AN OLD IDENTITY.

Otago Witness, Issue 3861, 13 March 1928, Page 14

AN OLD IDENTITY.

Tlie illustrated pages of this issue contain a photograph of Mr William Quayle, of Miller’s Flat. Mr Quayle, who is 86 years of age, is a colonial pioneer. Mentally, he is as keen as many a man in middle life. He thoroughly enjoys talking of the good old days, and to repeat his own words, he has had his pipe, and a glass of beer ever since he was a young fellow. Mr Quayle was born on the Isle of Man in 1842. When he wa 3 about 12 years of ag e he started to learn the bootmaking trade under an elder brother, but after serving for one year he gave it up, and started at carpentering, at which he remained until 1868. Owing to glowing reports from a cousin who had como out to New . Zealand, another cousin and he then decided to come to the colonies, too, and on May 24 they started the voyage in the sailing ship Woosuing, reaching Melbourne after 105 days at sea. They came to New Zealand in the City of Dunedin, landing at Dunedin. Two days later they went by coach to Milton, and then started to tramp to the Fourteen-mile Reach, on the banks of the Molyneux River, above Roxburgh, where the cousin was. This beach was eventually worked by a dredge known as the Fourteen-mile dredge, and in one eight-hour shift the dredge obtained 300 oz of gold. After leaving the Fourteen-mile Mr Quayle worked at Teviot and Glenham, and then went to Roxburgh, where he erected several buildings. When the big flood in 1878 was experienced he had just completed a butchers shop and store at Miller’s Flat, but when the waters came down there was barely a vestige of the buildings left. He was one of many who tried to save th e bridge at Roxburgh by weighting it w )th stones, but the Dunstan bridge, which had been washed away, came sailing down in the flood waters and struck the Roxburgh bridge, which broke iii the centre and disappeared. Messr s William Grr, Archie M’Pherson, and James Steel followed the wreckage down the river in a small boat, and managed to steer one half of the bridge to an island about a mile below Roxburgh. This half was eventually towed back to Roxburgh and made, into pontoons to be used for crossing the river until a new bridge was erected. The mining claim was worked in partnership the three bringing in a water race distance of seven miles. Tliere was very rich gold in the claim, but owing to numerous floods in the river thev were greatly handicapped. After putting in about two years working th e Mr Quayle, seeing the river again in flood one day, threw his shovel into it, exclaiming, “ Take this with all the rest,” and he left everything. Mr Quayle had the building of an overshot water wheel 14ft in diameter for the late Messrs Kichen and C. Nicholson at Fraser’s Basin. This wheel was to drive a stone crusher to crush tl_>e quartz, which was gold-bearing, obtained from a quartz reef. An engineer and 11 men were employed at this mine, but it did not turn out sufficient gold to pay, and was abandoned. In the year 1885 he erected a horse-power and chaffcutter for the late T. Sheehy (father of John Sheehy, the present genial host of Miller’s Flat Hotel), who had contracted to supply the ploughman for Messrs Cargill and" Anderson°at their run, called “ The Phantom.” Four ploughmen wer e kept. He went back to leviot Station as general carpenter during shearing, his duties being to keep the yards in good repair. He also built a place on the run up the Teviot River as quarters for shepherds, etc. The place would accommodate about 60 men. At this time all sheep before going to th e shearing sheds were dipped in a large pool near this place to clean th e wool before the sheep were shorn.

He returned again to Roxburgh, and worked there for a time, but was engaged by V\ illiam Crossan (who sold his business bakery at Roxburgh to P. Ormond, baker and hotelkeeper) to go to Catlins, then a new township, and build him a dwellin'* and bakehouse. There he stayed for some time, bought a section, and built on it a three-roomed cottage. At Roxburgh, once more, in 1892, he worked at Miller’s Flat building a barn for the late Robert Richardson, father of the Richardson boys, still of Miller s Flat. This building was just opposite where Sheehy’s hotel stands. A well-known local resident who apparently had imbibed perhaps not wisely but too well, when going home mistook his way and fell on the side of the old punt road. A good Samaritan happened along, and helped him on to his feet, and, being of an inquisitive turn of mind, inT'jj'cd- How long have you been there? I'ifty — hie—four vears,” was the reply.