MEETING OF MINERS AT WAITEKAURI.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VIII, Issue 2188, 2 November 1875, Page 3

MEETING OF MINERS AT WAITEKAURI.

(FBOJI A COBBEBFOHDENT.) A UEGE and influential meeting of miners was. held at three o'clock on Saturday last, the 30th October, in the large whare on the Waitekauri Company's ground, to take into consideration how a short and practicable road can lie obtained to connect this distaict with Paeroa for the conveyance of machinery, &c, and to urge the necessity of its being at once proceeded with, as everything must be in a languishing_ condition till.crushing machinery is in full swing. , All the claims in the district wero well represented, and a great interest taken by all, considering tho short notice convening the meeting and the unfavourable state of the weather. Mr Corbett was elected chairman, who then requested the opinion of the meeting on the subject of roadmaking. Mr T. Shaw mcved the first resolution, as follows :-*" That this meeting, for the following reasons, would impress on the Government the necessity of making a direct road from Waitekauri to Paeroa:. ; —Ist.-That a splendid gold-bearing reef has-been cut. in the Welcome Claim, a mile and a-half on the Paeroa Bide of Waitekauri Company's machine site, and prospectors report, that the reef system is extending in that direction. 2nd. That the contemplated road by Mackaytown is fourteen miles: long, and would take a large expenditure of money to complete, and when finished would not be available for any of the new finds, besides losing tho coming fine weather, thereby delaying the arrival of much needed machinery, the want of which has so long retarded 1 the development and progress of the district, and so causing a loss to.the mining population and the: revenue of the country. 3rd. That the-present pack hack to Paeroa is about,seven miles long, and could, with a comparatively small expenditure, be made into a good sledge road, passing along the crown of the ridge, right through the reefing country, so that claims on either side of it could make their own deviations."

The Chairman then;invited discussion, when

Mr D. Leahy said he agreed with the resolution, but considered) the new track, lately blazed by him, whioh.'runs for some two miles with Me. old track from the Waitekauri camp, and then diverges more to the' south, to be better than the old one, and that the engineer,. Mr McLaren, bo invited to: inspect both tracks, and decide which is better.

The resolution, seconded by Mr Marrinan, and then put and carried unani-; mously. , Mr D. Leahy proposed, seconded.by Mr.Quinn, and carried unanimously: That a committee, consisting of Messrs Shaw, Corbett, Cashel, Leahy, and Clarke, be appointed to embody the above resolution in a memorial to Sir George Grey. Proposed by Mr Clark, seconded by Mr King, and carried unanimously: That a vote of thanks be given to Mr D. Leahy for the trouble he has taken in finding a new road from Paeroa •to Waitekauri.

• Mr Shaw then drew the attention of the meeting to the difficulties of procuring blasting powder, and hoped something would be done to remedy the present arrangements. Mr King proposed and'Mr Marrinan seconded a vote of thanks to the chairman, which Mr Corbett suitably acknowledged.

The meeting was.then informed that a requisition to the postmaster, Auckland, was. in course of signature, asking for a post-office to be oponed in the Waitekauri district, as it now contained the largest centre of population in the Ohinemuri goldfield. •'; "-■■■■■

Mining News.—There has been a reef five feet thick cut in the Welcome claim, which show's gold freely. In fact, I have seen some stone, shown by Messrs fohmidt, Foley and Heitman, which, even on the Thames, would be considered good speoimens, and any piece of stone not shewing gold that.you crush gives a firstclass prospect. . This is not the reef that they are driving for, as the one that gave suoh good prospects when cut in a trench on the surface: is a much larger body of stone, and is twenty feet farther in. The ground is pegged out for a good distance all round them. The Sir George Grey, to the north, and the' Fergus, to the south, have a good show for the reef. The Young Colonial have mot with hard ground in their tunnel, or we should have known something about the mystery that enshrouds this claim before this time. It is generally believed tboy have got rich gold, but I.expect we shall have to wait till the casesnow pending in the .Warden's Court are settled to know the truth.