THE ROW AT THE PROSPECTORS' CLAIM, OHINEMURI.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VIII, Issue 1995, 17 March 1875, Page 2

THE ROW AT THE PROSPECTORS' CLAIM, OHINEMURI.

We have received from a miner who was present : ail., account; of .the row. which .took:, place .on Saturday; the Prospectors' claim, which, if .correct, ' 1 would Jseew to show ' that' it' was i;l of a more serious character; than would .he inferred, from the .accounts.: previously published. A number of the men asaern'Bled at Ohinemiirij donceive th'ey.'havk'a right : .to ; :.demand' that,those to! whom have been awarded the (prospectors' claim" should show gold iiijscariF^,'and; those .who were the most'violent in calling.'; out . for vengeances'eemi- to have directed their efforts specially'against' Mr ' JiWi Thorpe; - Nbw, we will ' affirm that 1 no'maa can say that'he'has ■ been induced : td' go 'to Ohiiie«ittri ; bfaily representations f' the part of Mr Thorpe. ■ 'We : feel sure als'o that the very .men .who ...were the moat prominent iu those disgraceful proceedings had talked more about Oliinemuri and had done jmore ;td. induce others to come -than ; :,Mr Thorpe .or any of; the prospectors,, We think : tbat the police ought to have beeu.on the groundat the first, so as to have prevented the violence shown? Our' 'informant states -that after the. .-decision was given, several hundred men' followed Mossrs Thorpe, Arnold, Coleman, Smith, James Beeche, Quinn, and others of the party who had obtained the ground;: overjto :the reserve. When they s KOt on, the, ground the crowd demanded to. know where the prospectors got the gold. Mr Thorpe said 'that if they gave'them time thoy.: would they 'got it, ! but thit the winze was now full of water,"and they could not see it until it was drained. They would have to give'hini tiaie : fo piit in a .tiinnelj' and: when therwinze was drained he would show,..them,; ,Some of the mob, then S'ou b— loafers, you have no gold.' We will" clip you." About a dozen or" twenty, who acted as ringleaders, tried to ekcite the others to rush the prospectors. Mr Thorpe' then said th'at if- they'did not.clear off. the claim, and give them a chance, he Would get fifty Maoris to put them off. He had no sooner.said that;-than ; .some one— who ought to "be severely' punished, knocked v Mr ,Thorpe,down. Mr Beeche and Mr Quinn, who were lower dowri'j''rushed ■to xVTr Thorpe's assistance. of .the mob . were threatening to' attack them with their picks, but the more peaceably inclined, comprising ■ the -great majority, -persuadedi) them .'to give .! thorn- a chauoe. Mr* Beeche. and • Mr- Quinn then got Mr Thorpe away! T.be (constables i hen came up. About a dozen men tried to excite the others to rush the prosp ;c----■tors " after'-'the ' constables 'were on the ground, and one mar shoved a pair of scissors whiclrhe had for the. purpose of cropping them., During the row and. the threats' 'Mr' : Arn'old was' Very. cool, while 'Mr Beeche said fheyivere cowards, that if they had to- 'fightf' ,: niaii-'to v mah' tfiejr would not be so l bold as: now when* they were a huudred to one/ When the row was over, aome..of the mob went on to the spur of the' hill, and rqllod down a rock as large 'as three br four- nien could' turn over, evidently intending to crush Mr Thorpe of some of : bis party/ 1 ;■•