Thamanampalli Surekha

dry season plenty of good grass for horses and cattle, which was very much required at Forest Greek. The scenery upon the banks of the stream at this spot was of that quiet, park-like aspect which characterises the sheep-runs in the vicinity of this golden mount. To us it was a pleasing relief to the parched appearance of the gullies - as the small valleys are termed in Australia - in and around Friar's Greek, and its neighbour Forest Greek But to the gold - digger it appeared a perfect El Dorado, where he had such abundance of water at command to wash the auriferous soil. And so they went joyfully to work, singing, talking, and laughing as they rocked their cradles by the margin of that murmuring stream. There was more of the romance of gold- digging upon this spot than any where we had yet visited. We presume that every one who has taken up this book, and read thus for, has become acquainted with the ordinary method of gold-washing in Australia: - that the earth which contains the gold is dug out by one man, and pitched on the side of the hole, when they have to excavate for it, from whence it is carried by another man to the cradle, which is generally some distance from the excavation, and handy to the water. Here it is thrown into the washing-machine, which is now well known to resemble an ordinary child's cradle, and there mingled with copious supplies of water, thrown on by a third member of the party. while a fourth rocks the cradle violently by a handle attached to on side near the head. unlike the gentle soothing motions which watchful nurses apply to that piece of nursery furniture just named, for it is not the purpose of the gold- seeker to lull the contents of his cradle to rest, but to wake it up. When a sufficient quantity of earth is washed in this maimer, to satisfy the cradle - rocker that there is a likelihood of some gold being found in the bottom, of the cradle - where it settles in consequence of its greater density, while the particles of earth with which it is mixed are carried off - the residue is taken out and washed in a tin dish to clear it from any sand or gravel still left, when the gold - dust is carefully collected. The larger pieces - or nuggets as they are termed - are pickled out before the mass of earth reaches the bottom of the cradle, as there are generally one or two gratings at the head of the machine to intercept the stones which are mingled with the earth. To furnish the intending gold- digger with more valuable practical information on this head, we subjoin here some memoranda carefully drawn up from the statement of a successful and intelligent digger, a Lancashire man, named W. B. Garrett. And as these gold - diggings at Mount Alexander have been so much spoken of, perhaps they will be interesting to the general reader, as they are couched in language so as to be understood by all classes. Mr. Garrett says. "At the surface - diggings the gold is found lying on the very top, to the depth of from 6 to 14 inches, and sometimes still deeper, these diggings have always been on the face or side of the hills, and generally those hills facing east and south - east. It is found in all sorts of earth, excepting the black alluvial soil, in or amongst gravelly earth, and small quartz, in hard marly clay. The average yield of this sort of diggings is about an ounce to a cart - load of earth, and three, men with a cradle can dig up and wash six or seven loads per day; it was this sort of diggings that a party of three, to which I belonged, obtained in eleven days 37 ozs. 2 dwts. each. But some of the surface - diggings yield much more. In some particular spots, parties of three or four have obtained 300, 400, and 500, and even in one instance 800 ounces in two or three days, but taking them altogether, they yield about an ounce to a load of earth. " In sinking, the deepest of the holes might be eighteen or twenty feet, certainly not deeper, and the shallowest two, three, and four feet, so that the overage would be about eight or ten feet. As they keep sinking, they try a dishful of the earth occasionally, until they find that it will pay for washing. They frequently find a few particles from within a couple of feet from the top. But they in general have to go within a food of the rock before they find it to pay them, it is then found sometimes in a hard marly substance. The rocks, which are mostly blue or greystate, are in general covered with a few, inches of tough clay, in which gold is seldom or ever found. But on the top of the clay a bed of small gravel is found, in which gold most abounds (the larger pieces are often embedded in the clay). I have known many holes yielding an ounce per day to three men abandoned as not paying, and given to new - comers, who wanted a start, and the men generally considered themselves not paid if they were getting less than an ounce per day each man. Many holes have been left by parties just commencing as being unprofitable, through not knowing how to work them, and others, experienced hands, have gone into the some hole and done well. Myself and two others went into an old hole abandoned by two parties, and in about a fortnight got six pounds seven ounces each man, driving our hole under three or four others that had not been sunk down to the rocks. The sinking is always done in the gullies. Holes in the very centre of the dip of the gullies are always the richest. Quartz abounds in nearly every part of the gold-fields, sometimes lying scattered on the surface, and in many places large ridges of it are found sticking up out of the ground, forming an angle with the earth of about 40� or 45�. In many places there are alternate layers of iron-stone and quartz embedded together. The iron-stone abounds most in and near the bed of the creek,