ROXBURGH NOTES.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XXIV, Issue 1800, 3 June 1891, Page 3

ROXBURGH NOTES.

(From our own Correspondent.) We have been specially honoured during the past week. On Friday, Mr H. S. Valentine, M.H.E., accompanied by some of the other directors of the Roxburgh Amalgamated Goldmining Co., paid us a visit ; and on the following day, no less a personage than the Hon. Richard Seddon, Minister of Mines, who was accompanied by Messrs Scobie Mackenzie, M.H.R., and Mr Vincent Pyke, px-M.H.R., arrived in our midst. It is not every day in the week that our small community is honoured by so many notables. I had the pleasure of a hearty shake of the hand and a few minutes' conversation with the honourable Richard. He is a bluff, hearty man of the world — one who knows his way about ; he puts on no " side;" is a " hail fellow well met" with all with whom he comes in contact; has an apparently rough exterior, but a big, warm heart ; one who doesn't care the snap of his finger for all the show and osentation of the world : in a word, a man of the people — a typical democratic leader. He is in addition a man of great foi*ce of character — of strong individuality. I wouldn't like to say that he is my ideal of a statesman .- far irom it. But as he is a shrewd, observant fellow, full of com-mon-sense, without any fads, he is not unworthy of a seat in a democratic government. He was not deputationised while here ; but I understand that Mr Valentine brought under his notice the necessity of the Government rendering some assistance to the County Council towards maintaining the main road. It was pointed out by Mr Valentine that Her Majesty's mails were carried over the main arterial road, a great stretch of which had to be maintained at the expense of the County Council. Mr Valentine also requested Mr Seddon to use his influence with his colleague, the Postmaster- General, to have a daily mail between Lawrence and Roxburgh. Coaches were now running to and from Lawrence daily, and the expense of a daily instead of a tri-weekly .postal service would be comparatively trifling, while the convenience to the public would be really invaluable. Mr Seddon promised to make enquiries as to the cost of a daily mail service and to report to his colleague, Mr Ward, with arecommendatiqn that the concession he granted if the oost was not unreasonable, Messrs H. S. Valentine, Jas. Hazlett, C. C. Tiawlins (directors) and R. H. Leary (secretary) -of the Roxburgh Amalgamated Goldmining Co. met the local directors— Messrs Cockburn and Waight — and went over the claim on Saturday last. The directors were yery muph impressed with the wqnderful .phang^e in the appearance of the claim which had b.een effected since their visit last December, indicating as it did the great progress made in the development of the, mine, particularly so sinoe Mr W. Peters assumed the .management. A face of wash is now exposed whiqh MrRawlins deela,re4 h.3,s a more promising lqok than anything he has yet seen on the Molyneux river, probably equalling in richness the famed Island Block Co.'s mine. There pan be no doubt whatever as to the richness of the wash now being operated upon, the manager having washed up for the week qn th,e previous day, obtaining 80oz of gold. From the gutter in which ETci, 1 eiey^tQr

is at work, a dish of wash was panned off, giving a yield of 2dwfc. The dirt was not picked, being shovelled up at random; but as a sample of the wash, taken some distance back from the elevator, it gives an indication of the quality of the dirt now being operated upon. The manager fully anticipates that the rest of the wash on the present run will be equally rich in the precious metal, and that it will extend into the flat, away back from the river. Indications are not wanting that the present run formed part of an old river course, the same as that which has yielded gold in such large quantities at the Island Block claim. I may add that the directors met in Ormond'sHotel in the evening, when some business of an informal character was transacted. A deputation from the local shareholders waited upon the directors, and in the course of some remarks the members expressed themselves well satisfied with the company's prospects. The general meeting of shareholders of the company will be held in Dunedin on Wednesday (to day.) A deputation from the settlers of Millers Flat, headed by Mr W. Waugh, waited upon Mr H. S. Valentine on Saturday re the establishment of a rabbit factory in the Mt Benger district. Mr Valentine submitted all the information at his disposal. Mr Waugh expressed his belief that the necessary capital essential for the establishment and cai'rying on of a factory could easily be raised in the district. Mr Valentine urged very strongly upon the deputation that one good factory should be established in their midst. It would never do to erect one factory, for example, at Millers Mat and another at Coal Creek. One wellconducted factory was to be preferred to two struggling factories — one working against the other. He did not hesitate tojsay that if the settlers at both ends of the district would confer with each other and determine to select a suitable site, centrally situated if possible, that the best interests of the district would thus be conserved, and the success of the project placed beyond a doubt. Unhealthy competition must be avoided, as the success of s( canning factory depended almost entirely upon an abundance of the raw material and good management. Mr Waugh, on behalf of the deputation, thanked Mr Valentine for the information he had placed at their disposal. A deputation, consisting of Messrs Tamblyn, Birch, and other gentlemen from Coal Creek, also waited upon Mr Valentine anent the above subject. Similar advice was tendered, and Mr Valentine again expressed the hope that all thoughts of establishing two canning factories in the district would be abandoned. There was not room for two canning industries almost within a stone's throw of each other in their midsfa. He pointed out that fruit preserving could be carried on with similar appliances as were used in rabbit canning. It was hardly necessary ior him ; to say that one well conducted rabbit canning and fruit preserving factory would be a complete success in the Teviot district. The local shareholders in the Commissioners Flat Goldmining Company will not be dissatisfied with the infusion of new blood into the directorate. I understand that Mr R. Cotton resigned his seat on the board, thus causing three vacancies (bhetei'm of office of two of the Dunedin directors having expired), two of which have been filled by local men — Messrs A. Carlawaud T.Andrews. Mr B>. M. Smith, the working manager, has tendered his resignation, not caring to be controlled by local directors. It is to be hoped the board will do their utmost to secure the services of a really first-class hydraulic mine manager ; for under skilful and economical management the Commissioners Flat Co's claim will prove to be one of the bestmining properties in this district.