EXPERIENCES OF PIGCING AND PACKING GUM.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVII, Issue 8330, 9 August 1890, Page 1 (Supplement)

EXPERIENCES OF PIGCING AND PACKING GUM.

_;__.—<> 1 | WANDERINGS IN THl] Blj9H. [BY .MIIKS STITCIIBOIjy.] ; Some 25 years' a£o I was buying and pack-ing-gum from v. plane named JPorkii, about ten miles up :lw ranges fronj tho landing at Tapu Creek, where I shipped; it to Messrs. Brownj Uainpbell anq Co.j Auckland. I had a; 1 iifge tent, am| kept stores to sell and giv|> jin exchange ipr gum, or I would pay for Jt In cash. Vetl' seldom the digger would ita/se ctish, as th|jy ccUld nob do without buc'teir, and it alsojsaveji them a journey to thb township, most of i;;y trade being with th<i Jilaoris. The |irice*of gum was only lis p(ir;-ew.b delivered:; at r.J;y tent. For miles rounjl ?ny twnfe the d ggorfi would travel with spiidi;, s;p:jar, sack and: enough tucker bo ketif ; thsr-i through tile day, startingearly i|i the morning prpddiijg every tree they thought likely to haje gum at the roots. iS('misbvmes aftej digging lor two hours they; viou'ld be rewarded; by the rich deposit of; ai few pounds c-t" gum, then go on for a mi-.eor so and cime |>n to a good patch. j have seen mei working on Table Mountain,i and within j>ne Hundred yards take omj tons of gum, pot i>f very good quality I'trtainly, but fitting it so easily and in ijtiiih quantity tlj.it tli'jy have been able to njallo £1 bo £10 a|weeb. Two diggers pikaucjJ jljcwt of gutt; eveiy night each to my teijfc =for weeks, having fco carry it 2J miles thj.'Oiigh the bus!?. Oh a wet, coldday it wai> pitiful to see idie jioor fellows, soaking through,come totbhe sj.ore and buy a bobtlc olj piiin killer, diviiieitih pannikins, water it;, iincl drink tojwanii themselves. You ifatjy judge that -,i rarin want* reviving when; lie will do that- Tlie Maori gumdiggers as; a 'general rule ((re vdry honest and obliging- I had a ptwd |quad of Maoris as cu,iC;)mers, one Tjtmihj.na and wife, and TopU ;mc ; i his wife ;-; tlufse were very hardworking. The vjome-';, after a day's work, 'tyqald make firstj rateklampen in a copper 'Maori, and ofb«;n b:[ing me some. Of course I returned i|the '(compliment, and wo Jjcjb on.very well I generally gave them the! host price for «hoir|jum, an they were veiryl particular ii* scraping il. well. I had i:'. surprise one Next. to my tent waft ii large stackiof ui|scraped. gum, which wji3;waiting to be scraped on a i web day. Byname means gun! caught j fire, and ratlhrr seared mi*, as] ib wan much too cljiw! to be plv:asar.;t. "Up; I jumped, rapid the alariri;, aijd soon i all were running with bucket." bilhes, etc.,,; to the creek, : E'onning a string wo sooiji gob it under, ijijiil at the samji tiir'j all my I goods were ca[ri;jd out of the !»-3iit, J'or so mo i distance out o| harms way, ar»d clearing a; space, to save i.si ;nuchgum as jpssifcje, we leo' the remainder;[burn itself out. s Several pool' i fellows lost ijeiu'ly i.six week).' wijrk, and. they had to ruin up a bill with /me, ,io that 1 • had to suffer [fajr a oime, but;' it ijame all right in the ei|d ; • : 1 kepteightilx.Tscis, or ratheijseveit horses,, and a mule, vvhi'ih I named Jajob. i He was: the most steady and best weight barrier it. had. lie woikld pick his stjps, kvoid'injlji the roots ai;-d mud pools? a,-.d takij: it very easyi iwhila the ,'.orse|( would flounder aboiltj an.l make' h.ai.l work of what ho ■ ousld think j nothing of, and he would be quite fresh compared with the horses i.it she end of; the ,journej. Each horse hijd to carry aboup onj; and ahalf hundredweight ab each si're of ijhe piicij saddle, bub ) ;i;;tlo Jacob, ?.ltho;igh tba smallest, woijlcj have to ta|ie ijis three hundred In coming < 4 own;from my tent to the bcaciii at Tapu Cn-ok vie had to follow the miiiii ridge of ranges;; and as soon as wo tier bo a particular sharp and barren range Liemed Razorbavk o!,e of my horses, and JI believe thejlargjjsb one, generally made it a practice to 'fall, and roll down thii rigly hill, and l 4 y th[i timo lie: reached the iciijek you may? be isure the! gum was not;ve;iy large. Of couifse, I had to go down; ti» die creek ;and-get hiiinj rigged up a];,;iin, and any iharryss that; might be btiokon I hsji tio leave hid away itj ;he bush untj.l oijr returr; journey ; thep by the time I jgot I.p the top of the range* f-gain, all the- oth'sr hors'l;;;; would bo * tittered. The! troiible was; getting theuj t igetlier again - , which woukj take perhapsti.ri hour or more. T.dk about bullock drive'"?.swearing ; this scjrb of; fun. would make *i l.iisliop swear i) he had to g(f through it. A lotht'r start v|ouldi be made* to continue! pur journey 'i'e ujould got' down very niciidy after passing tihis steep hill, unless st:, commenced ,00 r.j.iu. Tlk;i creeks would ' jfchun gob swollen,; and tin? lower wo got; (fovi-n the morji dar>erot:S iiji was to cross; i/s we had to i|.o ab<)ub forty bimes, from, r'tto sb:irb to tl-e epd of . tlitit journey. Pairiicula!: caro hail to;be taken;. in swimming ; the horses ; ovej, as if. we let thearj l.avo ; their he'd v<jry likely they would dtay over the U'apk's into ii still deep piioE, or get amo'ig vpry liirg,|) boulders, getting unmanageable, thov would most "ihely drown tls3insciive3 ilia. ing such a lujavy load on thpir hack, ijuji for the poor Id iv ens, they >?ouldf be in I tit queer plight.? bairig wet thro gh |iaving :bji swim the crei;)i?|3 and perhaps',resc a fcorsi) that had gotjirito difficulties Jin dt;ep water. In a heavy jftfash my poor) mate, that: [ worked four |/«|irs with on tl|3 Ttiiimas,. go's washed dowi*! the creek jind drowned:, Being caughi; l;y a sunken 5 nag Sand held his body was] apt found for sjvoraj days.;. One day a ;M,iori came to n'.s aivjl Asked if would buy itoine honey ; l\h knjsw where thore was a Ijoi-s' ntst. I to J i hip I would buy it if it jwja good and j.lean: OiiFne started through tho bush. i Stopping at a kauri tree, hjj jiaid, "Kanuijpai, 'kapai; the honey." C'ti tjie trise he we«t by; the aid of a rata vino fcSi.th grew around'the free. Sitting on a biiaijcli, he drew-his J-omaliawli from his belt;; i?jd scon made a hd'le in the hollow tree, {jetting enough -;ione ; bo rub on himself, so tpri; the bees w«>uld|not listing him. Then 'pt; sang out for :ohe ;i>ucke:b. : I threw a line;uj;i, v.nd hesoonjliad She bucket filled with s]!ile.;iidid honey, fyhicj, we ;tcok to the tent, \\n\l next day wpnt back with everything i ( i ihe sliapo of Ijins (|r buok-jts and got a jjreit doal more,] Taking .1 kit to the towmihip, I sooi| disposed (if it. The Maciri made a gc;<id dj.y's work, and thej mjißlj 'surprising jthin|; was * lie never got a.' eidng, although tl|3 bei'S .' in hundreds vieiie fljing abo>|b hijn all; He time he wasit-fi the tree. One j/oung fellow that wacj with us gob stung vjsry badly, and lay on broad of his {bach} blind for three or foil!' [lays. We be.';hed;him with some arnica tid ho soon goLall r&ht agaijji, but nothing-would induce h'm to;go homj>yhunting again' * i As time wpin-t en competll/ion ,|;ot rather keen in the Line at the .'''orkii, so that I had to go airtber afield. { I smrted ccie morning wit : a ;ny partner fo| Mercury Bmv, with just a \&ir biscuits ami butter. A,Ve had been or: tihe track abc-ub t<vo hour.it, when we sat ri.own to have -a siiack, after which we m-idi) another starf, ami happened bo bake the v/rj>n|j rack. Af ier wjilking a n : d climbing foi;:'cur hours, we,landed a jhort distance fnjw the place yhenj we held lunch, bub jfind the track; wo ,:ould nob. We each clucked the tallest] treej we could find, but a|te":r getting up,'as ljigh as vie could, it wait (inly to find hjghei; bree* tfc'd ranges all licijncj. us. We ibheni sab do« ; pretty nearly Ragged out, ai*,d ciime to the conclusion i ; vroiucl bo better to jfollow lil ie creek dowr.| ■ Knowing w;> w«ire on jibe Mercury Bi;y side of the iHyidlng rang 3, we felt sure:wis should come;out lin th.3 iwa coast somevdi'ire, Being l(Ut it| thebuiih is an awfu» (Sensation, as i'ioth?.ig ci*n be seen bub tin'} iiky and trees; and'not knowing when (*!• whether you; will ever fold your way •uv, it rather ;>uts ta .damper on one's Spirits. It waj no joka of a tramp, sbtit we stuci;t t|» it till dark, then ■ had to sljike 5 down jiiin the stones liy the side ;'of she creais. Luckily it c-idincst rain, or trie creeks woiiild have swollchi i and we shotlld tpvo had a rough time.? A saw during this (i-amp senile of the fines!) frseuery I have;ever; seen,. At one large 'iniek we landed- in there 'ras a terrace of iiojid quartz, forining-;four ericrmous steps; On the topst?>p tiiere was a well as rourid : is if it had t.jen |:ut by the chisel. Thi;i depth we triad b;r throwitig boulders d6w«a. T The bubldes i;epb i-iaitig for some eeeci.ds. Below t%at again 'va.s a plain poli3l'i()(ii ittep, and a? the? bottom of all, in the teci of the creeli, vrafi a square dismal, daik;3e;3p pool, aaistill as a sleet of glass, Wsihh made one ihudder to l:J)k down at it. J '{'ho sides of tlfe crtisk wore in enormous h:;ii|:ht:, We managed joscnurdde down belovijStiis pool by folfjwin;fthorai?e fioma dista:Hij;i, -joon djroppifng (»own. VPe

i [then had a clear open creek for some disi tance. The creeks now combined formed j into a river, which we had to wade foraome I distance down, as the country being open the fern and scrub was so high and dense it was a matter of impossibility to get through it. We at last found tracks of horses, which we followed, and they led us into a Maori settlement. Being very hungry and tired we rested, and got the Maoris to cook some dried fish and potatoes, which we paid them liberally for. Never was such a meal relished as • this one. After we had done justice -, to it, the Maoris directed us to where , we wanted to go, and we fetched the Bay ' jusb at dark. Next- morning we finished ' the business which brought us over, then ' | started on our journey back to the Forks, i and did not waste any time, but when we \ got half-way it commenced to rain, or, I , should say, pour. We hurried along, , I wading the creeks, as we knew the longer ' ' we tarried the higher the creeks would be. j ; After a great many narrow escapes in * i w'-.ding, it came to swimming across. , | Luckily we had taken a horse line with us, i which came in very useful. One would I swim across, then help the other; but ' I darkness came on, and we had to make the 1 I best of a shakedown in our wet clothes for . 1 the night, only about a mile and a-half i from our tent. We did not want rousing , ) in the morning, as we had very little sleep, ', I although so tired, but as soon as the break « of day we started for our camp, when we J were glad to get a change of clothing, and i the billy under weigh. i, —