A VISIT TO THE WESTERN GOLDFIELDS.
BY OUR SPECIAL REPORTER
No. 18.
THE immense extent of the gold-fields of New South Wales, and the consequent
diffusion of the population, favours the transition from mining to agricultural pursuits,
which will therefore be gradually brought about when necessary, without any great
degree of national suffering.
The Meroo, reduced in its volume to the dimensions of a small but ever-flowing creek,
has its source from perpetual springs in limestone ranges far above the gold-bearing
formations. Leaving the main tributaries to the S.E., we will now track him to his
fountains.
Above the junction, isolated conical hills on either side, of no great elevation, descend
with long regular verdant slopes to extended plains, through which the stream pursues a
tortuous course from the N.E., sweeping round the points of long ridges that descend with
a gentle declination to the margin of the water; valleys on either side open into the hills,
and small swamps occur in the flats, supplied by springs. The grasses are here more
abundant, and vegetation becomes more luxuriant as you advance towards the main range.
All these hills produce gold to their crests, which can be procured anywhere on the
surface, and most of the small water-courses or depressions contain it in payable
quantities. The lower portions of these slopes are what miners designate as made-hills,
being formed by debris from the summits, the accumulations of which increase as you
ascend the stream in proportion to the diminished action of the floods. Mining,
consequently, becomes more laborious as you approach the main range, the debris deeper,
and the water more difficult to subdue. At the same time the auriferous indications are as
evident as in any part of the district, particularly on the southern bank, and in situations
favourable for the present rude method of mining, which become less frequent. The yield
of gold has been, and continues to be, abundant.
Several shafts have been sunk on the sides, and at the base of the hills, but in all cases the
miners came to water, and seldom, if ever, reached the bed rock the same may be said
with reference to the flats. Here on argillaceous clay rests upon a substratum of pebbles,
disengaged from the limestone conglomerate in the main range, intermixed with
fragments of schistose rocks, which increase in size as you descend to the bed rock, and
are all more or less water-worn. The depth varies from fifteen to forty feet; water is
always to be found on a level with the stream, in any part of the flats; hitherto it has been
found that the more shallow the ground the greater the yield of gold. This may arise from
the superior facilities for working shallow ground, but no operations have been under-taken
on the upper part of the river sufficiently important to warrant a decided opinion on
the subject.
It is admitted by all that an immense quantity of gold lays buried under these flats, and
any prospecting that has been done tends to confirm that opinion; but there it will remain
until labour becomes cheaper, and mining is carried on under an improved system. With
the exception of rude pug-mills, that cause the loss of half the fine gold, the only
implements known upon the Meroo are the pick, the shovel, the wash tub, and the bucket;
and when these prove insufficient the ground is abandoned as impracticable.
There are simple machines constructed by the natives of the Grecian Isles, Egypt, Mexico,
and other places, for the purposes of irrigation, any one of which would drain the largest
flat on the Meroo; and yet what these poor peasants will do to
"Force a churlish soil for scanty bread",
we will not, although fortune might result
from our labours. Horse-pumps, elevators, and a dozen other contrivances in common use
on the Victoria gold-fields, are equally unknown here; in fact, the indisposition to
co-operative labour on the part of our diggers is the chief cause why our gold-fields are
not more productive, and why we do not keep pace with other countries in the development
of our gold mines.
Proceeding along the margin of the stream you arrive at a point where ten or twelve
diggers are encamped at the base of a spur -- here they are making fair wages, and
complain more of the water than of the deficiency of gold. I observed that they had sunk
holes nearly to the summit of the long slope, and was informed that they could get gold at
the highest point, but not in sufficient quantities to pay for carriage by hand to the river;
they had neither horses nor carts. A light tramroad could have been constructed here, as
timber was plentiful, and the declination of the hill favourable. You now cross a wide
valley that intersects the ranges on either side and reach an old sheep station, on the south
side of the stream. Dogtrap Gully skirts the base of the mountains on the eastern side of
the valley and disembouges into the Meroo; this creek, from its source to its termination,
has been much worked, and has produced a large quantity of gold. A party of Chinese are
at present encamped near its head, and are doing well. They will be obliged to
discontinue their operations, as the creek has dried up and can only be worked during a
wet season. The course of this stream follows the base of a range abounding in quartz
reefs, and on which gold has been found from the crest downwards, on every side. At the
mouth of the Dogtrap about twenty diggers, with their families, are encamped on the
Meroo, and the slopes on either side have produced rich surfacing; the banks of the river
have also yielded a large quantity of gold, but the water pre- vents their being worked
effectively.
On the north side a creek, also following the base of the ranges, falls into the Meroo
opposite to the Dog-trap. This creek has never been worked, as the flat it crosses before
reaching the river is very deep, and water rises seven or eight feet over the bed rock;
higher up it has not been found payable. A gap here in the northern range opens into a
rich pastoral country; it is unoccupied, and would carry seven or eight thousand sheep; it
is well grassed, lightly timbered, open box ridges, and watered by Grati Creek, or one of
its tributaries. This opening extends to the Mudgee plains, and is 700 or 800 feet above
the basin of the Meroo. It is not until you have ascended the gap that you have any
conception of the magnificent plateau that lies on the northern side of the ranges,
frequented only by splitters, who go there for rails and shingles.
Returning to the Meroo, the mountains on the north bank become higher and steeper, and
a lofty spur closes in the plains. At the base of this range the river takes a southerly
course for a mile, when it sweeps round and forces a passage through the
mountains, when it again takes a northerly course, thus forming a large peninsula. Both
the river and its banks are rich from the point where it strikes the northern range, and
have been much worked at such places as the diggers found practicable. Here, as
elsewhere, the difficulty was water. Those still on the spot can realize from £3 to £5 a
week; but much of the best ground is still unbroken, and many of the best claims have
been abandoned. The lower end of the point was proved to be particularly good, some
claims having paid from £10 to £50 a week to the hand when it was first opened. The
road now crosses the river, and leads over the spur, when you find that digging has been
carried to the summit of the ridge along the side of the road where a large quartz reef
occurs. On either side of this reef a rich piece of surfacing has been exhausted near the
road, but the descent towards the point is still unworked, and should be equally
productive. Thin bands of sandstone may be here observed alternating with the schistose
rocks, and the surface is covered with pebbles and gravel, the debris of the limestone
conglomerate formerly noticed. Descending to the river on the eastern side, you cross two
or three veins of quartz, and find that the opposite banks have been worked whenever it
was possible to keep the water under, and the yield has always been considerable The
reefs passing through this spur cross the Dog- trap Ranges, sink into the basin of
Campbell's Creek, ascend the ranges separating Long Creek, and descend into the basin
of that watercourse, then reascend the mountains, and pass away to the S.S.E. Gold
bestrews their trade, and the richest diggings on the Upper Meroo and its tributaries are in
their vicinity. Somewhere to the northward of the Meroo a German digger procured 7
ounces of gold from one of these reef's, which he sold to a Mr. Murray; he afterwards
sold 40 ounces in Bathurst, which he had obtained in the same manner. All his gold was
mixed with quartz, and bore indubitable evidence that it was taken from the matrix. It
was while in search of that reef, that Mr. Murray and myself came upon the open country
formerly described.
You now recross the river, and, passing a narrow flood basin, find yourself on
Chinaman's Point, at the base of a long descending spur, where a crowd of Celestials are
actively engaged and may be seen popping in and out of their holes like so many rabbits.
This party are reported to be getting a large quantity of gold, and there is an apparent
arrangement and system about their encampment and their works that is seldom to be
observed amongst the European diggers. On the opposite bank, a long alluvial flat, from
twenty to fifty feet deep, stretches to the base of the mountains; this flat rests upon a
stratum of auriferous detritus believed to be exceedingly rich. It has not been worked;
here again water is the impediment. The river now flows between alluvial banks, from 15
to 20 feet in perpendicular height, in a broad channel, over a detritus consisting of the
surrounding schistose rocks, and the debris of the calcareous conglomerates which have
found their way thus far from the main range. This shingle is from six to ten feet deep in
some places, in others a vertical strata of slate rises to the surface, forming jagged bars,
which have been broken up, and invariably found to contain a large quantity of gold in
the cleavage; the banks have also been excavated everywhere, and most of the ground in
the vicinity has been exhausted where the bed rock work could be reached without the aid
of hydraulic machinery. The river here is tortuous in its course, and its visible stream
small and sluggish, although at a great elevation above the main water course, the flats
are generally swampy, as they receive the drainage of the lofty ranges on either side. The
prospect again expands, and as you proceed you pass another low ridge, round which the
river makes a broad sweep. This place formerly held very rich deposits, and must have
employed a large number of diggers, as the surface broken up is extensive, and some of
the cuttings heavy; but much of the best ground has yet to be opened, and many of the
claims were never bottomed, as the water again drove the diggers from their holes. Half a
mile further, and you arrive at the highest public-house and store on the Meroo.
You now find yourself on a magnificent undulating plain, round which lofty ranges
appear to complete a circle. The river, bursting from the dark gorges of the eastern hills,
as if unwilling to leave the joyous sunlight, lingers awhile amongst the grassy flats, and
then pursues a tortuous course until it again disappears within the recesses of the western
range. Hundreds of springs clothe swelling ridges with a perpetual verdure; and clumps
of tall trees, scattered at intervals over the surface, contrast finely with the numerous
white tents and cottages sprinkled on the slopes. Every indentation or depression between
the ridges is auriferous; most are payable; many have been partially worked, and a few
exhausted. Surfacing is also to be found on all the slopes and banks, and gold has been
found high amongst the surrounding ranges.
The miners located here are for the most part family men; have been settled in the valley
for years, and can always get sufficient gold to supply their necessities. A few have been
tempted beyond the ranges from time to time, by exaggerated reports from other districts,
but they have invariably returned. It is, in the parlance of the gold-fields, essentially a
poor man's diggings. The soil is prolific, and a limited population of industrious men will
obtain a subsistence for themselves and their families here for years to come. A fair day's
wage, will always follow a fair day's work; but it is not until the attention of science and
capital is turned to the deep alluvial flats and the quartz reefs, that the true value of the
district will be ascertained.