GOLD IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4196, 1 September 1874, Page 3

GOLD IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

It seems very probable, says the Melbourne Age, that our sister Colony of Western Australia 1 will not, after all, be left out of the Toll of the gold-producing dependencies of the Crown of Britain ; for although hitherto nothing has been found there by any of the numerous prospectors for gold that have selected tti*at territory as a field for their researches, private exploration has revealed an area .of country which, from the description given by the discoverer, bids fair to rival the auriferous "regions of the Eastern Colonies. We gave a.brief outline of the experience of the discoverer in this journal about two months ago, which r .attracted the notice of a Ballarat gentleman,"who lost no time in putting himself in. communication with the Western Colony, and who has obtained further confirmation of the probable auriferous wealth of the country in question, and some of its other-resources, which we subjoin, omitting the names of parties and places at the request of our informant, who intends to place .himself in communication with the Government _of Western Australia immediately, with a view' to ascertain what rewards, privileges, and facilities it is prepared to offer for the discovery of a payable goldfield, and the introduction of powerful machinery and competent miners. The country where the gold was found is described as scrub. There is plenty of water to be obtained by. sinking wells, if required, and there are large forests of "morrah" timber. The discoverer says he crossed twenty-five miles of slate and quartz country about two years ago, and being impressed with the idea, from the sharp slanting angle at which the formation of the strata lay, and the appearance of numerous quartz reefs two feet to four feet thick, some standing up boldly, out of the ground, others just showing on the surface, that it might be auriferous, he took the first opportunity he got of V trying some ■of - the •. small gullies in the slopes of the country. . He sank several holes in red-colored earth, on the banks of these gullies, to a. depth never exceeding 2ft., and; found water-worn gold, varying in size from duck shot to dust. The washdirt was a stiff blueish clay, with quartz and ironstone pebbles ; in some of the holes rotten or burnt quartz was found, dipping to the southeast, but it was not known if 'that was bottom or not ; in none of the other holes was any bottom' found. No effort was made to sink deeper, .or to trace the' wash-dirt, as the existence of gold was all that he desired 'to; prove. Several persons went out and tried the same place since, and nearly all found gold ; but none of them seem to have attempted to trace the gold xip or down, and perhaps they did not know how.. Small beds of ironstone cement,were also found, in which small nuggetty gold was seen. The immediate locality of the .auriferous region is hilly, but not very elevated. On the outskirts of'it are some very high hills, deserving the name of mountains, some of them granite, on which were scattered enormous boulders of that rock, but quite different in character from any seen by the discoverer in any other part of the 'Colony. In his trip the discoverer followed up a tolerably large river, on the banks' of which ; were large tracts of fine alluvial land, with a large extent of good land beyond the river. The slate and quartz reefs had alia north and south direction. At the latest dates a party of ■ six "Victorian miners was being sent in the direction of the auriferous country by the Government, but it was feared they were not . sufficiently provided. Under any circumstances, we hope to hear that the West Australian Government will treat more liberally with any off era. to open up and develop the immense area of land at their disposal than our coußins; in South Australia have done with their magnificent territory to the north.