GOLD.

Otago Witness, Issue 331, 3 April 1858, Page 4

GOLD.

The apathy of our public upon the subject of gold is very surprising. At Nelson, notwithstanding the difficulties they have had to contend with, the diggers still hold their ground. Their dams broken up, their toms washed away, and their claims filled up, does not appear to stop or even to dispirit them. From the " General Government Gazette " we observe that £40,443 worth of gold has been exported from New Zealand during the nine months from April to December 1857. This must have been from Nelson. This presents a strong contrast to the state of matters in Otago. Gold has undoubtedly been discovered in several places of Otago, viz., in the Mataura, in the Waiopai, in the Clutha. at the Dunstan ranges, and now in the Tuapeka and yet not one single person has made the least attempt to test the value of any of these fields, extending over many hundreds of miles. The offer of the reward of £500 has not had the slightest effect in stimulating exertion. Will the following letter from Mr. Garvie induce any one to lose a week with the hopp of proving the workability of the field ?— Te Houka, Clutha River, '23rd March 1858. To J. T. Thomson, Esq., Chief Surveyor. Sir — I have the honour to inform you, that while engaged in the survey of Tuapeka country, one of the men belonging to my party discovered Gold to be pretty plentifully distributed even among the surface gravel near the mouth of that stream. Having no sinking tools, we did not examine any further, but there are indications of its pobsibly turning out a workable gold field ; and as I heard at Mr Maitland's station that it is known by ether paities, I thought it best to take the fiist oppoitunity of sending jou notice. The place is so accessible that a diay could take a ton at least from the Waiiiola Ldl.e,; plenty of scrub for fiie- ! wood, and a consideiable extent of excellent agri- ! culunal land in the neighborhood. I have the honour to be, Sir, Your obedient Servant, (Signed) Alex. Gauvie, Assistant-burveyor. It is rather singular that two of the discoveries have been made by the Surveyors who are engaged in other work, and cannot spend much time on the search, and yet their accounts are so favourable that, were any person with more liesure to attend to the subject, the success would, in all probability, be much greater, COAL. We have to notice also the discovery of an extensive bed of coal on the Mataura, a district where an abundance of fuel will no doubt lead to most beneficial results. The scarcity of that necessary being the greatest drawback to the occupation of that district. To bis Honor the Supeiintendent of the Province of Otago

Purley Downs Station, Matiura, loth March, 1858. Sm, — I beg respectfully to intimate to you that I have found a valuable field of Coal upon the Mataura River, extending (as far as the appearance of the bed of the river will permit me to judge), from the mouth of the Waikiki Creek to the Upper Falls of the Mdtaura— a distance of about rive or six miles. The seam in many pl.ices is ten or twelve feet in thickness, especially at the corner of the Moknnui Range. Although the conditions, (required in the Government advertisement, offering a reward for the discovery and practicable woiking of a coal-field in the Frounce), in order to claim said reward, could not, under the present circumstances, be fulfilled by me, I beg rehpectfully to represent, that as the northern and eastern sides of the Mataura river are utterly destitute of fuel, which this discovery would entirely mnove, I am justified in hoping that at some future peiiod, when the question of distributing the said, rewaid is under consideration, my claim to a portion of the sauie will be favourably Heated.— l have the honor to be, Sir, Your most obedient servant, Natiil. Chalmers.

We observe from perusing the Australian papers that the harvest generally has fallen short of what was auticiputed. The extreme heat of the summer, and the long continued drought, has had a very serious effect upon the oats and crops of Indian corn. Hay,

though of good quality, is light in quantity, and all kinds of horse-feed threaten to become scarce. We are therefore inclined to believe that our prediction, made last autumn, that oats would this year be the most paying crop to our farmers, is in a fair way of being realized; and before the end of the season, there will be a good margin for export. Potatoes appear likely to be scarce in Australia. We imagiue they will not be plentiful with us ; but we understand they are abundant in the other Provinces of New Zealand.

Ordination of a Minister to Otago — On Tuesday, the Free Presbytery, Edinburgh, met in the High Church for the ordination of Mr. William Johnson, to the ministry in Otago, with a special view to the districts of Port Chalmers and the north. The services were conducted by the Rev. A. Philip of Portobello. — Edin. Herald, Nov. 28.

Justices of the Peace.— The General Government Gazette contains the appointments of the following Justices for Otago :— William Henry Cutten, Esq., of Dunedin ; William Henry Teschmaker, Esq., of Waitangi; Alexander M-Master, Esq., of Waitangi; Francis Wallace Mackenzie, Esq., of Murihiku; William Gordon Rich, Esq., of Murihiku ; and Walter Henry Pearson, Esq., of Invercargill. Gold Exported ritoai New Zealand. — The General Government Gazette contains the following statement :— The estimated net quantity of gold dust exported from New Zealand from the 9th April, 1857, to the 31st December, 1857, is 10,436 oz., 13 dwts., 22 grama. Ihe estimated value is £40,443 ss. 7a? Besides a considerable quantity exported privately, which cannot be ascertained.— Southern Cross, Feb. 23.