THE WAIHO GOLDFIELDS.

Timaru Herald, Volume XVII, Issue 815, 21 October 1872, Page 3 (Supplement)

THE WAIHO GOLDFIELDS.

For years past the upper valleys of the Waiho river have been known by the above : title, but known ao rather m irony than, because any decent find of the precious metal _ gave them a right to be so designated. That gold exists up the Waiho, and through the many tributary creeks which run into the main stream, is beyond question, as every summer season has witnessed its discovery by parties of men fossicking m that locality. But though gold was found m numerous places, yet it haß never been m sufficient quantities to : be payable to the digger. News to our hand : now, though, seems to indicate that there iB : every probability of this Waiho country : . turning out eventually a veritable gold diggings. For nearly two years past, two men (one a ■ thoroughly practical digger of some seventeen or twenty years experience) have been steadily ". at work on a certain creek which falls into 1 the Waiho. These men at first we believe simply " spotted" the country m hopes' of dropping on something worth taking, but dur- ■ ing the last few mouths have adopted a systematised plan, and selectinga likely looking place, havebottomed to rock, and arenowsteadily fol- - lowing, the rock up m- hopea of striking tht> reef, the mother of that gold which- is found - m. more or less quantity, throughout the workings. The labor of these two men has not been slight. In the first place, the oreek had to be turned and a new channel dug, and then m the bed of the original creek, a huge ' trench has been taken out of some 6 ft m ' width and 14 ft m depth, and extending m • length from three to four chains. From the first bottoming of the rock all through these four chains, gold has been picked up of a rough honey-combed kind, and mixed as if is, - with quartz, Bhows conclusively that it has : not travelled far from a quartz reef. ' The ' men, we hear, are sanguine that this reef is not far off from the head of their drive, and ' express themselves satisfied with the work heretofore done, and look forward with assured hope that when the reef is struck it will be found " thickly peppered." We hope that their anticipations will turn out correot, for if so, we may be assured that soon after discovery, there will be a regular gold mining industry established, where' now the. sheep and the wandering shepherd only have their. - being. ' '