ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVII, Issue 1762, 4 September 1862, Page 2

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

*** We do not hold ourselves in any way responsible for the opinions expressed in Correspondents' letters. ' (To the Editor of the Wellington Independent.) Sir, — I was pleased to see one hon. member for Nelson, stand upland protest .against the enormous increase of salaries proposed by another member for Nelson, and adopted by the House, after a fruitless attempt on the part of the Wellington members to negative the proposal, I hope the several constituencies of tho Colony will mark the votes that have been recorded by tlie members of the House, and call them to account for the reckless extravagance which seems to be the leading principle of the present in;ijority. If the people of the other pavts of the Colony are not already of my way of thinking, I am quite sure that ere very long the government will find, that the disciples of Joseph Hume are very much more numerous than they appear to suppose. I think, Sir, the thanks of the Colony are due to the lion, member for Waimea, Mr. Saunders, for the manly way in which we opposed the proposition for so enormous a rise as was proposed by another hon. member of the Bame Province and also by the Speaker. I am Sir, An Observer in the Gallery, (To the Editor of the Independent) Slit; — I transcribe for the benefit of " Common Sense," the following extract from a paper read by J. Arthur Phillips, Esq., at the Society of Arts, on May 14th, ultimo. " Nova Scotia. — The whole of the Atlantic shore of the Province of Nova Scotia, is bounded, in an unbroken line, by strata of a metamorphic character, and probably of great geological antiquity frequently broken through by eruptiverocks. These form a coast in some places low and rugged, and in others boldly undulating. * * Along the Atlantic shore this district is generally low, gradually rising to a height of 300 feet as it advances northward * * * The extreme breadth of this band at Cape Causean, its northern extremity, is about eight miles, whilst, in its extension westwards, it gradually increases until, at the west branch of St. Mary's river, 80 miles west of Cape Causean, it is known to be 30 miles wide. Its total length corresponds with that of the Peninsula of Nova Scotia. This band, in which almost the whole of tlie gold discovered has been found, chiefly consists of thick bands of slate and quartzite, highly inclined, and having a general north-east and south-west strike, in different localities these rocks, which probably belong to the Silurian epoch, have been penetrated by masses of granite, and in their vicinity the quartzites and clay slates usually present a highly metamorphised appearance. "In the month of March last year, a man who was stopping to drink at a brook, observed a piece of gold among the pebbles at the bottom, aud having picked it irp, searched and found more. From that date, attention became directed to the locality, numerous claims were taken up, ana considerable quantities of gold were obtained by breaking tlie quartz with hammers and washing the resulting dust in tin pans. In June, the discovery of gold was reported at Luncenberg, at a place called the " boens." Tho veins at this place, although generally small, aro frequently highly auriferous, and appear to cross each other in almost all directions, in a metamorphic shale belonging to the great southern band, * * * Shortly after the discovery of the auriferous nature of the quartz veins, ' it was found that the sands on the beach beneath the headland ' also contained large quantities of gold. Here claims were likewise rapidly staked off, and worked by means of cradles, so that the average daily yield from the several shore operations soon reached 100 ozs. * * * Gold discoveries subsequently followed each other in rapid succession * * * ; The most remarkable deposit of auriferous quartz hitherto found in Nova Scotia is that at Lardlaw's farm. The principal workings are hero situated near the summit of a hill composed of hard metamorphic shales, where openings have been made to the depth of some 4 or 0 feet upon a nearly horizontal bed of corrugated quartz of from 8 to 13 inches in thickness. « This auriferous deposit is entirely different from anything I had before seen, and whea laid

open presents the appearance of trees, or logs of wood laid together side by side, after the manner of an American wood way load." A perusal of the above extract will show in some points, a remarkable similarity between our rock.-> and those of Nova Scotia. We have not the granite in sight, but we have found gold. That metal being proved to exist in the small valleys at Cape Terawiti. wh/ should it not be looked for iri the large valley of Cook's Straits, or in the only part of them accessible, the sands of the seashore ? v I am. Sir, Your obedient servant, C.