THE GOLDFIBLDS. (FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

Otago Daily Times, Issue 111, 25 March 1862, Page 6

THE GOLDFIBLDS. (FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

Waitahuna, March 22. At Waitahuna, mining operations are very dull. No new ground has been opened, and large numbers of miners have left, some for the Waipori, others for the diggings in German Gully, on the short track to Wetherstoue's, while not a few are returning to Victoria. Yesterday over 200 men left for the new goldfield supposed to ba discovered somewhere in the direction of the Waipori. The rumor here is that it

lies about 40 miles from Waitahuna, in a northwesterly direction, but I cannot learn any particulars as to the cause of the rush. The map shows the neighborhood of the country indicated to be a series of high ranges. Doubtless, more detailed and reliable information will be obtained via Waipori. The party who have been engaged in turning the river have at last succeeded in diverting the stream into its new chanuel. They have not as yet begun to work the old bed, but they are sanguine as to its being payable. The lignite raised on the flat is coming into general use, but the smell emitted during the process of burning is by no means agreeable. I imagine that much of this might be avoided if it were burnt in stoves or covered fireplaces, so that the smoke might be carried off into the open air. The smell is caused by the large quantity of sulphur -contained in the lignite.

There are no signs of any intention to improve the state of the roads, so whatever population is left on this field during the winter may reckon securely that they will have to pay extravagant rates for provisions. The gully opened at the head of the Waitahuna is still being worked, and some fair yields obtained. After the first rush a good many miners settled down quietly and steadily, and they are evidently doing well. Large quantities of gold are still sent down by private hand, and I imagine that, until some one is " stuck up," the storekeepers here will continue to run a somewhat dangerous risk, in bringing the precious metal to town in their saddle-bags. The weather has been very unsettled; frequent showers of rain during the night, accompanied by a dense fog, which is seldom dispelled even at mid-day. The shaft sunk by the Deep Siuking Association is still being worked, and occasional prospects obtained, I but not of a payable character. They are driving along the reef, which is dipping rapidly, but I am afraid the chances of striking a "gutter" arebutvery faint indeed. In the meantime, the work is being proceeded with vigorously.

Tuapeka, March 24 To those unacquainted with digging life and its peculiarities, a Saturday evening on the Qoldfields presents al the appearance of a Saturnalia. Crowds of miners throng the principal streets intersecting the new-fledged townships, the storekeepers and publicans drive a roaring trade, and the hum of many voices mingled with the humming of the banjo, or the dissonant braying of some German band, convey to the onlooker the impression that a festival is being celebrated. It is indeed the festival of successful labor, and the miner, unlike his less fortunate representative in the old country, has •without the assistance of spectacled philanthropists, secured the boon of a half holiday on Saturday. His own roaster, the miner has learnt by experience, that even, ia the exciting pursuit of gold digging " all work and no play makes Jack a dull hoy,"- both physically and mentally. Hence, on Saturday, work is generally suspended at mid-day, the gold washed out during the week is carefully cleaned and sold, and provisions fox* the ensuing week laid in. In the evening a great "spree" is indulged in, and the miner returns to his tent all the better for the relaxation. At present the largest collection of tents, stores, and hotels, is at Wetherstone's, and here you have an excellent sample of the kind of digging life I have referred to. By three in the afternoon the miners begin to crowd Broadway—why so c ailed I am at a loss to imagine, except, perhaps, that it is both broad and deep enoui»h—in mvd —and the business of Saturday lias commenced. Here, Joe Kitchen, of the P.R. celebrity, has collected an immense crowd to witness some interchange of civilities with the gloves j he is delighting his patrons by the production of two of the most famous Cumberland wrestlers, who, as a matter of course, tussle and strain, display all the arts of the game, and then subside among the seeds that have been humanely provided to prevent a too violent contact with mother earth. Later in the evening, when the stores and hotels have been lit up by flaring lamps, the Golden Age attracts the crowd. Here Messrs. Hull and Morgan " rouse the night owl with a catch" to the immense satisfaction of a crowded house. The entertainment is of the character you have provided for you in Dunedin, a la Thatcher, save that Hull, the principal vocalist, is assisted by the excellent playing of Morgan on the harp. A little far ther down Broadway there is the large and well stocked store of J. H. Moses doing a rattling trade. Boots are being fitted on, mounds of tea and sugar distributed to eager customers, anxious, perhaps, to finish the portion of the day's business and enjoy themselves. In another portion of the street, Mears informs the[general public, through the medium of flying stationery, that unquestionably he is the " Wonder of the world." Handbills of all sizes and colors are bespattered over a very extensive stock, and convey the startling intelligence, that, although it is quite true that Wellington, Napoleon, and Nelson have performed great achievements, yet they are far surpassed by Mears, whose astonishing feats in supplying the diggers with raiment, have justly entitled him to the most prominent niche in the Temple of Fame. It would be impossible even in one American advertisement, to find anything more ludicrously bombastic. The Banks, which are by this time shut and unlit, loom gloomily through the glare of eutrounding light, reproaching, by their intense business appearance,the jollity and mirth that isgoiugon on all sides, Quiet hotels like the "British" and "White Star," from their regular customers, who prefer enjoying their nobbier, without the assistance of "■ Gfunjpy.", Thus the evening is passed, and it is preji'ty iiear micfnigjjt bgforp 'thft djn has ceased, find quiet aucl.or.dei.1 again prevail, I have'seen one excellent' sample of nuggetty gold, weighing about 9 ounces, obtained near CampbelFand Thompson's station, which is situate about ten miles from Waipori. The miner who obtained the gold came into Gabriel's on Saturday for his mates, and from what I can learn speaks well of the place. The ground is very patchy, but the gold is heavy—many of the pieces in the parcel referred to weighing three and four pennyweights. Bossjbly this is what caused the rush beyond the \¥aiporid. We have no reliable information here as to the rumored push, Qiid few if any of the miners have left for it. I iim frequently asked" by witnesses are bound in heavy penalties to apppar at Dunedin, how they are tp obtain infqrmatioii as to when their ca»es are likely to come on. They inform me that they pay frequent visits to the camp for this purpose, but that the authorities there cannot supply then* with the information. It would be lyell }f the GJoyernment would either advertise when witnesses in the various cases a*e likely tq bp wanted, qr else cause a notice to be posted at the Oamp to the ejfcot. Suph a course would save a world of trouble to the miner, and pre-r vent the possibility of any criminal escaping justice, from the absence of the witnesses necessary to convict. ' . ' The weather has been sliqwery and disagreeable, although npt sufficiently so as seriously to impede the operations of the miners. It has been more of the character of *' Scotch mist,'' popularly Relieved to be capable of performing- thp sqi'newhat difljcuH prqeess of wetting an Englishman thrqughr There has been very little gold offering during the week, and it is feared the escort will not he up to the average.