LEAVING SYDNEY FOR THE DIGGINGS. 1852/55

LEAVING SYDNEY FOR THE DIGGINGS. 1852/55

PREPARING A TEMPORARY HABITATION TAKING OUT OUR
LICENCES SINKING THE FIRST SHAFT PARTING WITH
ONE COMPANION EXPERIENCE WITH A "LONG TOM"
PARTING WITH MY REMAINING COMPANION FITTING
UP AND WORKING A SLUICE.

SATURDAY, the fourteenth day of May, the month which
is of all others so delightfully pleasant in old England,
was here, owing to the reversal of the seasons, quite the
opposite, it being much colder and more disagreeable than
any day since leaving Sydney for the diggings. The rain,
sleet, and snow continued to fall during the whole day. I
had scarcely a dry thread to my apparel, from the time I
rose from my grassy bed in the morning until the daylight
disappeared.
Accompanied by one of my companions, I was walking
about the diggings all the latter part of the day, purchasing
certain indispensable articles, including a calico tent, which
cost us six pounds. We lost no time in putting it up, in a
temporary way, so as to serve us till the following Monday,
and then pitched loads of fuel on the fire wherewith to
dry and warm our clothes. The ground being very
wet, and my body cold, this day's work brought on an
attack of dysentery. We all passed a sleepless night, and
indeed stood round the fire during a great part of it. A
tipsy man came up to us in the night, whom at first we
found rather troublesome, until we put him in the right
track for his tent.
May 15th. This was Sunday. Before we took breakfast I
procured a quarter of mutton, for which I paid four shillings
and sixpence. The day was much finer than the previous
one had been. I saw many diggers out shooting birds,
while others were felling trees. We found some excellent
water here, so that we had an opportunity of rinsing out
our dirty clothes. At seven o'clock in the evening I laid
down in the tent on some branches of trees, and rested
till the following morning, when I felt somewhat better.
One of my companions behaved in a very perverse and
obstinate manner, and the other was very down-hearted,
although I did my utmost to cheer him. I so far
succeeded as to induce him to assist in cutting poles
for our tent, which we pitched on the diggings towards
Monday evening.
May 18th. There was a very white frost this morning,
but it heralded a fine day. We put up a bark chimney today
at one end of the tent ; and after we had dug a ditch
all round the tent, for the purpose of rendering it dry at the
bottom, we made the chimney more safe by casing it with
stone and clay. In preparation for digging, I went to the
Commissioners and procured our licences, which at this
time were thirty shillings each per month. His camp was
guarded with both foot and mounted police, with sentinels
always posted in various positions round about it. I took this
opportunity of posting some letters, the office being a weather
boarded building near the government encampment.
We did not attempt to begin our digging operations until
the 24th of the month, as it took us the whole of the intermediate
time to get our temporary home as comfortable as the
peculiarities of our situation allowed of. In the meantime
I encountered a digger, whom I at once recognised, although
I had not seen him for twenty years previously to that
time. I felt very elated on meeting with him, as I was
well acquainted with his friends in my native place. His
brother formerly worked for my father ; and knowing all
the family to be industrious and well conducted, I felt
much pleased in making his acquaintance in this strange
land. It so happened that his tent was near mine, and I
thus had the pleasure of his company whilst at
these diggings.
The first time we tried our hands with the pick and spade
was to sink a shaft to search for gold, in which attempt
we were very sanguine of success. While working at the
one alluded to, -we found that to begin a second would
enable us all to work simultaneously as hard as our strength
allowed of. By this arrangement one could rest his limbs
for a few minutes, and each could have a spell of labour in
in his turn. There were hundreds of shafts near us, already
sunk; some were abandoned, whilst others proved remunerative.
There were also hundreds of gold- seekers
around us sinking shafts, in a similar way to ourselves. Most
of these shafts were nearly fifty feet in depth, which to us
" new chums" looked rather terrible to descend.
Finding that no gold was found at the bottom of the
shafts sunk contiguous to ours, we thought it prudent, before
going very low with this second one, to get to the bottom
of one first, and on that proving a blank, to abandon
the other altogether and try some new ground. We
accordingly worked both early and late at our task, carrying
our crust with us for dinner to save time. We had not
got to the bottom, however, before the water came in,
which compelled the one down the hole to send up a few
buckets of water occasionally. This was done in the same
manner as that by which the dirt was sent up namely, by
winding up the bucket with a windlass attached to a rope,
in the same way as the country people in England draw
up the water from their wells. Such work as this was
quite a novelty to us, and much more laborious than any
thing we had before been subject to, independent of oar
experience in bush travelling. We found that handling
the tools produced formidable blisters on our hands, which
were a source of great discomfort in carrying on our
labours.
The spot at the bottom of these shafts, where we had
reason to expect the gold, either in the shape of dust or
nuggets, was indicated by layers of large pebbles and gravel,
similar to what we find in the present day covering the bed
of streams and shallow water-courses. It is here that, in
these dry diggings, as they are termed by way of distinction
to some others, the gold is found deposited in greater or
less quantities. Thousands of years ago these layers of
pebbles formed the bed of a running stream or river, into
which the auriferous particles were washed from the
adjacent rocks, and where they were left on the subsidence
of the waters.
On reaching and exposing the bed of this ancient watercourse,
we invariably tried a small portion of the gravely
deposit by washing it carefully with water, in a prospecting
pan ; and should there be indications of the presence of the
precious metal after the first trial, we were very careful in
collecting the remainder ; and as we dug deeper, we continued
to put more of this alluvial deposit to the test in a
similar way, until we were satisfied that it would or would
not pay us for working it any longer. I found, in some
instances, that the precious metal had subsided beneath the
first layer of deposit, and rested sometimes on rotten granite,
and at others, formations mixed with blue clay. In such
cases it was found very difficult to separate the gold from
such tenacious matter. When our experience had taken
us thus far, if the hole did not prove remunerative, it was
invariably the rule to commence what the miners call "
driving," namely, to excavate in a horizontal direction, on
a level with the deposit alluded to. Sometimes I have
driven a hole, or assisted in doing so, to the extent of six
feet or more, and afterwards abandoned it, literally without
earning our salt, since we had to pay for that simple article
no less than eighteen-pence per pound.
It was highly dangerous in wet weather to trust one's
body in these subterraneous passages beneath such a
weight of soil, as they are sometimes driven
from one person's claim to that of another, by which great
peril is incurred, the ground often sinking in and burying
tools or any miner who may happen to be toiling in the
hole. Many such misfortunes occurred from time to time
at the Ovens, and never did I work under such circumstances
without feeling a sense of insecurity. To render
the excavation as safe as possible, we sometimes propped up
such underground works ; and there was only room
enough to lie on our backs or sides to use the pick, spade,
and bucket.
When sinking shafts in some localities, after testing them
well by driving, we often used a knife to scrape away the
loose soil found in the interstices of the rocks, where small
nuggets have frequently been discovered. This is termed
crevising ; and many miners carry a long knife in a leather
case for that purpose, which to the " new chum "
is a source
of constant conjectures. At first sight he is disposed to
view these formidable things as instruments either of
offence or defence, or both ; but a little experience with
the gold-fields of Australia will dissipate this delusion, and
he will find that there are thousands of well-disposed and
honourable men at the diggings as well as amongst other
mixed communities.
The preserved alluvial drift taken out of the shaft, and
supposed to contain the auriferous deposit, had to be carried
to some stream or pool for the convenience of separating
the precious metal from the earth. This is sometimes done
by washing it in cradles, the nature of which are now so
well known as to need no description ; at other times the
gold is washed out with "
long toms," which latter process
is far more expeditious than the former, and which
will be alluded to from time to time in the subsequent
pages.
May 31st. This day was signalized in my digging
experience by one of our companions taking leave of us.
Being the youngest of our party, who left home with me,
I felt considerable leniency towards him. I had
indulged him by consenting to his leaving off work earlier
than the rest, and some days allowed him to stay in the
tent, merely to prepare our food and do little light jobs
not so fatiguing as mining operations. But these indulgences
did not satisfy him. I had noticed his discontent
for several days, and this morning told him plainly to do as
he pleased, either to work or play, whichever suited his
taste. Like thousands more, he had expected to pick up
gold on the surface of the ground without any exertion
whatever. He went and engaged himself to a butcher,
to drive about sheep for him, for which I understood he
was to receive twenty shillings per week, with board and
lodgings. On our returning to the tent towards evening,
the information which we had received was confirmed by
the youth himself; and as he was then going to his new
quarters, I accompanied him and saw his employer, and
satisfied myself as to the correctness of the story. I afterwards
learnt that he- soon became weary of his new
employment.
My companion and myself were now the only two left
together of the original party which left Sydney. One of
the two who had been dismissed at Araluen returned to
England in the vessel that had brought him out. Thus
diminished, we continued to dig day after day, but could
produce only a comparatively small quantity of gold. We
had not much time for rest, as we had the stores and the
butcher to visit some evenings, and at other times to bake
a damper, which occasionally kept us up till midnight.
I may here remark that, contrary to what might be expected,
there were many articles to be procured at the
stores which might be regarded as luxuries on the diggings,
namely, potatoes, onions, eggs, tea, coffee, etc., etc., but they
were sold at extravagant prices. The first-named article
fetched two shillings per pound, the next two-and-sixpence,
and the third were one shilling each. Butcher's meat was
generally from sixpence to eight pence per pound, flour
I usually paid eighteen-pence per pound for, and butter
five shillings. At night we had to carry wood a long distance
on our backs whenever we needed it ; but sometimes
we felled a tree, and after cutting it and sawing it into
convenient lengths, the timber would, perhaps, last us a
week or more. This was no easy task to perform, however;
for as all the trees were burnt up near the tents, we had
often to go some considerable distance in quest of such
fuel. We found the nights generally cold, and our beds,
composed of sheets of bark, proved too hard for our weary
bones, and caused us to sleep but little at times. We heard
many fire-arms discharged every night soon after dark, which
was probably often done in order to let the neighbours
know that they possessed the power to destroy, if occasion
required. I always placed my loaded pistols under my head
at night, so as to be in readiness in case of any alarm. Our
tent proved tolerably water-tight. I have sometimes felt a
few drops of rain come through on my face at night ; but the
greatest nuisance was the smoke which, when the wind was
blowing hard from a certain direction, would draw in and
almost suffocate us.
One night, owing to the carelessness of my companion,
our tent was threatened with destruction by fire. It was a
custom with him to heap up quite a pile of wood on the
fire before he lay down to rest. I had remonstrated
with him on the subject, being afraid of setting fire to the
bark on the top of the chimney, and of igniting one end of
the tent at the same time a casualty which really did
occur. We had both laid down, when, about midnight, I
heard some person outside call out,
" fire." Up we both
sprung ; my companion threw water on the chimney, which
was blazing away, whilst I attempted to smother the fire
then consuming one end of the tent. The accident happily
ended well. It seemed a providential escape for us.
June 5th, Sunday. This sacred day of rest was at all
times welcomed by us, as we not only ceased from toil, but
anticipated the pleasure of receiving letters from our dear
friends in England. In this expectation I was not mistaken
on this occasion. I received two letters from one
dearest in all the world to me. Some persons would have
supposed that it would cheer me to hear that all were well
when those letters were penned ; but no ! the intelligence
had the contrary effect, strange as it may seem to those who
never knew what it was to be so far from home and
kindred. Such was, in reality, the way this affected me. My
companion too, about this time, was getting very downhearted
; but I did my best to cheer him up, and administered
to his wants by supplying him with cash whenever
he was in need of it, to purchase things which he could not
well do without.
Letters are always delivered to the miners on Sundays,
as soon as the mail arrives from Sydney and Melbourne.
After the letters are sorted out, they are all arranged
alphabetically. The postmaster then opens a window, and
beginning with the first letter of the alphabet, calls out
loud enough for the assembled crowd to hear him ; and on
any person answering to the name corresponding with the
address of the letter, it is at once handed to him. After
the letters have been all delivered, I have often stood listening
to some preacher of the gospel who took this opportunity
to explain and enforce some portion of holy writ, and
who was generally listened to very attentively until his
sermon -was ended. I have seen one of these clerical
gentlemen washing for gold during the week time. There
were many other professional men also who worked like
labourers at these diggings.
On the following Monday night we were very much
alarmed. On returning to the tent in the evening, we heard,
soon after dark, a fearful noise issuing from a tent close to
ours. I afterwards heard the police come up and interfere.
I understood, from information gained the next morning,
that the companions of one man had beaten him about
dreadfully with a spade, and to finish him quite off they
actually tossed him on the fire, but had not killed him,
when the constables arrived and rescued him from so
dreadful a fate.
July 1st. My companion and myself were indefatigable
during the whole of the month of June in trying for the
precious metal. At one time we were down fifty feet under
ground, and at other times in holes of shallower depth, up
to our knees in water and mud from morn till night. Often
we had drawn up hundreds of buckets of water without
reducing the quantity in any appreciable degree, in consequence
of a spring letting in the water as fast as we drew
it out; and all this labour was without any remuneration.
This being the first of the month, it was the proper time to
renew our licences. I accordingly walked to the government
camp for that purpose, and took the opportunity of
speaking to the Commissioner about being allowed to
commence sluice-washing in the creek ; but as he could not
give a decided answer to my application until he heard
from the Lieutenant-Governor, he requested me to call
again at a future period. I found him very pleasant and
communicative.
My companion now being extremely disheartened by
our non-success, I resolved to try the experiment of "
longtomming ; " and accordingly, without delay,
I procured one of
the long troughs known in digging parlance as a " torn."
This article is made by nailing three boards together, about
twelve feet in length and a similar number of inches in
width, with a sheet of iron, pierced full of holes, fastened
on one end at the bottom. This simple machine could only
be worked by placing it in a running stream in a sloping
direction, so that the water could flow in at the highest end
and continue to run gently all the time we wished to be
at work. In working it, one person throws in the dirt,
stones, etc., from the loose earth which has already been
passed through the cradles at an earlier stage of the
diggings at a time when the miners would not work unless
the ground was rich in auriferous deposit, as a little gold
would not then satisfy them. At the lower end, underneath
the "long torn," is placed a square shallow box, to catch all
the heavy substances which are not dissolved by the
washing process. Most of the earth then runs off with
the current of water, whilst the heavy stones and precious
metal fall into this little box, and at the end of each day is
taken out and properly cleansed.
We at once went hard to work with our "long tom”
and day after day we were up in the morning before daylight,
and worked up to our knees in mud and water, until
we retired to our tent at night. We generally took a crust
with us for dinner, rather than lose the time in walking
to our tent. I was generally up the latest at night,
attending to our domestic affairs, and first in the morning,
as I could not prevail on my companion to exert himself
whilst in the tent ; and, what was still worse, he proved to
be very bad-tempered, and prone to make use of vulgar
language. There was a very noisy party in a tent adjacent
to ours, where they were generally gambling and card playing
the greater part of the night.
July 8th. Early this morning, before daylight, a tipsy
man, on seeing a light in my tent, made towards it, calling
out to know what part of the diggings he was on. I immediately
went out, thinking to put him in the right route
for his tent. He told me that he had lost his way. and in
consequence had been out all night. He was very cold,
and requested leave to warm himself, to which I consented,
keeping a sharp look-out, however, upon him at the same
time. He was too drunk to be able to walk, and he
offered to give me five pounds to see him safe home an
offer which I declined.
In the evening I went to a store to purchase a pair of
hose for my companion, for which I paid six shillings. I
acted as his banker, and he always preferred my making
purchases for him. In my evening visits I have several
times been challenged by the sentinels when walking near
the government camp, but never experienced any difficulty
in being allowed to pass. I seldom spared time to go to a
store or to the butcher's until after dark, when I was
thoroughly tired out ; nor was it to be wondered at, after
having carried about five hundred buckets of earth to the
" long torn," from heaps at a considerable distance, and in
most cases I had to use the pick before I could shovel it
into the bucket.
July 10th, Sunday. I rose at daylight this morning, without
much rest for my aching bones. I prepared our breakfast
in the best style I possible could, with the means I had at
hand. My companion accompanied me for a walk as far as
a water-fall in the creek. This is a perpetual stream of
water dashing over huge perpendicular rocks to a great depth
below. I placed myself on the highest of these rocks,
where I could see it in all its grandeur. Whilst standing
on this granitic rock, too, I could see the primeval forest in
the distance in all its romantic beauty. At the usual hour
in the afternoon I went to the post-office, but not receiving
a letter from England as anticipated, I felt rather depressed
in spirits.
July 13th. I waited on the Commissioner again to-day,
and he gave me full permission to go to work with a sluice
whenever I thought proper. I had, to-day, the ill luck to
slip into a hole up to my neck in water. Being mid-winter,
I found it very cold indeed. It happened to be in the
after-part of the day, so that I gave up work, retired to my
tent as quickly as possible, and making a fire, dried myself
as rapidly as I could. I caught a slight cold, which is
not general here, for the climate greatly counteracts such
ill effects.
This evening my companion had a most unpleasant quarrel
with an " old hand." I took no part in the affair.
Most of these old hands are emancipated convicts. The
person alluded to actually threatened to knock my young
friend's brains out if he hinted again that he was an " old
lag," which I understood he had previously insinuated,
though not in my hearing. There is nothing, I believe,
offends them more than such allusions, and I verily believe
that if they had been repeated, the threat would have been
executed. I felt very nervous about the affair; but, at the
same time, was fully prepared with my pistols to act on the
defensive, had my companion been assailed by such a
wretch. Happily, however, I had no occasion to proceed to
such extremities.
July 24th. This being Sunday, I did not rise so early as
usual. There were sleepless nights for me, in
consequence of the croaking of the frogs in the creek very
near to my tent, in addition to the discomforts of the bed
upon which I am necessitated to rest. The Sabbath day
was at all times welcome to me ; but missing the society of
friends, and the public assemblages of public worship, my
mind reverted to the happy days gone by ; and did I not
anticipate a happy meeting once more where similar privileges
would be enjoyed, I should have been of all men the
most miserable. I went to the post-office at the proper
time in the afternoon, but only to learn, to my regret, that
in consequence of the wet weather, four mails were then
overdue, and that accordingly there were no letters for me.
August 4th. I rose soon after three o'clock this morning,
being unable to sleep, in consequence of a great noise made
in a tent near mine. I kindled a fire very quickly, and,
after preparing breakfast, called up my companion. As
soon as we had taken our crust of bread and tea, we went
forth to our hard day's toil. On my way back to the tent
in the evening, I called at the post-office, and received a
letter and two newspapers from the post-mistress, who was
a pleasant person. This arrival was a source of great
delight to me. During the day I saw a clergyman rocking
a cradle ; I understood that he belonged to the Scotch
Church.

Taken From the book.

The Draper In Australia

BEING A NARRATIVE. OF THREE YEARS' ADVENTURES AND EXPERIENCE
AT THE GOLD-FIELDS.

ADVICE ADAPTED FOR THE INTENDING EMIGRANT AND OTHERS.
DEDICATED TO THE DRAPERS OF ENGLAND.

LONDON :
WILLIAM FEEEMAN, 69, FLEET STREET.
MDCCCLVI.