The Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. SATURDAY, AUGUST 1, 1874.

Thames Star, Volume IIII, Issue 1741, 1 August 1874, Page 2

The Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. SATURDAY, AUGUST 1, 1874.

To-day is the seventh anniversary of the Goldfield. .On the first of August', 1, 1&67, a proclamation was issued opening-certain portions of this district to ' the enterprise of miners, and a small band

of pioneers,, some of whom are still in our midst, left Auckland to try their fortune i :©n,,;ithe Hauraki Peninsula. It does not appeal that any attempt has been made to mark this day, but we cannot allow it to pass without a few re- <, marks. The/, cumber seven is an .imr

portant number. ,i;t. represents^ cycle of time: .having reached the age of seven a child has passed its infantile stage, and begins ...to develope into youth. So with the Thames.- Its existence is no longer probationary, dependant upon extraneous , aids of various kinds : it has become selfreliant arid strbn£ ; and'racent results in

connection with some of .those mines

which came early into noticfrgive promise that the field—although past the infantile ' stage in point' of age—ia still in embryo -„ ai regards, develapemerit of its resources. It may be remarked that so long ago as , 1852 gQld "was discovered on the penin-

pPffaby the Messrs. King at Coromandel. I Rich quartz specimens and nuggets" were unearthed, and it was thought that a permanent goldfield had", been opened. I But the native difficulty,'and other causes i combined, effectually dispelled this idea as soon as the creeks had been searched for their treasures. y-Iri those days quartz goldmiuing was in its infancy, and the exertions of prospectors were directed towards all«yial deposits.'lnrlßs9;the exitement regarding Coronwndel was jrenewed. A new rush took place, and fresh indications of extensive"gold- deposits were found. But still there was something wanting to derelope the resources:; "} JP^pj|lo^ wjejje led' &oj} byi $ fervid -desire *to maite money>; lir tufeir* haste to be rich they overlooked the legitimate means at hand, and again Coromandel and the other-portions^ of the peninsula were deserted by the men, who, under proper directions, would hare unearthed the hidden treasures and proved the value of previous discoveries. It was not till the-year 186£-lhat«any new attempts were made to prospect the Hauraki Peninsula. At that time Auckland was on th« verge of insolvency. Her trade had suffered to an alarming extent by ithe; withdrawal of 'Imperial troops. Her agricultural - and pastoral resourced had''Been crippled by a'disastrous -war, and when fat army contracts, expired there was nothing to supply their place in keeping up 'the commercial \ status of the Province. Then the Thames came into notice. A strong effort was made to open the district, based on the. representations of men who had prospected the hills and creeks; and the effort was successful. After a time characterised by vagaries of fortune, sometimes most discouraging, extraordinary- rich quartz gold ?was^ found. A few big piles were made, and then the capitalists began to unlock'their hidden capital." From that time to the present the history of the Thames'has been a chequered one. It has seen ups and downs, like other places, but through them all a steady progress has been made. Step by step has ; the district crept on, until we have now perhaps the most perfect and the -most complete appliances in the world for carrying on quartz mining. We have not space &> say as much aa we could say on this occasion,: but there are one or two points we would wish -to indicate from which investors might take encouragement. It is now tojtnty-two years since gold was first dis^pered on the peninsula, namely, at CoroiLandel; seven years later the. field was again tried for a time; and again j in a little more than, seven .years the \ Thames was opened. The peculiar incidents connected with these matters' warrant the belief that in another seven years discoveries will vhave been made, the extent and importance of which the most sanguine amongst us can form no idea. The belief is warranted by experience. Each, day something -transpires which says that the district only wants capital to make it the largest and most productive mining camp in the world. A glance at the results obtained on the seventh anniversary of the; fiejd .will .afford ample confirmation of this hypothesis.