had been branded as being ; let them prove how the field was to be better worked. He knowsomething about mi ninu work before he came on the Thames goldfield, and lie had seen as good work there as could be done, and as good men too. The meeting at Auckland was a kind of standing advertisement that things at ihe Thames were not so bad as they really were. Why, two-thirds of the woi-king men were out of employment. The gentlemen in Auckland spoke about working managers not having the paying of the men. He wished to heaven they would let others pay them. He had been connected with three companies on that field, and he h'd not got the money due up to that moment. (Laughter.) On one claim he knew of— a rich claim—he did not know whether specimen-stealing went on or not, but he believed Mr. Thomas Russell was connected with it—they had waited for nine weeks on last Saturday, and had never received one single sixpence of money. Let the Herald publish that. Why, it could hardly be •wondered at if men who were so treated stole the specimens. (Laughter and cheers.) He wanted them not to take the slightest notice of the committee in Auckland. They shoidd form a committee themselves that would have as much judgment and more practical wisdom than any men in Auckland. As to taking the offices to Auckland, that was quite absurd. The management must be at the Thames. The directors might live in Auckland if they liked, but the mines ought to be frequently inspected. He had frequently urged directors of companies with which he was connected to visit the mines, but whether it was because they had a plethora in wealth or were too idle he did not know, but he never could get them to attend. No honest miner or mining manager objected to directors going on the ground as often as they chose. Mr. ~D. Grove seconded the proposition of Mr. Carlyle. He must say that he thought the merchants and business people of Auckland had done wonders for the goldfield, and speaking from his own experience he would say they had done more than had been done by the same classes for a goldfield in any other province in New Zealand. Mr. Grove went on to make remarks on amalgauiatioj of claims and other particulars. As to what had been said about stealing of specimens, it was true that the directors at Ballarat had houses where the men shifted their clothes, because the most of the workings were deep sinking, and were wet, and the men had to change their clothes at any rate. But such a thing could not be adopted ou a quartz field. There were very few claims such, as the Long Drive—that was the exception, not tlie rule. In Victoria, he (Mr. Grove) had worked in claims where he never saw a speck of gold in the quartz, and yet the result was always two or three ounces to the ton. Mr. Jajies Sctheriaxd made some observation upon the leasing regulations at present in force, and proposed the following resolution : —" That this meeting is of opinion that such alterations should be made in the leasing regulations as would test and define the difference between legitimate and spurious companies on this goldfield." The Chairman suggested that before the discussion proceeded, a division should be taken on the motion and amendment formerly proposed. This was done, wren the amendment of Mr. Carlyle was carried almost unanimouslyMr. Sutherland then proceeded with his remarks on the leasing regulations and their | defects, and the various subjects raised at the Auckland meeting. Mr. Thomas Barry seconded Mr. Sutherland's resolution. Mr. Grote moved as an amendment, "That inasmuch a3 wo are promised a system of goldfields management by the establishment of a Mining Board, it is unnecessary to elect a committee at present." Mr. M. J. Perstox seconded the amendment, in an excellent speech. Mr. Jajles Wrigley then spoke on the mining regulations, and was followed by Mr. Ralph Dotcix. Mr. W. S. Rees, in an effective speech, proposed—" That a committee often members be appointed by this meeting for the purpose of inquiring into the causes of the present depressed state of_ things on the Thames goldfield, and to suggest means for the removal of such depression, the committee to report to a meeting to be held on this day week." Mr. Chantey Harris seconded the motion. The other motions were then withdrawn by the proposers and seconders, and Mr. Ree'a motion was carried unanimously. The following gentlemen were then elected as the committee : —Messrs. C. 3?. Mitchell, D. Grove, Carlyle, R. Donkin, J. Southerland, W. Howe, R. Matthews, W. Henderson, D. Garvey, C Harris, J. Wrigley. Mr. Rees was proposed, but declined, stating, however, that he would give the committee ail the assistance in his power. A vote of thanks was then passed to Mr. Bennett for the use of the theatre, and a , similar compliment to the Chairman, after which the meeting separated.— Advertiser.