LETTERS FROM THE GOLDFIELDS,

Otago Witness, Issue 1189, 12 September 1874, Page 6

LETTERS FROM THE GOLDFIELDS,

THE DUNSTAN. — CLYDE AND ALEXANDRA. This portion of the Dunstan district

i — cannot be said to be in a flourishing condition so far a3 the townships are-con-cerned. In the matter of gold getting there is nothing to be complained about. The sluicing claims under the ranges, forming the valley of the Manuherikia and Dunstan, have not in the least fallen off in their yield. There is plenty of ground to be worked, and to largely increase the population is merely a question of water supply. Clyde originally owod its existence and prosperity to a very fortunate circumstance so far as itself was concerned. It wa« the terminus of wheeled traffic between the seaboard and Northern goldfields, and to communicate beyond this the aid of pack horses had to be resorted to. Clyde, therefore, was a temporary emporium for Cromwell, Cardrona, Nevis, Lake Wanaka, and in a great measure for a considerable portion of the Lower Wakatipu, and even Queenstown, when supplies run short there, by the impassability of the Invercargill and Kingston road, was compelled to fall back upon Clyde for many little articles that would warrant the expense of being conveyed by pack-horses. Goods to a limited extent found their way into Cromwell and the Upper Clutha from Oamaru, by way of the Lindis, as far as Bendigo Gully ; but even this did not interfere very materially with the trade done by way of Clyde, which was the only convenient terminus for the Dunedin traffic. The opening up of a dray road to Cromwell, and its continuation further to the Nevis and Arrow, permitted teams to pass through, which formerly would have been compelled to discharge their cargoes here. Consequently the business men, that drove a brisk

trade by the sale of merchandise, whioh, from the very fact of the force of circumstances alone, they, as it were, " were to the manner born," found their occupation gradually leaving them, their customers negotiating directly between themselves and the Dunedin merchants, when the inevitable consequences of a gradual clearing out followed. The workings on the rich gold-bearing beaches and banks of the Molyneux having become exhausted, was a still further blow to the prosperity of Clyde. The introduction of dredging machines, together with a large number of Chinese settling down along the river to re-work what the European miners had left, caused a temporary revival of prosperity, but the father of New Zealand waters, although great and powerful, and a veritable Pactolus in stores of golden treasure, could not long withstand the combined and systematic attacks of the bold and determined European miner, followed by the patient painstaking Mongolian, and he succumbed, or rather was stripped of all the gold that could easily be got at. And what after this three years of fossick ing by Chinese, systematically manipulating upon the bare bones of his banks, and the deep and continuous thrusts of the dredging machine into the innermost recesses of his very body, could be expected but that the prosecution of any further researches must be attended with very uncertain and poorly remunerated results ? The operations of the dredging machine might certainly have been continued longer, but the enormous accumulation of debris which constantly keeps flowing down the river from the workings higher up its course, is gradually raiding its bed, and many feet of this loose material requires to be removed before the gold-bearing strata at the bottom can be reached. Even the removal of this fine gravelly drift would form no material obstacle to progress ; but the fact that this debris is always on the move, and as fast as a hole is sunk down into it, it as quickly fills up again, is an effectual bar to progress ; and until some ingenious plan to deal with the difficulty is found out, and whatever this may be, the aid of powerful and expensive steam machinery will be indispensable to assist, dredging for gold in the meantime will scarcely form an inviting and profitable undertaking. As an official centre, the town of Clyde is certainly very conveniently situated, and this has been lately pretty satis factorily demonstrated by the fact that that the Warden and Resident Magistrate here has been for the last two months transacting the business which took four Wardens to accomplish. From Queenstown to the Teviot, and from Blacks to Clyde, the whole of the business pertaining to the Resident Magistrates and Wardens' Courts of this enormous area of country has been efficiently performed by Mr Warden Simpson. Of course such an amount of work to overtake for any lengthened period would be beyond the powers of any one man to accomplish. Still the fact is significant, that the Goldfields staff must at one period have been considerably in excess of public requirements, or that the complaints by officers of being overworked were more imaginary than real. The public buildings, such as the Town-hall, Court house, and School, are ■ worthy of note. These, together with some three or four stone stores and half-a-dozen similarly built residences, are the only attractive features in the shape of architectural pretensions ; the remainder of the buildings being of that temporary stamp — with some slight improvements added — that used to do servioe in the early days of the goldfields. Clyde cannot be said to be an improving town, yet there i 3 a large amount of business transacted within it — perhaps more than in many planes of greater pretensions, the commercial transactions of the place being more of a wholesale character conhned to a few, and necessarily cause the place to look quiet. In its sanitary arrangements the Town Council of Clyde have set a very commendable example. Having secured a plentiful supply of water, a considerable stream is kept constantly flowing down each side of the main street in a paved channel formed by the stone kerbing protecting the footpaths. This is doubtless a great preservative of health, and Dr Coughtrey gave it as his opinion when he officially visited Cromwell anent its sanitory condition in the matter of the late epidemic, that the almost immunity from sickness possessed by the inhabitants of Clyde was mainly due to an abundant water supply. The Municipality is the only one that I have lately come across that boasts of a balance at its bankers. Between £600 and £700 is in the hands of the Corporation for outlay upon local improvements, and which, with the coming spring, is to be expended. The fact of having secured a water supply in,the early days of the Municipality, and the advantageous terms upon which it was obtained/ were the means of placing Clyde in such a favourable financial position, the water supply to the inhabitants having steadily returned a considerable revenue.

The town is well supplied with coal. The Clyde coal pit is within the municipal boundary on the banks of the Molyneux, and the seam runs right under the town. The coal is now being raised from a depth of 130 ft. The se<im is 30ft. in thickness, and its burning quality is not equalled, except by the coal obtained at Upper Kawarau. Very powerful machinery is required to keep the mine drained of water. The pumping machinery consists of a seven and a nine-inch lifts of pumps driven by a twenty-six foot water-wheel. A smaller wheel and pump also do duty at a second shaft near the river. Mi

Donald Macpherson, one of the_ first to introduce self-acting punts for rivers in Otdgo, has lately completed a very large punt for crossing the river here, a little below the township ; the platform is built upon three large substantial boats, and is forty feet in length by twelve feet in width, and will admit a waggon and six horses without unhitching; the charges for crossing the river are extremely moderate, beiag only one shilling per horse, and nothing for the vehicle or lading ; while in the case of return teams Mr M'Pherson allows a reduction of one-half. It is proposed to build., a bridge across the Molyneux at Clyde, to accommodate the increased traffic which will result from the opening of the Tuapeka Railway. The Town Council purpose erecting the structure themselves, with money borrowed especially for that purpose. It is considered by all parties that the speculation will prove a very profitable one.

ALEXANDRA.

Alexandra — or the Manuherikia Junction, as this township was originally known — was one of the first places where gold was obtained on the batiks of the Molyneux in the Dunstan district. Hartley and fteilly found gold hore on their way up the < river, and while they were working at the beaches named respectively after them, a Government prospeoting party had seized upon the Manuherikia Junction, and it was not until they had struck payable gold that Hartley and Riley betook themselves down to Dnnedin, taking, it is said, about eighty pounds weight of gold as an evidence of their success, that they might claim a reward for their discovery. The banks of both the Molyneux and Manuherikia Rivers in this immediate vicinity were very rich, and attracted a considerable population. Butler's Point, the Frenchman's, and Half Mile Beaches, were famous for their deposits of gold, and as every little rise in the Molyneux seems to have interrupted the workings, mauy ingenious contrivances in the shape of current wheels were invented to clear the workings of water. Large overshot wheels supplied with water from a distance, were also used for the same purpoee. While gold continued to be plentiful on the river banks and beaches, Alexandra enjoyed a season of prosperity ; but as the precious metal became soarce, and the population dwindled away, the town contracted in dimensions. At the present time the population of Alexaudra proper is a very small one. Its streets appear to bo well kept, and the Corporation, emulating their brethren at ' lyde, purchased a water supply, brought in nearly 30 miles by a race, for the uses of the town. The water is unfortunately anything but clear at times, and citizens desiring a pure and limpid element are obliged to go to the Molyneux to obtain it. The main road to the Teviot and Tuapeka crosses the Molyneux here. The punt used for crossing is faultless in point of construction and usefulness ; the boats supporting the platform are built of iron, and cost a considerable sum of money. Messrs M'Kenzie, the owners, are desirous of facilitating the traffic by every means in their power, and more attention is paid to the working of this punt than any other I have seen on the Molyneux or Kawarau. The fares are the same as at Clyde — one shilling per horse, and a reduction of one half for the double journey, even though some days may intervene. In agriculture the district of the Dunstan has not made the progress it should, and it is only within the last two or three years that local growers of horse fodder have been enabled to supply anything like what the necessities of the market demand, and still the quantity is seriously deficient. The difficulty of obtaining land has been the obstacle to settlement here ; but as this, for a great measure, has been removed by small concessions in the shape of blocks thrown open for occupation under the deferred payment system, at the Bald Hill, Tiger Hill, and the valleys of the Dunstan Ranges, both Clyde and Alexandra will be benefited by the presence of a settled rural population. The very fact of the Dunstan importing so much of its cereals, when it should be producing them for itself, unmistakeably points to the cause of a dull trade, and the desultory character of employment generally throughout the district. The Dunstan folks are, however, beginning to learn wisdom, and besides the erection of a flour mill, are agitating that sufficient land should be thrown open to meet the requirements of the people. In the matter of fruit, the climate of the Dunstan appears particularly favourable to its growth, as instance the enormous crops gathered from -the Monte Christo Gardens, the gardens surrounding Clyde and Alexandra, besides numerous little orchards owned by miners settled in the vicinity of the banks of the Molyneux. The withdrawal of a considerable portion of the labour of the district through the demand for public works has sadly interfered with its general prosperity, and until some reaction takes place people must continue to remain satisfied with substituting a slow jog trot pace for the high pressure system the excitement of a brisk trade and the plenitude of gold obtained by the miners naturally accustoms them.