Rambles on the Golden Coast of New Zealand/Chapter 15
WESTPORT INDUSTRIES.
CHAPTER XV.
ANY years ago, before the town of Westport could boast of a steamer of its own, or ere a ton of coals had been exported from the Buller coal-field, I let loose my imagination, in idle pastime, to take a fancy flight, and in local newspaper columns, at the time, I drew an imaginary picture of what Westport would be in 1884. Innumerable prophecies were indulged in of the coming greatness of the Buller and its capital. Some of the ancient citizens were supposed to have arrived by express train overland from Nelson. Others came in their carriages from the neighbouring suburbs of Eugenarum and Bailietown. The harbour works and docks were laid down in stone, and the harbourmaster was described as having stuck to his department like a leech; while “Lord John” was spoken of as a member or ex-member of the Colonial Legislature. Many of the prognostications then uttered have been realised. Others were so “far fetched” that their realisation was never contemplated. Now, having indulged in a flight of fancy once, and the time of my predictions having come round without fulfilment, let me by way of compensation to the Buller folks adopt the better course here, and enter the well for truth.
In order to accomplish this, I resolved to place myself in communication with a literary friend, a lady whose writings are already widely known in Colonial journals under the nom de plume of “L. J. S.” I beseeched of her, in her goodness of heart, to furnish me with a chapter, or a portion of one, on the industries of her adopted district—the Buller. “Is it possible,” she at first replied, “that anything interesting can be said, thought, or written, on such a dry, solid subject as coal?” The subject differed from her cheerful Christmas stories which have appeared in the Otago Witness and the New Zealand Mail. It seemed more congenial to jot down a little “Chit Chat from the Capital” or “Notes from the Ladies’ Gallery,” than to gather coal statistics, or paint an attractive picture in which “black diamonds” must form the foreground. Withal she admitted the importance of the subject, and the necessity for its inclusion in a work having special reference to the West Coast, and her valuable contribution to its pages here follows:—
For many years in the olden time, far back indeed in the “golden era” of this portion of the West Coast, it was ascertained beyond even the shadow of a doubt, that the magnificent ranges of hills overshadowing Westport, were but so many vast treasure houses, filled with unlimited stores of mineral wealth, which only awaited fitting time and opportunity, aided by adequate resources, to develop. And as all things come to those who have but the courage and patience to wait; so at length it has come to pass, that some at least of the good things, for which the people of Westport waited, through many a long and weary year of doubt and depression, have at last become actual, accomplished facts, and are but the precursors of yet better things to come. Hope is ever the watchword of those who wish to conquer. But the tranquil and decorous Westport of to-day, whose chief export is coal, bears no manner of resemblance to the busy, noisy, turbulent Westport of olden times, when heavy exports of golden ore constantly crossed the Buller Bar. The compact little town of bygone days was literally swept from off the face of the earth by the continued action of fire and flood. But, Phoenix-like, it has risen again into a new and vigorous life, and is, at the time whereof I write, as prosperous and pretty a little town as perhaps any within the Colony. It can boast of no less than four churches, handsome Post and Telegraph Offices, three commodious schoolhouses. Town and Masonic halls, besides many other substantial public and private buildings. The people are intensely patriotic and political, hence the streets are named after celebrated statesmen; the principal thoroughfare, which, by the way, is over a mile in length, being called Palmerston Street, the rest bearing such honoured cognomens as Cobden, Bright, Brougham, Russell, Peel, and so on. As a community the town is at present more united than of yore, although it is but latterly that we have learned to acknowledge the truth underlying the well-worn old adage, namely, that true strength lies in unity of purpose, and not in perpetual petty warfare.
But now I must turn to the really practical part of my subject, the present development and future prospects of the various industries in the Buller district, and I will begin with the coal. Notwithstanding the lack of land available for agricultural and pastoral purposes, Westport possesses natural resources of such a character as to require no specially far-seeing attributes in prophesying a great future for it. The Buller coalfield, situated from ten to eighteen miles from the port, is at once unique in its position, and the great thickness of the seams. Placed at a height of 2000 ft. above the sea-level, the surveyed portion covers an area of 86,000 acres, whilst large areas of coal-bearing country behind the present field have not been surveyed. In the area surveyed, however, are found seams of coal of many thicknesses, varying from 4½ ft. to 53 ft. The coal is of exceptionally high quality, as proved both by chemical analysis and by practical experience from its use on a large scale—containing, as it does, only a very small percentage of ash and water, and being free from all impurities. One seam now being worked is specially adapted for steam purposes, rivalling in this respect the celebrated South Wales steam coals, and is being used almost entirely in the large direct Home steamers on their trips from the Colony to Britain, on the refrigerating vessels, and in the colonial steam service. For with a high quality and freedom from impurities, much less quantity is required to perform the same work than is required of Newcastle (N.S.W.) coals, or other New Zealand coals; consequently, shipowners find that in addition to less coal consumption, more cargo space is rendered available for freight, and therefore better earnings are derived from the steamers working on a long voyage, such as between the Colony and Britain. It will be seen at a glance that an advantage of this kind is a great consideration. Another seam, also now being worked, is specially suitable for domestic purposes, whilst still other seams now untouched are generally high in quality, and suitable for gas as well as steam and domestic consumption.
A seam of splendid coal exists near the Ngakawau, and will be available for a great export trade as soon as the facilities for getting sufficiently large steamers away from the port are provided. A small export trade to Melbourne is carried on for gas purposes, but this has necessarily been restricted in consequence of an unfavourable condition of the harbour. The following detail of the chemical analysis of the coal now being worked will show conclusively the really superior quality of the coal:—
| No. 1. per cent. |
No. 2. per cent. |
No. 3. per cent. | |
| Fixed Carbon, | 64·31 | 79·28 | 66·72 |
| Volatile Carbon, | 33·33 | 18·00 | 30·49 |
| Water, | ·99 | ·78 | 1·01 |
| Ash, | 1·37 | 1·94 | 1·78 |
100·00 |
100·00 |
100·00 |
Of the whole of the surveyed area of 86,000 acres, only a small portion has been taken up, and this is now held by two proprietaries, the Westport Coal Company, Limited, with a capital of £400,000, and the other, the enterprising steamship proprietor, Captain W. R. Williams, Wellington. The former company has spent about £120,000 in works on the coalfield to bring the coal to the port of shipment, and the works of the latter, constructed by the Koranui Coal Mining Company, have cost between £40,000 and £50,000, so that it will be observed that large expenditure has been made, and great enterprise shown in developing a very small portion of this magnificent coalfield.
In addition to the large expenditure in the construction of works on the coalfield itself, the Westport Coal Company and Captain Williams have each provided a fleet of steamers to take coal away from this port—the former at a cost of about £40,000, and the latter at a cost of about a similar amount. The Westport Company’s steamers, the “Kawatiri,” “Wareatea,” and “Orawiti,” are essentially colliers; whilst Captain Williams’s steamers, the “Koranui,” “Mawhera,” "Manawatu,” and “Grafton,” combine cargo and passenger accommodation. The Union Steamship Company and other shipowners have also provided steam colliers for the trade, and some six or seven new vessels are now on the stocks, or on the way to the Colony for the trade. These steamers have all been provided during the last two years, and it may be said that the development of the coal industry of Westport commenced two years ago, although operations have been going on for some time back. The output is now at the rate of 90,000 to 100,000 tons per annum, but it is expected next year to reach not less than 150,000 tons. The great drawback, however, to the rapid development of a large industry, lies in the unfavourable condition obtaining up to the present in the river entrance. Hitherto vessels drawing more than 12 ft. have been unable to trade regularly to this port, and during the last twelve months, in consequence of a continuation of untoward circumstances, the bar silted up to such a degree that vessels could not leave drawing an average more than 9½ ft. loaded. As a result the industry has been retarded in its progress, and has been far from remunerative. More recently, however, a series of heavy floods in the river has deepened the bar, so that vessels are now loading to 12 or 13 ft., and the industry is once more brought into a remunerative, if not a flourishing condition. With the harbour deepened, a trade of seven or eight hundred thousand tons a year can easily be done from Westport; and a scheme for this purpose was prepared for the Government some four or five years ago by the eminent harbour engineer, Sir John Coode. This scheme has been under the consideration of the Government for some time, with a view to devising means for its execution, and a bill for the purpose of raising the necessary funds is before the Legislature, and may probably be passed this session. The works proposed by Sir John Coode consist of a series of training walls or moles, similar to those which have given such beneficial results at the sister port of Greymouth, and the estimated cost, including some important internal works and dredging, is £440,000. These works propose to produce 24 ft. of water on the bar at high water, spring tides, and 21 ft. at neap tides. And in the increased revenue which would accrue to Government from the employment of a large mining population at Westport, the proposed expenditure will recoup itself in the course of a few years. That the development of the coal industry will furnish employment for a large population will be apparent, when the fact is considered, that at the present moment, with the comparatively small output yet reached, a population of about 1200 persons are directly dependent on the industry, and a considerable number indirectly. With a very moderate improvement in the harbour, the population would rapidly be increased to 15,000 or 20,000 persons. Having regard, therefore, to the thickness of the coal seams, the facility with which the harbour can be improved, the magnificent character of the harbour when improved, the high quality of the coal, and its proximity to the port of shipment, it seems to me quite clear that the future of Westport is assured; and with the improved harbour, an export trade, rivalling, if not surpassing, that of the great coal port of New South Wales, may reasonably be expected in the course of a very few years. With an abundance of high class fuel produced at a cheap rate, manufacturing industries will doubtless locate themselves at Westport, and what is now a place of comparatively small importance will yet rank foremost amongst New Zealand centres of population.
In reference to the Koranui Company, I may add that it consists of the leases granted to the Wellington Coal Mining Company, and to the original Koranui Company, whose headquarters were at Westport. When it was found that the coal in the Wellington Company’s lease—although of excellent quality—was of too soft a nature to bear transit to a remunerative market, and the original Koranui Company wanting funds, the two combined under the name of the Koranui Coal Company. Financial difficulties overtook this company in May 1883, and an unsuccessful attempt to put more capital into the concern by floating a new issue of shares, led to its being wound up. The whole property was sold in one lot on August 6th, by private tender, Captain W. R. Williams being the spirited purchaser. This gentleman will work the mine in conjunction with his fine fleet of steamers, the “Black Diamond Line,” to which I have before alluded. And in the hands of one of New Zealand’s most enterprising business men, and hearty supporter of all local industries, the working of the mine will be of undoubted value to the district. The two leases are contiguous, and consist in all of about 1400 acres, which are bounded on the south-west by the rapid flowing torrent of the Waimangaroa River. A large number of men are employed in the mine and on the inclines, but these will be doubled in a very short time. The mine-manager at present is Mr N. Jemieson, and the company have an able general manager in Mr C. Holdsworth.
Having, then, pointed out the immense importance of the coalfields, and shown that this unused wealth is the undoubted germ of much future commerce for the Colony, and of many industries and manufactures, I will now give some account of the vast works which have been undertaken to connect the coal mines with the port of Westport. In the first place, there is the Westport and Ngakawau railway, eight and a half miles long, a colonial work completed about 1878. This railway runs northwards along the coast from Westport, and keeps at the foot of the mountain ranges nearly all the way. Ten miles from Westport a branch line leads off to the right, and follows up the Waimangaroa River for a mile, where the foot of the Koranui Coal Company’s incline is reached, and where the screens, coke ovens, and offices of the company are situated. Northwards of the junction of the Waimangaroa side line, the main line is at present little used, all the coal now coming to port being brought down the side line referred to; but this state of matters will not last long, as the great bulk of the Buller coalfield as yet untouched lies from four to eight miles northwards of the Waimangaroa River. The Westport Coal Company’s works begin near the foot of the Koranui Company’s incline. Starting from this point, and still proceeding up the Waimangaroa River, the side line was constructed for a further distance of about three-quarters of a mile through somewhat expensive country, as the hills close in on the river, and the banks were very steep and liable to slips. About half-way along this portion of the line, the railway had to be constructed on the river bed, and a retaining wall 24 ft. in height was erected between the railway and the river. At this point the first view of the Company’s inclines is obtained, and on a bright clear day the observer can see the waggons appearing and disappearing over the brow of the upper incline, although 2000 ft. up and nearly a mile and a half distant. At the terminus of the company’s side line of railway, a series of sidings have been constructed for storing full and empty coal waggons, and for making up the trains; and it is on the full sidings here that the coal is handed over to the Government railway department for transit to Westport and for delivery on board vessels in port. These sidings are managed on a system of reverse grades, and the same system has been adopted at the loading sidings at the head of the inclines. The railway waggons are taken to the head of the inclines, where they are loaded at the coal screens. Each waggon weighs when full about eleven tons, and when empty about four. A great advantage, as far as the quality of the coal delivered is concerned, is gained by taking the railway waggons up the inclines to the screens, as in this case, there is only one handling of the coal, from the time it is sent out of the mines to the time when it is put on board. The sidings are made as nearly as possible to be self-acting. When the full waggon is unhooked from the wire rope of the incline, it runs down (the brake being up) to its position on the full siding. When an empty waggon is required to be hooked on, the brake is lifted, and it runs forward to its position at the foot of the lower incline. Of course the empty ones are placed on the empty siding, and the full ones taken from the full siding by the railway locomotive engine. The inclines are worked entirely by gravitation—that is to say, the full waggon in descending draws the empty one to the top. Two separate wire ropes are used on each incline, which wind and unwind on the drum, 9 ft. in diameter, placed horizontally about 200 ft. back from the brow of each incline. The drums are divided into two compartments, and provided with powerful brake machinery, so that should one rope break, through any accident, the waggon on the other rope can be immediately held stationary. The ropes used are of steel, four inches in circumference, and are capable of bearing a strain of forty tons, but are never subjected to a strain of over eight tons. They are carefully attended to, and kept coated with a mixture of tar and anti-friction grease. Each of these ropes lasts about two years. There are two separate inclines, each with its own brake drum and pair of wire ropes, and the height is nearly equally divided, the waggons being lowered a height of 807 ft. on the upper, and 866 ft. on the lower incline. The lower incline is by far the longest, and the average grade therefore much less steep than on the upper one, the horizontal length of the lower incline being 3300 ft., giving an average grade of about one in four, while the horizontal length of the upper incline is 2000 ft., giving an average grade of about one in two and a half. The grades vary on both inclines, following to a certain extent the natural surface of the country; this was rendered necessary by the rough and uneven nature of the country, as the cost of making two planes on a theoretically perfect section would have been prohibitive. The steepest grade number reached on the inclines is one vertical to one and a half horizontal, and a good portion of the top of the upper incline is constructed on this grade, or about the slope of an ordinary staircase. In both inclines, which are counterparts of each other as far as method of working is concerned, there are three rails on the top, branching out into two separate lines in the middle, where the waggons pass each other, and ending below the turnouts in a single line. Line pulleys or rollers are arranged along the inclines wherever the rope touches the ground, about a foot in length and six inches in diameter, while at the brow, or brake head of each incline, the pulleys are much larger and heavier, as the rope presses more heavily there, and has a slight lateral motion, caused by the winding and unwinding of the drums. Each incline is perfectly straight in itself, although there is a slight difference in their direction. The permanent way consists of rails weighing 40 lbs. to the yard, with sleepers and fastenings exactly similar to those used on the railway, except that the sleepers, where crossing any viaduct work, are fastened down by ten-inch coach screws instead of railway dogs. The formation of these inclines is of the most solid and substantial description throughout, and although constructed on an extremely rough and rugged hillside, composed mainly of large slips from the range above, in no place has the work hitherto given, in the slightest degree. Very great care was directed to the works while in progress, to obtain or make solid foundations for all structures, and on the designs of these structures for strength and durability. Between the lower and upper inclines there are about 100 ft. of sidings, arranged with reversed grades similar to those described at the terminus of the railway. The full waggons when unhooked from the upper incline run forward to the place where it is hooked on to the rope connected with the lower brake drum, and the empty waggon, on arriving at the brake head of the lower incline, runs back to the foot of the upper incline to be there hooked on. There is something positively “uncanny” in the appearance of these huge waggons moving about apparently of their own accord, especially if you do not see the man on the brake steps. The waggon is lowered on the upper incline in about two minutes, and on the lower incline in about four and a-half minutes; but when the exigencies of the company’s trade demand it, the brake machinery will be altered, so as to lower in about three minutes. At present there is a hydraulic brake attached to the drum, which is very safe and excellent in many respects, but which exercises too great a deterrent influence on the waggons, and prevents a sufficient rate of speed in working this incline. Hitherto the upper incline has been worked with a single band brake on the drum, but now a new drum is being got ready with three band brakes in the centre, which is necessary for greater safety, and for preventing the heating of the bands. The brakes are worked in both cases by a small horizontal wheel and a screw, similar to a guard’s brake in a railway van. On the upper brake head, which is about 40 ft. below the level of the chain plane from the mines, there is a very complete and comprehensive system of sidings, constructed also with reversed grades similar to those at the middle brake head and the foot of the incline. At this place there is a small stationary engine placed at the tail of the sidings, so that when the empty waggons run back on a reverse grade, after having been released from the incline rope, they are pulled up a short direct grade, until they reach a level sufficient to enable them to run forward under the screens to be loaded, and then to their place before the drum at the upper brake head, where they are hooked on. The empty ones from either side can be switched on to the coal shoot line, or the small coal or “nut” siding. The arrangements for screening and loading the coal are very perfect and complete. The wire hutches or tubs are delivered by the endless chain at the “Top House,” a long building roofed in and lighted by a row of windows, and having the floor covered with sheets of iron, so that the tubs can be easily handled. There are two large 6-ft. shoots, with screens, at present in operation, but the increase of the output will soon render it necessary to add others. At the top of each of these shoots, and level with the Top House floor, there are “circular cradles” or “tiplers,” into which the loaded wire hutches are rolled by a man stationed at each cradle. The weight of the loaded tub causes these cradles to swing round, so as to turn the tub upside down, and to deliver its load into the shoot. While in the shoot the coal passes over a screen, which is a number of parallel bars placed half an inch apart, through which the nuts and slack drop, while the coal passes on to the bottom of the shoot, and drops into the railway waggon placed beneath to receive it. The mixed nuts and slack pass over a wire screen below, the nuts remain in the nut bin, and the slack, or fine coal, is deposited on the slack heap. Under the nut bin runs the sidings before referred to, and when a load of nuts is wanted, the empty waggon is run under the bin, a door opened, the waggon filled, the brake lifted, and the waggon runs down to the brake head to be hooked on to the drum. It may here be mentioned that at each of the brake heads strong blocks of wood are fixed, which are kept across the rails until the waggon is hooked on to the incline rope, and removed when the lowering is begun. The screen and shoots are completely roofed in, whereby the operation of screening is much more satisfactorily performed, the coal being always dry; and it is more comfortable for the men employed by the company in screening and loading; a matter of some importance considering that the screens are nearly 2000 ft. above the sea-level, and sometimes exposed to heavy wind and sleet. When the tub has been emptied, it is pulled out of the “cradle,” which has fallen back to its original position, and run on to the travelling chain, to be taken by it along the chain plane, and through the main headings of the Banbury mine to Coalbrookdale, or to be taken off at the nearer workings in the Banbury mine. The lowering capacity of the inclines is about 700 tons in eight hours, although it has never been worked up to that quantity in that time as yet, another screen and a band brake at the middle brake head being necessary for that output, as the works are now, and by working two shifts, the company can with ease get out and lower 800 to 900 tons in a day. The chain plane to the adit of the mine is about 1800 ft. in length, and for most of the way has been cut out of the solid rock face of the cliffs. Near the mine great chasms have been bridged over with masonry arches, and the plane supported by retaining walls 20 to 30 ft. in height, while in places the rock cutting on the inside of the plane forms precipices from 50 to 70 ft. in height.
The whole of the Westport Coal Company’s engineering works are of the strongest and most durable description, as the company wisely determined that it was better to make all the permanent works good at first so as to avoid the constant expenses of repair and replacing. The whole of the works were designed by and constructed under the superintendence of Messrs Young Brothers, civil engineers, and the successful completion of these large and difficult works, and the quickness and precision with which the traffic is conducted, is due chiefly to their ability and care.
The Westport Company’s works are the largest completed engineering works carried out by a private company in the Colony; and there is no similar work of this kind executed. The passenger railway incline between Lyon and Montreux in Switzerland is the nearest parallel case where the height and grade are somewhat similar; but there, there are central rails, and the brakes are worked by the conductor on the carriage. The inclines I have endeavoured to describe are unique as far as weights carried in one waggon, celerity of descent, and rapidity of handling are concerned.
The Koranui works are of a somewhat different character to those of the Westport Coal Company’s, inasmuch as the coal is not put into the railway trucks at the top of the inclines but at the bottom; the coal being worked to the foot of the inclines by a series of endless ropes. In considering the industries of this district, I must not overlook that of timber, which is an important one, and will eventually be far more so when the large areas of wooded country in the upper Buller has been opened up by roads, and the timber so made available. Operations will no doubt then be conducted on a far more extensive scale than at the present time, although even now they are by no means inconsiderable as the following figures will prove. There are several sawmills in the district, and the horse power employed in producing timber is as follows:—Westport 30, steam; Waimangaroa 25, steam; Charleston 10, water. The quantity produced monthly averages about 200,000 ft., value £800. These mills give employment to over sixty men. The export trade is not very large at present, but is gradually increasing. The contracts now existing for railway sleepers for export is 25,000, value about £4000. The timber used principally for these sleepers is black birch, which is found to be durable, and in every way adapted for the purpose; somewhere about 40,000 of these sleepers being used in the 20 miles of railway lines in this locality, comparatively few of which have had to be replaced during the nine or ten years since the line was first constructed. The local requirements for timber being large, the industry does not depend so much upon the export trade for development. Very little totara is found here, but the supply of red and white pine is more abundant. The oldest established firm of timber merchants in the Buller district is that of Messrs Marris Brothers, who have been on the West Coast for about 17 years.
For the first few years after the discovery of gold in the Buller district, the miners sought for the gold only on the beaches and banks of rivers, as in these places it was quickly obtained, and often in large quantities without preliminary labour or outlay. As soon as the best of the gold was taken in any one place and heavy labour became necessary to get more, the miner would quickly shift camp in search of a fresh prize. New discoveries were constantly being made, and hence the rushes of hundreds, or perhaps thousands of miners, which were so common in those days. The beaches and banks of the Buller River proved to be rich, and for a few years after the first discovery, some few thousands of miners were working on the river and its tributaries, the majority of whom made large wages. The method adopted for saving the gold, which was of a coarse flaky description, was very simple, and required but little apparatus, and as a rule but little preliminary labour. But as soon as the easily obtained gold was worked out, and heavy preliminary work became necessary, in fact as soon as the best of the gold had been taken, the miners began to leave, and the population steadily dwindled down. During the last few years there has not been any decrease, but the total number of miners in the Buller district at the present time is only about 500, inclusive of those employed in the quartz mines at the Lyell and elsewhere. Of late years nearly all the claims in the Brighton, Charleston, and Addison districts have been worked on the ground sluicing system. The plan of ground sluicing is simple enough in theory, but often very difficult to put into practice. An open race or tunnel has to be brought up from a lower level to the claim, which generally extends over a few acres that have been proved by shaft mining to contain a lead. This is called a tail-race. The lead may bear a considerable depth below the surface, and the tail-race must be of the same depth and with sufficient fall to enable the stuff from the claim to travel without blocking it up. Then a water-race has to be brought in to the claim from a higher level. This is termed the head-race; and as the water is the great motive power, it is necessary that there should be a large and very regular supply. If possible, the race is brought in from a river or good-sized stream, but should this not be practicable, reservoirs must be built to catch the rain. For a large claim the race is made of sufficient size to convey 250 inches of water. To construct these head and tail races is often the most arduous undertaking, involving considerable outlay of labour and capital. But where payable gold has been proved to exist, and it is within the range of probability to get at it, the gold miner knows no such word as “fail.” He may have to bring up his tail-race for one or even two miles, the greater part of which consists of tunnels with dimensions of 3 ft. by 4 ft., and which, if they are not through solid country, must be timbered. He may have to go for two or three miles to get his water, and then conduct it over rough country, always preserving an even grade; sometimes having to convey it by means of box fluming or iron piping along the face of steep precipices, or across deep ravines. This sort of thing has no doubt to be done on most goldfields, but especially on such a field as Addison’s Flat, a visitor could not but be astonished at the immense amount of work done by parties of from four to eight men, and at the ability they have displayed in overcoming every difficulty in their way. Not many miles from Westport a party of six men have worked steadily for more than four years, to open up ground which they have every reason to believe is payable. A tail-race has been brought up for a mile and a half, and water conducted on to the claim by a head-race more than two miles in length. There are at least twenty tunnels in the head and tail races, three of which are each quite 1000 ft. long, through country difficult and dangerous to work, and another is through a hill range nearly 2000 ft. in length. Without the aid of engineer or surveyor, these miners started the tunnel on either side of the range, and met fairly in the middle. Through it they have brought their water from one valley into another, and then on to their claim. This is but one instance out of many on the Buller goldfields of what courage and energy can accomplish.
It is a question of considerable importance whether new fields are likely to be discovered in the Buller district of sufficient value to attract a large population. Much likely country remains as yet unexplored, especially between the head waters of the Mohikinui and the Lyell, and further north in the Karamea riding of the Buller county. Important discoveries may any day be made in these places.
Throughout the Buller district many miners are also engaged to some extent in pastoral pursuits; and smiling homesteads, with good orchards, are a common sight. As a natural result of this more settled life, the miner is in a great measure free from the follies and vices so common on the diggings in former days, but happily in other respects his character is not changed. Now, as then, he is an open-hearted generous man, ever ready to extend a helping hand to any one in need. The genuine gold miner of to-day is essentially an honourable man. He is one of the brightest examples of the self-reliance and exertion that ennoble life. Of the Buller quartz reefs which have of late attracted considerable attention, it is at present premature to speak with any certainty, but so far as they have been opened up they promise well. About twelve years ago reefs were discovered at Waimangaroa and at the head of the Mohikinui River, and at each place a battery was erected, but in both instances the enterprise failed. At Waimangaroa the stone soon ran out, no further prospecting was done, and the battery was sold. At Mohikinui the quartz yielded about an ounce to the ton, but owing to the rough and inaccessible nature of the country, the cost of taking out the stone and crushing it was greater than the return obtained. After an outlay not far short of £10,000, the enterprise was abandoned; but during the last two years another effort has been made to develop these districts. At Mohikinui fresh reefs have been discovered, and taken up by companies thoroughly determined to spare no expense in giving them a fair trial. A good pack track has been formed from the mouth of the river to the reefs, and the battery has been put in a state of thorough repair, and is now in good working order. The Red Queen on the southern, and the Guiding Star on the northern, bank of the Mohikinui River have been well opened up at a cost of a few thousand pounds, and a considerable quantity of good-looking stone has been taken and is now ready for crushing. This will be commenced in a few weeks, and until the result of the first crushing is known, any estimate of the probable yield would be mere guess work; but much of the stone shows gold so freely, that many experienced quartz miners consider it will prove highly payable, and that Mohikinui will become an important mining centre. In the neighbourhood of Waimangaroa a block of stone, which appears to be exceedingly rich, has also recently been discovered, but it has not yet been sufficiently prospected to prove whether it is part of the solid reef. However, the existence of 1000 tons of stone, which is confidently expected to turn out several ounces to the ton, has been proved; and arrangements have been made for the erection of a battery, which will be commenced forthwith. The machine site is within easy distance of the Westport and Ngakawau Railway, so the cost of erecting the battery will be comparatively small. This claim is the property of the Great Republic Company. It is highly probable that there is much more stone of similar quality in the vicinity of the present workings, and that it only wants a little prospecting to bring it to light. Should this prove to be the case, the Great Republic Company own a claim second to none in the district in value. The total quantity shipped from Westport during the year 1883 was 8300 ounces, value about £33,000, but this did not include the gold from the Lyell Reefs and the Buller River above the Lyell, which finds its way via Reefton to Greymouth, or to Nelson, from whence it is shipped to Melbourne or elsewhere. The total quantity exported from Westport is now much smaller than in former years, but is not likely to decrease further; and should the quartz reefs turn out nearly as well as is expected, it will doubtless be largely increased, and the trade of this district will of necessity be greatly benefited thereby.
Note.—The writer of the foregoing chapter wishes to acknowledge the courtesy of Mr Hay Dickson, and other gentlemen connected with the coal mines in Westport, who have kindly furnished figures and data, from which much of the information contained herein has been compiled. .jpg)