Notes from Tuapeka.

Otago Witness, Issue 2286, 23 December 1897, Page 23

Notes from Tuapeka.

(From Our Wetuerstone3 Correspondent.) December 20. — All the claims about here are bii3y working away, aud working pretty long hounytoo (in spite of the Kight Hours- Bill), trying to get as much gold out of the ground as they can before Christmas. Mr J. 11 Gascoigae ret-eiwd tenders for all the teetifins and~on« over for the cutting ot the"ma.niv moth water race- He sent tlis tenders on to Auckland to the directors to deal with, so it wont ba known for a few days wb -ther any of the tenders .u-e accepted or not. I he*id some time ago that in the event of Mr G.u-Cjigns abandoning tha wat>r right and ground, or cliirn, -»paity of working men "at the Blue Spur would take it up. Some of tbe party, I suppose, wouM be engaged cutting, tho race while the- otheis were working for wages or getting gold und allowing them so much a week. Sjine of the ni.-n have been working in the Wetuerstouex cement before, and, making 5s or 6s a day, but the water was too costly. I believe one pirty must have lost a third of his gold the-way be rushed it away. I know sonic; miners who washed the tailing* aftsi wards, and did well out of them. There has been a lot of talk here about the petition against the Kight Hours Bill, especially on account of some of the people in Lawrence who signed it. It was certainly very foolish and inconsistent of some of vhe bu«tnesa people to sign it, for some of tlr^m onlydo their eight hours per day and have their half holiday be-id.es. The (Cight Houh Bill ia suitable foi some mines and not for others. It is not suitable in all ciscs for the Blue Spur. There are two differenfcpartiea of men working there. Qna party — the bulk of the men I—work1 — work in the day breaking cetnent, and the bill m ; gb.t do for them. Tha other party, or the eu in boot men, work in the water, and for them' the Eight Hour* Bill would not suit- ab all, for the, f olio wiug reason :— The Blue Spur claim has not got enough of storage for -water. In wet weather tha dims only hold euo.ugh water to keep them sluicing from 18 to 20 houi\-s— sometimes le s. -The nozzle- men and those working in .the water are willing to do their nine Or ten hours a day at the same rate per hour all throiijjta. Ib would not piy or suit to make three shifts or" 1 it yet, bat wheu the working day gels reJuced to six hours they might do so.