EARLY DAYS AT THAMES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 16657, 29 September 1917, Page 1 (Supplement)

EARLY DAYS AT THAMES.

BY J. MCCOUBIE.

LAYING THE FOUNDATION.

Looking through a dim vista *>' ups and 1 downs, one is taken back to l the month . of October, 1867, when I formed one of a party who embarked on the p.s. Enterprise No. 2, en route for Thames. It \va3 customary for the little boat to 1 accommodate about 40 passengers, but on 1 this occasion there were 170 men on , board, mostly West Coaßt diggers. Upon , reaching Thames we were transferred to • small boats, and thence to the back of ' the boatman, who landed its on the 1 " hard" beach nearly opposite Mary ■ Street. We pitched our camp, and spent the ( first night in a tent close to a native village, • near the outlet of the Karaka Creek. Next day we arranged with an 1 old native for the use of a raupo-covered whare at a cost of 2s 6d a week, payment in advance. Within a few days we ascertained that a man named Do • Hirsch wns negotiating for the purchase of the property, and subsequently he gave us notice to leave. Our landlord advised us to retain possession, because he had not been paid for his interest. Consequently we turned a deaf ear to all Do Hirsch's remonstrances. Late one afternoon, after a hard day's work in the bush, we returned to the camp to find that the whare bad been levelled to the ground and all our belongings thrown in a heap. The leader of our party, : who was a "forty-niner" from California, viewed the wreckage with grim displeasure. Without any comment he went through his dunnage, produced a sixchambered Colt's revolver, loaded all the barrels deliberately, slipped the weapon into his pocket, and went down to Shortland in search of De Hirsch. Fortunately they did not meet, and later on wiser counsels prevailed. 6000 Miners. The first arrivals were mostly men whoso experience had been confined to alluvial mining, and the majority of them had no intention of prospecting for gold-bearing lodes. A good many shafts were sunk on both banks of the Karaka Creek where it meandered across the flat. These varied from a few feet to about 70ft in depth, and tho ground penetrated was an admixture of sand, shingle, and boulders. The discovory of rich gold and silverbearing ore by Hunt and party in the Iturunui Creek had already called attentioi. to the possibility of finding other ; rich deposits Dy going further afield, and the whole country, from the foreshore up to Punga Flat, v*as soon marked off in small claims. At the time of which I am now writing there must have been fully 5000 men on the field, and they .were nearly all in the prime of life. When Hunt's battery was completed and crushing became the order of the day the weekly bullion returns were simoly phenomenal. Evidencing the value of the ore, it was said that one day when the manager went into tho battery after ah absence of about half-an-hour he found the stampers just gigging on the cams. He charged the boy with overfeeding ai d threatened to sack him on the spot. Tlis boy retorted that ho had not lifted a single shovelful for more than half-an-hour. A cursory examination revealed the fact that the stamper boxes were literally packed with hard amalgam, which had not only forced its way up through the f§pd slots, but had also broken through the screws, was littered over tho amalgamating tables, and forced out into the tail-race. It was said that the ore then under treatment was worth fully 3000oz of bullion a ton, silver predominating. The method of oro treatment then in vogue was of the most primitive description, and now it is generally estimated that fully 50 per cent, of the intrinsic value of the oro was lost in tho tailings. The First Race Meeting. The first race meeting was held on the Parawai side of the Hape Creek, where the course was formed by cutting a circle in the scrub about one mile in circumference. As the centre of the course was clothed by a dense growth of scrub, the competing horses were practically invisible from start to finish, and protests for foul running were innumerable. Owing to the boggy nature of the ground tho going was very heavy, and the strongest horses invariably secured the stakes. To form the straight the timber had been cleared for a width of about two chains. Parallel with the straight trunks of felled trees ware piled up on one side to a height of about 3ft. During the day a dispute arose about the judge's decision in one of the events. This culminated in a free fight, and the orowd surged backwards until the rearguard came in contact with the rampart of logs, over which they tumbled backwards, falling on top of each other until they were piled up to the level of the top of the logs. Hundreds of men were prostrated, while those comprising the bottom row were almost completely submerged in a combination of mud and water, and many of them had a close call before being released. Mountain Creek Road was the first bland thoroughfare formed on the field, and the work was carried out by the claim-owners whose properties were con tiguous to it. The business mon of the town supplied tools and explosives, and they provided refreshments during the progress of the work. A man named Stephenson entered into a contract with some claim-owners to erect a battery at the head of the Waiotahi Creek, and, as the plant was to be driven by steam, the greatest difficulty that presented itself was to convey tna boiler from the foreshore to the proposed battery site. There was nothing in the shape of a road in the Waiotahi Creek, and the contractor decided to make use of the Moanataiari Creek road up to a certain point, and then cross the range by the easiest route. Paddy Bonfield undertook the work of transportation. Soon after starting, the sledge upon which the boiler was fastened went completely out of sight in the yellow plastic clay, which formed a sort of top-dressing on the road, and the team of eight horses failed to budge the turnout. While this struggle was in progress word was passed through the claims that Stephenson had started to take a boiler over the road, which he had previously refused to subsidise. In less time than it takes me to tell the story fully 500 diggers mustered at tho place where the boiler was stuck, and threats to throw it into the creek were numerous. An ex-Imperial officer, Captain Missey, who was a very popular sharebroker, mounted the boiler and addressed the assemblage. He pointed out to them that none of the lodes could be turned to profitable account without the aid of quartz-crushing machinery. As this was the first crushing plant to be taken up amongst the hills, he suggested that the diggers should recognise such enterprise by taking the boiler up themselves. Ho promised to see that plenty of refreshments would be provided, and that Bonfleld's horses should be requisioned to keep up the supply. Massey's advice was acted upon promptly, and three musicians straddled the boiler, long ropes were attached to it, and, hundreds of men lending a willing hand, the boiler was landed on the machine site that night. Amusements. The American Theatre, situated at Shortland, behind Butts' Hotel, was , leased to "Johnny" Hall, who staged all [ the favourite pieces of the day and played to crowded houses night after night. , One night a desperate fight took place on the gallery, and in tho general melee j two men were strenuously endeavouring ) to throw a third over the banisters, i The attention of the audience was now ! centred on the outcome of the struggle. One Irishman sang out: "Don't waste him, bhoys, don't waste him; throw him into the orchester and kill a fiddler wid [ him." This sally created such a divert sion that the quarrel was brought to an 11 abrupt conclusion, and the play was continued without any, further interference