BRITISH COLUMBIA.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 260, 20 October 1862, Page 6

BRITISH COLUMBIA.

The following particulars gleaned from the passen - gers by the Alice Thorndike, will be read with iuleresfc. At Victoria. Vancouver's Island, nil the pas*emrera werelanded m good health, only n'ne accident hS opcurred during the passage, by which a man hanffi' kgbrok.-n. but by the surgical skill of Capain Th< rmlyke, he made a good and quick recovery. PTi c town<h.pof \ lC toria is described by the diners who have returned, as beiug a very attracfthe and prosperous little city, rather excelling Dunedia m its natural situation, and in the pubhc spirit exhibited in its improvements. From it they crossed Puget Sound to the coast of British Columbia, and thence proceeded to the Canb o diggings, wbieli had attracted thorn to the country and which have of late been exciting so much interest m the home country. Two routes are adopted to these diggings, either, by Fraser River, on which fi ne steamers are now plying at cheap rates, or by a line of lukes and portages, which is the route more usually • V Bey°nd *!» 'ermination of these natural facilities for communication, the tracks aye described as being almost utterly impassable, preventing all access to the digtrings except on foot, and even then the dimculties are so great aa to render the <li™iniis practically unapproachable. The distance alto^ethefrom the coast is. between six and seym hundred miles, and for a considerable distance the t-ack runs through almost impenetrable bush, and at so low -i level m the creeks that for miles upon mites the road ih more than knee deep \uth muu. Everything in the shape of supplies is necessarily carried oiAhe backs of men, numbers of whom do the duties of pack-horses, and become "used vp1' after very few journeys. According to the description of the passengers by the Alice Thorn.lyke, several of whom have had extensive experience in Oaliforma, Australia, and New Zealand, they never were m a country characterisei by such difficultieseven the worst parts of New Zealand they speak of as a mere trifle compared with the most accessible portions of country surrounding the Ca-iboo dig-'in^s As a natural consequence of this, provisions; at the time the New Zealand diggers arrived there, exceeded by threefold the prices which were recently so much ihe subject of remark on the opening of the Dun«tin diggings. A more serious matter was the. fact that exceedingly rich as some of the first claims had been' * there were, not a score of claims being wrought, and * the few thousands who had been attracted to the spot were realising nothing but the greatest disappointment, aggravated by very serious privations. Out of" the original claims a considerable quantity of gold had been obtained, and it was expected that at the proper season, much more would again be produced; but those who have retunuH by the Alice Thorndyke do not anticipate, from their observation of the country that it is at all a country richly, and generally auriferous; bu it were, the wiuter season is so much of au Arctic character, the summer so brief, nnd the creeks so flooded during the summer by the melting of the snow, that the working period of the yearis absolutely minted to a few weeks. In consequence of ail thi« scarcely one of the New Zaalaud diggers remained on the giound, and all but those who were unable t» return have either come back by the Alice Thornlyka or were shipping by the Lady Young, which a'so took passenirera from this in the early part of the year. On her return passage the Alice Thorndyke touched at the Savage Islands, which Captain Thorndyke con. siders to be a very good place of call. There the vessel was surrounded by two or three hnndred canoes, the natives supplying freely pigs and produce of the island, but it was with difficulty Captain. Thorndyke got clear ot the crowd; and ipur of the natives, %vho refused to po ashore, he was obliged to bring on with him, jmd they are now on board. At present the Alice Thorndyke lies just inside the Heads,' having been towed there by the La-ty Barkly on Saturday forenoon. Her cargo consists of the well-known fine timber obtained on the Oregon Bnttsh Columbia, and Vancouver's Island coasts The Geelorig returned from Lyttvlton on Saturday evening. Miss Harriet Gordon is among her passengers. ' Among her cargo she has twelve Sales of wool from CHmarn, which iorm the first-of. this season's shipment to the port. On Saturday morning, after leaving Oamaru, slio encountered a pretty stiff galo from the N.W., uearing latterly to th« 8. W. v The Woaga Wonga passed up to Duncdin late on Satur (ay evening. Sli- left on Wednesday last, and had a fair passage, calling at Lytfelton on her way.