THE! MIGHT HAVE BEEN BILLIONAIRES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2201, 7 May 1896, Page 50

THE! MIGHT HAVE BEEN BILLIONAIRES.

RtoH Mines and Their- Discoverers. The actual discoverers and original owners of the richest mines in the world have, with but few exceptions, failed to reap the reward of their discoveries. The receut A mean crisis has brought to light the fact that a present iamate of the Guildford Workhouse was at one time the owner of the land on which the town of Johannesburg now stands. He had a dispute with the Boers, and as a result his property was confiscated. The first discovery of gold on the property was made in /by a man named Arnold, who was employed on a farm owned by a Dutchman. • The farm, wflseoon after sold to

rapidly. In order to try and retrieve his losses he purchased two adjoining selections of 640 acres in all.

Bad luok still pursued him, and, shortly after, ha was compelled to leave the land and go in search of work in order to earn enfficienb money to buy the nece&saries of life. He obtained employment at a mine, and amused the miners by describing the great, ugly black rocks that were so plentiful on his selections. He so frequently referred to a monntain composed of these rocks that the curiosity of two miners named Morgan waa aroused, and one day they set out to sac it for themselves.

After several rough experiments the Morgans felt satisfied that these formidablelooking

BOULDEBB CONTAINED GOLD, and, to the surprise of Gordon, offered to buy the laud on which the mountain was situated at £1 per acre. The offer was readily accepted, and the land ohanged hands at £640.

The Morgans sold a half share to a party of gentlemen, consisting of Messrs Hall Brothers, W. D'Arcy, and W. Pattison, for the sum of £320.

Later, when the real value of the property became apparent to the latter gentlemen, they were eager to buy the Morgans' share. This they eventually succeeded in doing, the price paid being under £70,000. Messrs Hall, D'Arcv, and Pattison are now millionaires; the Morgans are none too well off; Donald Gordon is a struggling farmer.

The Mount Bischoff tin mine is situated in North- West Tasmania, and is acknowledged to be one of the richest tin mines in the world. The shareholders have already had- several millions in dividends, and there is enough metal in sight to pay many more. This mine was discovered by a man named James Smith in 1872. He was prospecting for years in country so thickly wooded that he had to cut his way through with an axe. From his persistency in carrying on his search, and hie eagerness in trying to con-

[ he crossed the South Australian border and disposed of it in that colony. Hio conscience oeemed to have troubled him, for, a few months later, fee communicated the whole facts lo his late employer, begging him not to inform the police of his crime. The locality being revealed, a rush set in, and Ballarat became the talk of the world. Richfould died a pauper. Next in importance to Ballarat comes Bsndigo. A ONE-ARMED MAN named Hustler discovered a line of reefs, and for some time the secret was his own. He was surprised, unawares, by a party of prospectors, who were staggered at the sight of the rich reefs. They pegged out claims adjoining Hustler's, and a few days later people were flocking to Bendigo in hundreds.

For more thin 40 years has this line of reefs continued to pvodaoe gold. Many men, notably Messrs Watson and Lansell, became millionaires; bat Hustler, like many of bis predecessors, died a poor man, under very pad ( circumstances. Had he been able to hold his original possessions he would undoubtedly have been the riobest man in the world. Captain Sutter, a Datch contractor, was the first to discover gold in California. He accidentally made the discovery through a fall of earth takiDg place while he was building a water-raca for a mill on the Americanus River. He died a very rich man. THE LONDONDBBRY MINE, in Western Australia, was discovered most unexpectedly by a member of a party of prospectors. They were returning after along search over hundreds of miles of country, and were camped within nine miles of their starting plaoe. The spot which they had selected as their last camping-ground is now a flourishing town. The prospectors sold their claim to Lord Fingall and Colonel North, cealißine about £20.000 nor man, ,

MEN HAUNTED BY DELUSIONS.. Yet AtsH Otherwise PBRffEOiLY Ban& This article does not deal with the hallucinations to which the inmates of asylums are subject. It treats of actual instance! of. men of to-day, who, while endowed with perfect sanity, are yet imbued with some strange belief which amounts to a delusion. Of these mistaken convictions some partaka of pathos and melancholy, while other?, as is inevitable, savour of the humourous. Under the former category, one of the pafnful examples is furnished by a geaWoman whose name is familiar to all. He is wealthy — ao wealthy indead that his fortune probably by this time runs into seven flgifrar. Yet the possessor or such vast riches ia by no means happy. His life began in comparative poverty, and hi 3 fortune has been built up by his own herculean energy. Each year fladtf him richer than in the last ; and, moreover, he is a most careful man, rigorously eschewing anything like a risky speculation. And yet, despite these things, his life is olonded by the gloomy conviction that hs. is to end his days in the direst poverty. | Reasonless as his presentiment to all appearance really is, no arguments, entreaties, or ridicule can disabuse him of his melancholy forebodirg Eicb addition to his fortune he regards as a new premonition of his ultimate fate ; and to show how genuine .ip 1 his apprehension, it may be mentioned that h? has actually insured his life for £100j in order that he may for certain avoid a pauper's fuueral. Strange, strange indeed 1^ Professional comedians are popularly credited with more than -the average amQaufc of melancholy in their composition, but it is ' devoutly to be hoped that the following .is ' not a typical case. An actor who has been on the stage for a nuoaber of years, uiually fillirg a comedian's role, is filled with the belief that he will die one day on the stage. Exactly in what circumstances he Cannot; say, bnt he thinks hia end will come from apoplexy when laughing. So far from participating in the smile which the bald narrative of the oircutnEtanoes may provoke, he aft times is filled with the greatest depression in their contemplation. As in the previous caw, nothing tha<; his.frieuds can do can persnade bleu of the groundlessness of hia peculiar supposition. In connection with the stage anothoc exuaiple may be mentioned. A veiy excellent and popular Unor, famous in comic opera, is literally haunted by the impression that one day he will lose his ear for music and tbu-< be deprived of bis means of livelihood. So profoundly is he impressed with this idea thafc he has on more thau one occasion announced his intention of abandoning the stage aad entering some profession which the calamity he fears to ba impending will not affack. It has only been through the strenuous efforts of his friends that; be baa retained his connec-" tion with .the boards so long. If any man ought to feel happy, one would imagine that man to be a successful author. , To earn am amp c income, and be enabled totravel s.ll over the world, helped rather than hindered in his occupation by change of scene and environment, seems certair-ly to make for Blysian biles. Yet there is certainly one man of to-day who, while enjoying tho advantages of these things, is frequently rednoed to a *tate of hypochondria by gloomy anticipations of waning popularity. So far fioin this foreboding being borne out by facts, his publishers' books testify to his increasing favouritism with the reading public. Bat nothing will serve to mitigate the distress his unreasoning anticipation causes. The late Rrert Louie S'evenaon was impressed by a Bcm*>vrha& similar idea, but in a so much mildsr degree that hi* case cannot be compared with the one in point. A gentleman residing in Hammersmith was for several months haunted by his brother. The two had quarrelled, and, without making it up, one of them had departed to take tip a lucrative appointment in Melbourne. Some two mon r tn after his arrival there the brother in England one morning excited his friends by declaring th»t during the night hit brother had appeared to him with a knife slicking in his breast, in such a manner as to give the idea tbat he had committed snickie. The idea was pooh-poohed by thofe to ffhom he mentioned it, but the next morning the brother declared emphatically that his experience had been repeated the previous night. This happened for several days in nucce«ion. To allay all fearp, therefore, the brother in Australia was cabled to. Duly an answer came back to tho effect that the alleged suicide was in the best health and spirits. Bat the haunted brother was by no means satisfied, nor did a latter that arrived later on argue him out of his belief. He continued to have visions. A medical specialist was consulted, and advised that the only effectual cure would be for the brother ia Melbourne to come back to England. The plan was put into operation. The brother returned, and then, and not till then, did he cease to haunt the deluded man. After some weeks the brother departed again for Melbourne, and since that time there has not been any return of the hallucinatory symptoms in his relative.

the brothers Stvnben, who worked the mine without obtaining much result. A year later a mason named Walker, working on the house of a farmer, discovered' gold in its immediate neighbourhood. Although he crushed and tested the specimens, he seems to have taken little interest in bis discovery. Later he mentioned the fact to a party of gentlemen, who, recognising the value of the discovery, at once bought the farm. The news spread, and speculators came from all parts. Among them were Messrs Rhodes, J. B Robinson,

BARNEY BATJNATO, Rudd, and others, who are now well known as Afrioan millionaires.

In 1867 the first diamond was discovered in Africa by some children, who were attracted by the " pretty pebble." A farmer on a visit to their mother was also attracted by it, and the woman promptly presented it to him. He, in turn, gave it to a trader, who sold it for £500.

In 1869 the famous "Star of South Africa " diamond was discovered by a man, who, not knowing its value, sold it for a few pounds to a traveller. He, in turn, sold it for £11,000.

A few months later the Da Beers and Kimberley mines were discovered by parties of prospectors. The news again spread, and the speculators arrived. The discoverers were bought out for a small sum, and the wealth and doinga of the world-renowned Da Beers Company are now almost historical.

The celebrated Mount Morgan gold mine, the share valuo of which recently vapro^entsd the enormous capital of 17 millions, is a notable instance.

Djnald Gordon, a young Scotchman, was the owner of a considerable area of land near Rockhampton, which he had stocked with cattle. The country proved unsuitable owing to its rocky nature, and the cattle died

vines everyone he met that there was a rich mine in the neighbourhood, he was christened ■ " Philosopher Smith," and ridiculed accordingly. He was compelled to borrow money to continue his search, for he was in poor circumstances. At length, just when he was about to give in, broken down in health, he discovered a lump of almost pure tin. The usual results followed. A company was formed, in which he was given a share. The mine was opened, and its richness proved. Shares rose rapidly, and yet a few months later we again find Smith in very low circumstances. He was eventually allowed a pension of £250 a year out of the millions the mine returned. The Broken Hill silver mine, by far the largest and richest in the world, was dis-_ covered by Charles Rasp, a German employed on Mount Gipps station, N S W., as a boundary rider. He was one day shown some silver ora recently discovered at Thackaringa, an adjoining station. "IS THAT STUFF 8ILVEB?" he asked in surprise. And on being answered in the affirmative, ha exclaimed : " Why, I know where there is a mountain of that stuff ; known it for years ! " The mountain he referred to has since been named Broken Hill. Although Rasp is now a very rich man, he • is poor,' comparatively speaking, to judge by the amount of wealth that the mine has produced. ' The first discoverer of gold in the Ballarat district, one of the lichest gold-mining centres in the world, wa3 a shepherd named William Richfonld. He knew that the metal was valuable, but being under the impression it belonged to the Queen, and that it would be a criminal offence to touch it, he kept his discovery a secret. The temptation at length became too strong, and, gathering a quantity of the precious motal together,