REUBEN WAITE,
Buller River Hotel and Store.
R. Waite begs to inform all who may visit the diggings in the above district, that he can give them unrivalled accommodation; while the LIQUORS, BOARD, &c, cannot easily be surpassed in Nelson, either for quality or price.
PROVISIONS and STORES generally can be obtained at his house in any quantity; and persons can be supplied with every requisite for a Gold-field at prices which will not exceed those charged by Nelson retail stores; because, from his long experience at the several gold-diggings, he has become perfectly aware of the requirements of gold-diggers, and, having purchased his goods at first hand, can sell them at a small profit. -Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle, 1/7/1863.
THE POST OFFICE STORE.
REUBEN WAITE, The Original Pioneer of the West Coast goldfields, continues in the old spot, and all goods suitable for the diggers can be obtained at his store at Hokitika prices. -West Coast Times, 24/8/1865.
THE BULLER DIGGINGS.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE 'NELSON EXAMINER.'
Sir — In the Nelson Examiner of the 10th December, I see a report of certain evidence with regard to the Buller gold-fields, which you seem to think so far conclusive as to make it the basis of a leading article, and by so doing render evidence, worthless in itself, of sufficient importance to demand a few remarks from an old resident in the Buller district. Mr. Gibson's evidence is like the man, straightforward and digger-like; the same may be said for the testimony of Mr. Buck, though marred by a few trifling inaccuracies, which may possibly have arisen in reporting; but the evidence of Messrs. Waite and Cave is, if not false in fact, at least false in tendency, as I shall explain. The evidence of these storekeepers bears chiefly on three points, viz., the expenditure of Government money on the roads, &c.; the necessity for proclaiming the Buller a goldfield, and the much vexed question with regard to selling Maoris liquor.
With regard to the road between Westport and the Lyell Creek, too much cannot be said about its uselessness and absurdity. The Buller itself is the natural and only practical road between the two places: a few hundreds, say £2,000 sterling, spent in removing snags, blasting rocks, and cutting towing paths, would have done more for the Buller goldfield than all the expensive works that have been going on for the last twelve months on the banks of the river. I do not mean to follow in the wake of Messrs. Cave and Waite, by abusing Mr. Skeet, the gentleman who has had the management of the Government road, on the contrary, I believe Mr. Skeet to be an active and determined man, and the work he has had to do, he has done, and done well. Whether the work ought to have been done at all, is the real question. The real fact of the matter is, that if the road was a good mettled road, no one would use it, as the Buller itself is a cheaper road than any that can be made along its banks.
We diggers want roads, or at least walking tracks, to open up the country and enable us to prospect, not a steep and toilsome path within a few yards of a navigable river.
With regard to proclaiming the Buller a gold-field, and the consequent appointment of a Resident Magistrate, Warden, or some such officer, the diggers do not care at all about, as far as I know. We can settle our own disputes very well ourselves, and if a magistrate came, he no doubt could settle them very well for us; the only difference would be, that should a Warden be appointed, and cheap law, I do not say justice, be in force, there would be ten times as many disputes as at present.
Messrs. Cave and Waite say that men frequently leave the port without paying their debts, and with plenty of money in their pockets. The evidence of these storekeepers must be taken cum grano talix. I will explain why. Mr. Cave is a new comer, and a wholesale dealer, and therefore cannot have suffered much from the retail buyer. Certainly, Mr. Cave has now a retail store at the Lyell, but not till within the last few weeks; so it is impossible he can have suffered to any great extent. Now for Mr. Reuben Waite. Mr Reuben Waite is the oldest storekeeper on the Buller, and at one time had the whole command of the West Coast trade. That command enabled him to sell inferior goods at the highest possible prices.
If any Lyell Creek man in Nelson happens to read this, I am sure he will shudder at the recollection of the black mouldy flour we were compelled to swallow in midwinter. The consequence of all this is, that as Mr. R. Waite "put the diggers through" when he could (to use the Buller slang), the diggers in return glory in "putting him through" whenever they can, and run up bills for that express purpose. I do not say the diggers are right in this, but they are not very far wrong.
Now for the grog and Maori question. White men and Maoris have, hitherto, occupied the same ground at the Lyell, neither being esteemed before nor treated differently from the others; in many instances, indeed, white men and Maoris are mates; and it seems to me the height of absurdity to say that the white man working in the water requires grog, but the Maori by his side does not. The same may be said of canoe men.
I can confidently state that, whenever drunken squabbles have occurred at the Lyell (as they have, though rarely), the Maoris have been the first to assist the storekeepers in keeping order and preventing a serious riot. I am sure that Messrs. Day and Co., and Mr. Gapper, the oldest storekeepers at the Lyell, would confirm this statement. Mr. Cave must, I think, have exaggerated the facts, when he speaks of being bullied and threatened for drink. Hard up men will often try and "chaff" a storekeeper out of a nobbler — " put em through," as they would say — but nothing further.
In conclusion, I can only say that stopping the Maori grog will cause more dissatisfaction and more "rows" than have yet been caused by drunkenness.
I am, &c., A Lyall Creek Digger. -Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle, 28/1/1864.
One of our facetious correspondents inquires what is the present price of bark? We conclude that, according to a recent decision, it must be £20 with two securities in £10 each. The price however would probably depend materially on the fact whether the article was registered before it was collared, and moreover upon the Waite and measure employed.
It is an odd beginning to a column, and the reason for it was revealed further down the page.
The usually monotonous routine of a Monday morning's business at the Police Court was yesterday diversified by a very amusing scene, which more than once sorely tried the gravity of the Court, from the Resident Magistrate downwards. It appears that Mr. Reuben Waite, the wellknown pioneer of the West Coast Goldfields, was passing down Trafalgar-street, between 8 and 9 o'clock, on Sunday evening, when his attention was arrested by a street preacher, who was walking slowly up and down the street, at the corner opposite the Trafalgar Hotel, repeating portions of Scripture in a loud voice. It is notorious that Mr Waite is possessed of very considerable ventriloquial and imitative powers, and thinking, we presume, the opportunity too good to be lost, on the preacher approaching gave the audience assembled on the spot, numbering about 40 or 50 persons a "taste of his quality" by imitating a merveille the barking of an angry dog. The policeman on duty then came up and threatened, on a repetition of the supposed offence, to "lock him up." Mr Waite however, insisting on his equal right to amuse the public after his own fashion, and no doubt somewhat nettled by the threat, immediately repeated the "bark," and was straitway collared by the constable, conveyed to the lockup, and confined there until liberated, some time afterwards by his friends, who came in a numerous body and offered bail for his appearance. The hearing of the case yesterday morning attracted a large audience at the Resident Magistrate's Court, and the illustrations given in open Court by the offender of his imitative powers in more than one instance completely convulsed the assemblage. To the surprise of all present, who had totally failed to discover wherein lay the offence said to have been committed by Mr Waite, or what possible right the policeman had to arrest him on such an absurd and trivial charge, Mr. Waite was ordered to keep the peace towards all her Majesty's subjects for the space of six months, and to be bound himself in £20, and two sureties in £10 each, which, we need hardly say, were at once forthcoming. A general opinion seems to prevail that as "every dog has his day," Mr, Waite had as much right to indulge in his peculiar canine proclivities as the street preacher in his doubtless well-intentioned but misplaced efforts to convert our street Arabs and other local sinners, and that the constable greatly exceeded his powers in making the arrest. -Nelson Evening Mail, 13/8/1867.
NARRATIVE OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE SOUTH-WEST GOLD-FIELDS.
BY REUBEN WAITE.
As it may perhaps be interesting to the public to known something of the early history of the SouthWest Gold-fields, I have drawn up the following account of the events which led to their discovery and development.
In the early part of June, 1861, some Maoris who had come overland from the Buller to Collingwood, Massacre Bay, on a visit to their relatives who resided there, brought with them a small parcel of gold, which they said they had obtained about twenty miles up the Buller River. When this gold, which was a splendid sample, was shewn to me, I immediately conceived the idea of going on a prospecting expedition to "that outlandish country," as it was termed by the Nelson people. Accordingly, I, together with some others who were favourable to the project, called a meeting of the diggers to lay the plan before them. I received a great many promises, and made sure that we should get a good meeting, but when the day came I was surprised to find that only one — Mr. Sanders Rogers — attended. My plan was that there should be a party of not less than twelve, who should each pay £20 towards chartering a small vessel and purchasing provisions sufficient to last for three months, and longer, if necessary. Finding, however, that only Rogers attended the meeting, and having great confidence in the undertaking, I resolved to take the whole upon myself, and with this view Rogers went across to Nelson, and chartered the ketch Jane, Jacobson, master, for the sum of £50 (the Jane had only just been turned off the stocks), this was her maiden trip.
The people of Nelson laughed at our undertaking, saying that I and my companions were some madmen from Victoria; the consequence was that we only got one passenger from Nelson, and I believe he was some way connected with the Government, but we got fourteen from Collingwood.
We arrived off the Buller in two days. When we entered at high water, we found three and a-half fathoms on the bar. We had not long been there before I sold all my goods for gold to the Maoris; it appeared that a lot of the Collingwood natives, knowing that I was going to take round provisions, started overland with two white men, and were there when we arrived with the vessel. Before starting back to Nelson, I and Mr. Frederick Berry, of Collingwood, with the mate of the Jane, John Duncan, tried to get up the river with the Jane's boat, but the fresh was too heavy to get very far on the first day. I shall always remember the first day's journey. It came on to rain hard and the river, already swollen, began to rise considerably, so that we had to keep on until we got to what we thought was a place of safety. By this time it was quite dark, and the bushes being wet and very thick with supple-jacks and lawyers, we could not get far into the thicket, and so we had to make the best of a bad bargain. We stood upright all this cold June night with our blankets wringing wet, over our shoulders, our clothes in the same condition. We had no fire, the rain was pouring down incessantly, and the water was up to our ancles; we had to keep dabbling our feet about all night to keep the blood in circulation. Then we took to singing, and I remember giving them a song called "The Gipsy Tent," when my tall friend, under whose lee I had got for shelter, said what a pretty song that would be under different circumstances. Then we began to talk of something nice, such as nice sucking pigs — nice things for hungry and cold beings — when at last daylight appeared, and a welcome sight it was for us. For four days we struggled on towards the place where the gold had been got by the Maoris, but we could only make but poor headway, and being in the water all day and in wet blankets at night, we gave up after camping two or three days on the banks of the river to wait for its falling. To show the strength of the current, I will mention that on the return journey we were only two hours accomplishing what it took four days to ascend. Shooting the falls astonished our nerves n bit, and almost made our hair stand upright; neither I nor my companions had ever been over any like them before, but I have taken them scores of times since without any fear.
When we arrived at the port Mr. Rogers told me that some Maoris had been up the River Waimangaroa, where they had found gold, and that they had brought down a small nugget. We could not at that time stop to get any further intelligence, as our provisions were nearly out, and I was anxious to got back to Nelson for a fresh supply. We made an arrangement, however, with Mr. .Rogers to show us a white cloth if the Maoris brought any good news while our vessel was still in sight, which he did do. To our misfortune we were sixteen days going up to Nelson: the little vessel stood the buffeting of the waves first-rate, though never since I have travelled to the West Coast have I been at sea in such weather as we had that trip up to Nelson. For several days we were hove-to, and our craft drifted down to nearly off the Grey River. One night we were so close on rocks that we could almost touch them. If we had gone on them at that time nothing could have saved us, and there would have been, I am thinking, no more gold hunting for some time on the River Buller. By the cool management, however, of the two men, Jacobson and Duncan, we succeeded in steering clear of the rocks. There was no one on the coast then; and, even though we had been saved, the men left at the Buller must have starved, as there was no overland road as there is now.
At length we arrived in Nelson, and it was not long before the Buller gold-field was all the talk; and when the gold I had brought up was put in the window of Mr Drew, the jeweller, there were plenty of people who thought it worth their attention. Nothing was then said of the "madman from Victoria;" they were all very anxious to have some conversation with "the madman," as they chose to call me. This was the beginning of the West Coast gold-fields, though, in consequence of the Otago gold-fields having just broken out, a considerable time went by before there was any great stir made in the matter.
In the month of January, 1862, the steamer Tasmanian Maid, Captain Whitwell, came from Otago with a great number of diggers from that province. The Tasmanian Maid was the first steamer on the coast, but she did not continue running. Then gold was obtained more abundantly from the Waimangaroa, and from the first diggings up the river. Very often there were scarcely any provisions to be had on the diggings, as only one vessel, the Gipsy, was at this time trading there, and she would sometimes be six weeks away, and we could get no other vessel to trade, such a dread had they of the dangerous coast. On one trip the Gipsy was away actually thirteen weeks! I happened to be on board of her on that occasion; and we were six weeks at sea on the return voyage from Nelson. We entered every harbour in Blind Bay — Port Hardy three times, and West Wanganui twice. While we were at the last-named place, William Hunter, and some Maoris, who had travelled overland by the coast, came on board just as we were about putting to sea again, and right glad they were to see us. They were the bearers of the news to the Superintendent that we were supposed to be lost, and of a request that he would send some provisions down, as all the people at the Buller were starving. How we wished for a fair wind then; I slept neither night nor day, and when we came on Rocks Point a sou-wester met us again, and when off the Karamea, or between that river and the Mokihinui, we were becalmed two days. These were trying times when the vessel full of provisions was in sight of the two or three hundred diggers almost starving, and yet could not get in. At length, a light breeze brought us off the Buller, and we could plainly hear their shouts of "Welcome" on shore. A south-east wind is a head wind to go into the Buller, but our captain (Captain McCann) launched his little dingy on the bar, to carry out the kedge. After we had got as close as we could, we hove manfully on the windlass, and worked her over the bar amidst the clamour and cheers of the hungry diggers, who were watching us. While we were still in the roll of the sea, canoes came alongside; off went the hatches, and out went the flour and other provisions. A line was taken ashore, and lots of eager hands were ready to pull. There had been a whaleboat there, belonging to the Maoris, but she had been started off to Nelson by sea, and a letter forwarded by Mrs. Waite to the Superintendent, praying him to send a steamer at once. The whaleboat reached Nelson without seeing us, which caused some excitement in the town.
When I got ashore, I found the baker already making dampers in his oven, for when he saw the vessel so close, he lit his fire, for baking. Mrs. Waite had offered a pound to the first man who brought the news that the vessel was in sight. There were eight claimants for the pound, so they got a pound of potatoes each, which was as good to them as a pound note. For a long time there had been nothing but potatoes left, and of those there was a scarcity. Money or no money, one man got no more than another, and that was only about a pound a day. The diggers had scattered themselves along the coast with the Maoris, getting mussels and other native food. The Maoris deserve great praise for the help they gave by bringing in lots of eels, nikau, pipis, &c, which they gave away freely to the pakehas. As soon as the natives along the coast saw the vessel, they all made their way to the port. All my poultry had been killed, and the pigs, goats, and house cows. Some three cows were spared, because there were three white women and children on the Buller, and these three cows were left on account of the milk they were giving. There was a lot of damaged flour which had turned quite yellow and musty: that was intended for the pigs; but it all went for bread, such was the state the Buller was in in October and November, 1862.
Soon after the above events, a Maori, named Simon, discovered the Lyell Creek, which, while it lasted, was a very rich diggings, and turned out some of the finest nuggets in New Zealand. There is a large manuka flat on the right bank of the Lyell, and I believe that if this was properly tried — which it never has been up to this time — it would turn out a good gold-field. I have had many opportunities of seeing it, having been across it several times, and I am of opinion that the gold found in the Lyall has come from this flat. It is a made terrace, with gravel a little below the top soil, similar to Waite's Pakihis, and is of considerable extent.
I may mention that just about this time a great many men came overland from Canterbury, by way of the Grey: these poor fellows were in such an emaciated slate that they were barely able to crawl, and it was pitiable to see them. Several were left behind to starve, as they could not walk any farther, while their mates just managed to get through to the Buller and report it. I sent several parties out to fetch in those who had been left behind. Amongst them was Hammett, the survivor of Howitt's party, which was lost on the Lakes while exploring. The poor fellow had gone into the bush, as he said, to lie down and die, for he could not walk, he had a dog with him, which would bring him a wood-hen now and then, and he had to eat it raw. He stated that he had been living on the raw glutinous stuff he called beche-de-mere for several days. The first party I sent out did not find him, after being away four days, but they no sooner came back than I despatched another party of four men, with instructions how to act if they found him alive. These last four men took with them a gun, powder and shot, and provisions for a week, with oatmeal, brandy, &c.; and they followed up my instructions to fire the gun at intervals of a quarter of an hour. By this means they found the poor fellow, who, hearing the report of a gun, crawled out of the bush within sight of the party. After resting for a time, and giving him some refreshment, they managed to bring him back to the Buller. I then paid his passage to Nelson, and gave him a letter to the Superintendent, who forwarded him on to Canterbury. For this the munificent Canterbury Government, thinking, I suppose, that I was hard up, sent £5 to the Superintendent of Nelson for me. One poor fellow I sent for was found sitting on a musselbed eating raw mussels; he considered he was in clover, for he had had nothing to eat for several days. Another who was travelling the same road, when all his provisions were gone, consoled himself by reading a cookery-book which he had with him. I almost despaired of one man, who was so weak when they brought him in to the Buller that I did not think he would recover; but, by a little care, we brought him round, and, to this day, he is thankful to me for the attention shown to him, which is worth more than the above £5.
Early in the year 1863, a lot of Maoris came to the Buller overland from the Grey. I say "overland," although their style of travelling from the one to the other was really that they would go up the. Grey or Mawhera in a canoe as far as the Little Grey or Mawhera-iti, and up that river to the head. There they would haul up the canoe out of the way of the freshets and walk over the saddle; and on the other side they had another canoe which they always kept there; thence they went down the Inangahua into the Buller, and down the Buller to its mouth. These Maoris had with them some very nice pieces of gold which they said they had got in the Grey district, so, after I had tried to get parties to go prospecting in the Buller district by supplying them with provisions, I made up my mind to try the Grey district. I wrote a letter to the Superintendent of the Canterbury province, asking what bonus they would give for the discovery of a payable goldfield on the western or Grey district of that province. Four months afterwards, or thereabout, I received an answer that the Government was not prepared to give any bonus for that district, as it would be of no benefit to Christchurch. However, before I had received the answer back from Christchurch, I had made arrangements with the captain of the cutter Thames to go down from Nelson with a cargo of goods; while he was getting his vessel ready for the trip the Havelock diggings opened out, and as he got plenty of work for the vessel there without so much risk, he kept her in that trade. We were thus without a vessel for the Buller, and consequently I had to go overland to Nelson, carrying with me a heavy parcel of gold. While I was in Nelson, preparing for the voyage to the Grey, a letter was brought to me by a Maori chief, named Tamati Pirimona, from the Grey, stating that they were anxiously looking for my vessel. I also received one from Mr. J. Rochfort, to the same effect, but giving me poor encouragement about the gold. As, however, the Maoris were sanguine, I determined to try my luck. Two men started from the Buller to the Grey when they found I was likely to send a vessel down there, and these men pretended they had discovered the gold; another man named Hunt pretended that he was the discoverer. When I arrived at the Grey, I found these fellows loafing amongst the Maoris. It was not these men who found the gold at all, but the Maoris; yet the former had the impudence to ask the Government of Canterbury for a bonus; in fact, I believe Hunt did get a bonus. As I have before stated, the Maoris had gold in their possession which they had found at Teremakau long before Hunt was at the Grey. But I am going out of the straight track, so I will return to the chartering of the Thames.
Captain Garnes was in Nelson when I arrived there from the Buller, and I was about to charter him for the trip, but speaking to two or three about going down with me, the news soon got spread, and there being a great many diggers in Nelson at the time they wanted to go with me. The steamer Nelson had just then arrived from England, and the croakers were about to wind up the Nelson and Marlborough Steam Navigation Company, and would have done so had it not been that I offered to take her. Well, the company took her on, but would not charter her unless I would guarantee forty passengers at L3 per head. When I went with the money for more than forty I was told that all over forty must pay £4 each; but, with perseverence, I managed to get them for £3. Perhaps it will be said, this has nothing to do with the opening of the gold-field, but I have written it to show you through what penny-wise and pound-foolish ways Nelson has been brought to what it is, instead of being what it ought to be, the grand emporium for the West Coast.
Well, we started in the good steamship Nelson, from Nelson, in the middle of July, 1864, with a cargo of provisions and every requisite for the diggings. From my long experience on gold-fields I knew exactly what was wanted; the diggers took no tools (as it was only a prospecting trip), or provisions from Nelson, and were satisfied with my prices for all that was wanted. I may state, by-the-way, that things are higher in price at the present day on the coast than when I went first. The Government of Nelson, finding I was going to the Grey, gave me a contract to procure for them forty tons of coal as a sample from the Grey Coal Mine; so I called into the Buller, and got two canoes and five Maoris for that purpose. We had a very good run down, which was fortunate, as there was not sleeping room for all hands, about seventy being on board, some of whom were compelled to lie on the cargo, to my loss — for they "walked" into my bottled ale rather heavily.
On arriving at the Grey, we entered it in first-rate style, and steamed up to the landing opposite to what is now called Mawhera-quay. Here we landed the goods, which were of course left exposed on the beach, and all hands started off on a prospecting spec. My Maoris, set cheerfully to work, and, with plenty of help, I soon managed to get up a temporary store. In the meantime, the goods were going out as fast as I could possibly sell them, ay, before I could get them out of the vessel they were jumping down the hold for them. At the Maori pah there were none but women, and when they saw the steamer they could not tell what to make of it; it was the first steamer that was ever in the Grey. The Maori men had all gone to get gold, which made the white men all the more anxious to go, and before long I was left almost alone, all the diggers having gone to the Teremakau River, where the Maoris were digging, and with the exception of my storeman and Mr. Batty, who came down with me to get the coals, there was no other white man left at the Grey.
About a week after I had been at the Grey some Maoris came down from the diggings, and brought with them a sample of about fifty ounces of the finest gold I had ever seen. I was pleased to see it, and purchased it of them. These natives told me that the whole of the men that went up were coming down with the intention of killing me, and soon afterwards two white men came down and advised me to get out of the way, as the whole party were close at hand, and were coming down to ransack my store and hang me. I stood my ground, however, and the Maoris promised to help me if I was interfered with. Next day the whole crowd came down, and camped near the store, so that I could hear some, as they passed the store, cursing and swearing at me, while others said nothing. There was one Dutchman there who had most to say, and who stole a case of gin from my store at night. This same Dutchman came into the store and said I was wanted outside. I had neither arms nor ammunition of any kind, for up to that time they were not wanted on the West Coast. I went to the fire, a large one, which by-the-by was being fed by coals that had been brought down the river for the Nelson Government. There were a great many men round the fire waiting for me, and when I made my appearance they began to ask questions of me. I may as well state here that all the Maoris, men and women, were then close by, and ready to give me any assistance. There is no need to tell what they were armed with, but there would have been some blood shed that night, had the diggers interfered with me, as some of the parties had taken the potatoes out of the Maori pits at Teremakau. The first question put to me, was by the aforesaid Dutchman, "Vell, vat did you corse dis rush vor?" I answered I did not cause the rush, and that I was in Nelson to get a small vessel to bring me to the Grey; that I had called them all together in Nelson and told them that I was only going prospecting, and not for them to be led to believe that they were going to a gold-field; but that, according to the letters I had received, there was gold in the country, which I still believed, and that a proper trial would prove it. The next question put to me was by a Cockney; I am sure he was, for he so murdered the letter H: "Vell, Mr. Vaite, ow wud you like to cum ere without money, an ave to starve as we ave to do?" My answer was, that I did not ask him to come; he pleased himself. "Vell, Mr. Vaite, you seems to treat this ere matter werry lightly, but hi thinks hits no joke to come down ere and spend hall vun's muny, and not to git eny gold." The aforesaid Dutchman then spoke up again, and said: "Vell, poys, ve vill tak vat ve vants vrom Vate's store, and ve vill hang him aftervards." Just at that moment, an Irishman whispered in my ear the words, "Cheer up, my boy, don't be frightened; you have more friends than enemies in this crowd." With that, I felt that I was safe, but, just at that moment a man who had come down to hear what was going on, one of Mr. J. Rochfort's men, fell down in a fit close to my feet, and that put an end to the meeting. But I was still annoyed by the discontented, and the most of them brought back what provisions they had, with their picks and shovels, tin dishes, &c, and I gave them their full value for them. One man, an Irishman, assaulted me one night and tore my coat, and had it not been for two of his countrymen, who were friendly to me, I have no doubt I should have had everything smashed in the store. The two men referred to took him away and gave him a good drubbing. I shall ever feel thankful to the person called Peter (now in Nelson), who happened to be in the store at the time. A fellow had a bottle in his hand about half full of Old Tom, ready to strike me a blow on the back of the head; Peter stayed his hand by grasping the bottle, or perhaps I should not have been here to write this account.
The men who came down and were engaged in this business were now only waiting for a steamer to take them away, but while they were waiting two parties, with more patience than the rest, had penetrated a little farther up the country and had found out a track which led them to the Greenstone Creek. Here let me add, that shortly after Greenstone Creek had been discovered by the white man, I was told that the Maoris, hearing that a large party of diggers had arrived in a steamer, had stopped up the track to the Greenstone and came down to the Teremakau, and began to work where they could not earn their salt, for the sole purpose of leading the new chums astray. Thus it was that the new arrivals went wrong; I cannot say if this is true, but it was told me by a half-caste, and it seems probable enough. As I have before stated, the two parties penetrated farther into the country and discovered the track, and seeing the fresh prints of men's feet they kept on until they came to the Greenstone; and I will now give their own words for it. They came into the store, and one of them (Michael Spillan) asked me when I was going to get my bullocks and dray down. I told him I was sorry to say they would be down next steamer. "You ought to be glad," he said, "look here, my boy, I have got this in a day with a dish off the bottom of a paddock six feet deep and seven feet square." They had 7 ozs. 12 dwts. The other party had 3 ozs. of the same kind of gold, and the same as that which I had purchased of the Maoris. The parties who were waiting for the steamer came in, and seeing the gold, could scarcely believe their eyes; but when I showed them the 50 ozs. I had bought of the Maoris, they wanted to known why I had not shown them that before. My answer, was that they would not have believed me had I shown it them. Then came a general rush for stores again, and those who had been among the grumblers I charged extra price, as they had compelled me to take back their stores and tools. From that time commenced the great rush, which up to the present date has brought out of the earth forty tons of gold, and for which I was to be hanged, because those first arrivals chose to call the expedition a duffer rush.
After this the gold began to come down pretty freely, and all were satisfied; in fact, I believe that the greenstone was as good as any diggings on the coast afterwards found. I have seen many of the crowd since who were in that circle to hang me, but I have not seen the Dutchman. Perhaps he did not forget the case of gin, and so kept out of the way. But the worst had to come, for, in consequence of the disagreement I have narrated about the rush, I had ordered no more goods to be sent down. By the second arrival of the steamer she brought more passengers and no provisions, so that we ran short of them, and I had to curtail a great many, and especially those who had been so hard on me. These I put upon half rations until the steamer came in again. When she came she brought my bullocks and dray, and with two horses and a mule I had purchased of Mr. Dobson, C.E. (who had just completed the survey of the Coast), I sent goods to the mouth of the Teremnkau, and up that stream to its junction with the Hohona by canoe about nine miles, where it was carried by the diggers (until some more pack-horses came.) to the Greenstone Creek. I started a store at the Hohona's mouth.
The next diggings were again found by the Maoris — ever restless, they seemed to be proud of being the first to find the gold. This was the Totara Creek, about twelve miles south of Hokitika, and was very rich. My bullocks, dray, and horses crossed to Hokitika (long before there was a house in Hokitika) to take goods to the Totara. The only shelter that was there was a small tent or stove belonging to Messrs. Price and Hudson, who got their supplies from me at the Grey, and the ferryhouse, which consisted of brushwood and beach timber. The ferry-boat was formed from a large tree dug out all in one piece. I had also a whaleboat, which I purchased from Mr. Dobson, who had it built to cross these rivers with. For crossing in this primitive affair at Hokitika the modest sum of 2s. 6d. a head was demanded, and 4s. each horse; at Teremakau, 2s, 6d. each person and 5s. each horse.
The next diggings discovered were those called the Three-mile, the spot being about that distance from Teremakau; and the next were the Six-mile, so named for the same reason. This has been one of the best and most lasting diggings on the West Coast, and is now known as the Waimea. There was a lull for some time, and things began to look slack, but I think it was owing to the sudden influx of. diggers. I started a party up the Teremakau to try the Taipo, or Devil's River, and I really believe, had they persevered there, they would have found some good gold, as the gold they did get was coarse and rough. The Hokitika River had been tried and given up by the Maoris and some men that had been in the employ of Mr. Dobson. But the Maoris had no idea of fine gold working. They did not understand working with quicksilver or plush, as a proof of which I recollect one time on the Buller I gave some provisions to a party of Maoris to go south, towards what is now called Charleston, to prospect. After being away some time they came back saying there was fine gold everywhere, but no heavy gold. They have learned better since.
About the month of November, 1864, Captain Leach, of the steamer Nelson, went from the Grey overland to look at the Hokitika bar, and he pronounced it a fit bar to take. On reporting this to the owners in Nelson, they agreed to let the Nelson go to Hokitika on her next trip. I was, up to this time, the only person who had goods coming in the Nelson in any quantity, and from my having been the first to start her, the owners were pleased to grant me a free passage. But they were on their feet again now, and I got notice that my free passage was to be discontinued this trip; consequently, I took the Wallaby on her first trip to Hokitika; and although the whole, or nearly the whole, of the cargo in her belonged to me, the generous firm she belonged to would not give me a free passage. I write this merely to show the generosity of some of the Nelson people who had been benefited by the West Coast.
Arrived at Hokitika, the goods were landed as at the Grey. I had to put up a temporary store for my goods, which were placed on the beach anyhow, on a point close to the sea. The consequence was that, a storm coming on, my store was blown down, and a heavy fresh being in the river, and the wind from the N.W. beating against the fresh, the point of land on which were all my goods was carried away, by which I sustained damage to the extent of £1,000. Messrs. Langford and Fraser shared a like fate. This is another of the evils of a storekeeper's life on the gold-fields.
I had the wreck of my store boated over to the other, or north side, where the Town of Hokitika now stands, and again the place I put up my store on, although two chains from the water's edge, was washed away. Disheartened with the losses I had sustained, I sent what was remaining away, and went back to the Grey. A billiard room I had put up at Hokitika had to be shifted on account of the bank washing away, and it was fixed where now stands the fine hotel called The Criterion, belonging to Edwards and Mather. This table was the first on the coast. Where the Town of Hokitika now is was then one vast pile of drift-wood, so thick that it was impossible to thread your way through it. Messrs. Price and Hudson had cut a track through it to got to their store. I remember one night coming from the Totara; Mr. Walmsley, Mr. Revell, and myself came up to the above store (Price and Hudson's), and finding we could not get anything to eat for ourselves or horses, we started about eleven o'clock at night for the Grey, a distance of twentyfive miles. There were no ferries or bridges as now, and crossing every river on our horses, arrived at the Grey about four in the morning. We had three dangerous rivers to cross, the Teremakau being the worst. I write this to show what risks the pioneers of a gold-field have to go through, and I may state that I have frequently been detained on the bank of a river for a day or two, without food or blankets, on account of a fresh.
[To be continued.] -Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle, 20/2/1868.
NARRATIVE OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE SOUTH-WEST GOLD-FIELDS.
[By Reuben Waite.] [Concluded.]
In the month of January, 1865, I supplied a party with provisions to prospect up the Grey River, the party consisting of white men and Maoris; amongst them there was one well known on the Collingwood gold-fields, named George Cundy. After an absence of about two months, they came down with a very fair prospect of heavy gold, consisting of several good-sized pieces of gold got from a creek which they named Maori Creek, and one nugget weighing 22ozs. 12 dwts. Now several parties had been up the Grey previously, but had not succeeded in getting anything like a payable prospect. These men who brought down this heavy gold I had confidence in; they were men whom I had known for years, and I felt satisfied that if there was any gold to be found, they would not leave a stone unturned but they would find it. The Grey district was then very quiet, there being only my store at the lauding, and Blake's store near the lagoon. But the news of the nugget soon got spread, and the people began to come in fast from the other diggings. There was no conveyance up the Grey except by the Maori canoes and Balty's coal boats. Gradually, however, we got up a small fleet of boats, which were kept plying to and fro between the Nelson and Canterbury sides of the river, and a good deal of money they made, charging ls 6d. each, and sometimes taking a dozen in about a quarter of an hour. The Maoris, who had hitherto been averse to persons building on their land, now began to see the value of letting it. When I first went to the Grey, they let me an acre of ground on condition that I would let no one else build on it, as they would not allow another store to be put up there, although repeated offers were made to them. But when the great rush came they asked me first if they should let it, and I told them to do so by all means, as it would bring them in money; then of course I had the chance of letting mine. One day there was a perfect rush for Maori ground, and any amount of speculation in it. Some people have done a good thing with it.
From this time we may say that the Grey district, formerly pronounced useless, has proved to be a first-class gold-field. This is an example of a good diggings being left for a long time unworked through the inexperience of men who pretend to go prospecting. Several parties, as I before observed, had been up this river for what they chose to call prospecting, and this is a proof of how much faith is to be placed in the opinions and experience of those sort of people, many of whom call themselves practical diggers. There are others, again, who, as soon as they hear of gold being found, are off to the spot directly, and if the gold-field should not turn out any good, are the first to create a disturbance for the sole purpose of robbery. The towns on the West Coast are crowded with these ruffians, though luckily they are getting to be pretty well known now in spite of their shipping about from place to place.
In the early part of this rush up the Grey, there was no town on the Nelson side of the river, nor any police. I recollect one day a constable belonging to the Canterbury force coming down the coast from Hokitika after a man who it appeared had been duping all the storekeepers between Hokitika and the Grey, by giving them cheques and receiving the balance. He represented himself as being a wholesale- storekeeper, having two places of business in Hokitika, and pretended to be soliciting orders. By these means he would get his food and lodgings, and give a cheque. He tried to impose upon me, but I was too well acquainted with Hokitika: I could not tell where his firm's place of business was situated, so that I had him cut and dried. This fellow had crossed the, river on to the Nelson side, and when the constable was told (by me) that he had crossed over the river, he said, "Oh, I must not go out of my province;" so the fellow got away, otherwise he might easily have been caught. I saw by this it would be an easy matter for a man to rob me and go over to the Nelson side and grin at me, so I made it my business to inform the Superintendent of Nelson of the circumstance. The Superintendent promptly sent down constables, with Mr. Blackett as Commissioner; this, I believe was the cause of the town of Cobden being laid out. What the gold diggings in that district have been almost everyone in the province knows. The town of Greymouth sprang up as if by magic — faster even than Hokitika. A short time ago I was at the Grey, walking along one of the back streets, a man accosted me thus, "Can you tell me which is such a street?" (mentioning the name of a street, which I do not now remember). I told him I did not know. "Ah," said he, "I see you are a stranger here like myself" Guess his surprise when I told him I was the first white resident there. It is needless to add anything more about the scores of different creeks, rivers, and terraces that have been discovered since the opening of these goldfields, they are of course leading one to the other. I always had a great liking for the Buller, and I always felt satisfied that it would be the finest port and the healthiest place on the coast. So strongly did I cling to this opinion, that I once offered my right to the acre which the Maoris had let me, and the store on the Grey, to Mr. Batty, for £100. This was just before the great rush; a month afterwards it was worth a thousand pounds; so that it will readily be believed I did not deeply regret that Mr. Batty declined my offer. Still I had a hankering for the Buller, and hearing that a mob of men were there, and that they were killing my cattle, I paid £20 for the Wallaby to land me in there. At that time no steamers went into the Buller unless they were paid in this way. I have repeatedly written about the Buller and Cape Foulwind as a shelter from S.W. winds, but no notice was taken of it. I have known several vessels go to Nelson or into Blind Bay for shelter, from Hokitika, when they might have got quite as good under Cape Foulwind or in the Buller.
That the Buller will be the largest and finest district in the province, I feel satisfied. It will take time to develop it, it is true, but this is rather an advantage, as no good ever came of a sudden rush; and it is not always those who go first into a place that do the best, especially when the rush is great. Business gets in a confused state, and, with sending goods here, there, and everywhere, the storekeeper finds at last, that the diggers have given him the slip, and he may look long for his money. There is a certain class of men on the diggings who call themselves merchants, who put as many airs on as though they were the greatest merchants possible — in fact, they need to do this to make themselves somebody, and to keep the ball rolling. These are the men who have done more injury to the diggings than any other class. They start with nothing but a good suit of clothes on their back, which, by-the-by, is usually obtained at the expense of some tailor in the place they last left. They make a start on credit, and, if they succeed, well and good, but if not, why, when their hat is on, their castle is roofed — nothing from nothing, nothing remains. But when a place is quietly settled, it steadily improves itself, and such I think the Buller will now be. It has great natural resources, such as no other part of the province possesses; it has a good harbour, and, close at hand, stands a vast mountain of the finest coal in the world; there are thousands of acres of country yet unexplored for gold and other minerals; there is a large tract of good land along the coast running either towards Cape Foulwind, or north towards Mokihinui; and both sides of the Buller River, as far as the gorge, are capable of growing anything. I have seen lots of wheat that was grown by Maoris when I first came to the coast, and the primitive style of sowing and harrowing there was not ploughing or digging; the seed was merely thrown down, and a large bush harrow, drawn by four or five Maoris, with two women riding on the brush to keep it down, was all the cultivation thought of. This was at the Grey. At some of the old camping-grounds up the Buller I have seen both oats, and wheat, and vetches that have been shaken from a potatoe bag or something else, self sown, growing as finely as if they had been on cultivated soil. When the diggers on the old diggings up the river had settled themselves down, they dug a piece of ground, and planted cabbage and other vegetables, and brought down some to the Buller; indeed I have seen some fine large cabbages at the Buller free from blight, when there was scarcely a cabbage to be got in Nelson. Again, at the junction of the Inangahua with the Buller, about thirty miles upon both sides the Buller, there are some fine fern flats, and what will be some day in that locality a payable gold-field, when provisions find their level. I have often wondered that men having families have not been up there, for there is digging close by that would keep the pot boiling, and some of the finest soil in the Province of Nelson, with nothing but fern and flax to clear, which could be done with a lighted match, and there is plenty of feed for cattle or pigs. In the immediate neighbourhood is plenty of white pine, rimu, and birch. The Maoris who used to carry the goods to the Lyell had a patch of potatoes just here, and, instead of carrying them in their canoes, used to stay and get some as they wanted them.
As before stated, I came to the Buller in the Wallaby for the purpose of putting a stop to the slaughter of my cattle. I took up my old residence at Westport, and had not been long there when the rush to Mokihinui started, and a vessel of mine went in there with a cargo of goods, which she delivered, but in coming out was wrecked on the North Shore. I went down there to see to it, and the weather being bad, I was compelled to stay there three or four days. I caught what is called the swamp fever, and was so bad that I had to be carried on board the steamer and taken to Nelson. More than once my life was despaired of, and I was bad for eight or nine months, so that I cannot tell you much about Charleston or the diggings known as Waite's Pakihis. I was surprised, on my return to the Buller, to see a large town sprung up, though it was nothing more than I had predicted long ago. When I stood on the point looking at the steamers, shipping, and about thirty ferry boats plying for hire, and the hundreds of people walking to and fro, the numbers of horses and drays, I thought what a change in the scene from the time I first landed on this point when we pitched our first tent to put our stores in. We had then to clear the bush to pitch it. The first night the rats were constantly running over us, and we had to cover our heads over with the blankets to keep them off the face. Afterwards we rented a Maori whare to start a store in, and the little craft was the only vessel in the Lagoon. So, thought I, that little ketch was the forerunner of all this greatness on the whole of the West Coast.
I will here just mention that the diggings known as Waite's Pakihis are named after me, it being my right of runs — 600 acres and 300 acres — which entitles me to pre-emptive right. I have been seeking to obtain a recognition of this, and which, had it been granted at the time I first applied for it, the runs would have done me some good. But I could not succeed. There was any amount of putting off from time to time, while thousands of diggers traversed the Pakihis everywhere, and my cattle had been scattered in all directions, been shot down and driven so wild that I had to sell them at a nominal price. Mr. Kynnersley writes to the Government in this strain: —
"To the Provincial Secretary, Nelson.
"Sir — I am informed by Mr. Reuben Waite that he has applied to the Commissioner of Crown Lands to purchase eighty acres for a homestead on each of his runs on the Pakihis, south of the Buller. I therefore think it advisable to inform you that, upon the run nearest to the River Buller, Mr. Waite has erected a house and fenced in some twenty or thirty acres of land, and that upon this run, although it has never been stocked, I consider that he is fairly entitled to the pre-emptive right of the homestead; but upon the other run to the southward no improvements whatever have been made, and it has never been stocked. If Mr. Waite is permitted to purchase his homestead, he will probably select the prospecting and adjoining claims on Addison's Flat, where the present rush is situated.
"Westport, June 1, 1867."
I have proved to the satisfaction of the Waste Lauds Board that these runs were stocked, and that I have held them since 1863, and my statement was never contradicted. The Government has always received the rent up to this day. It would seem strange that I should keep two men on these runs besides employing others at various times, if the runs were never stocked. As to my choosing to exercise my pre-emptive right where the diggers claims are, I have been long enough on gold-fields to know better than that. If Mr. Kynnersley had looked on the left hand side of the road by the Bald Hill, going towards Addison's Flat, he would have seen a house and stockyard: that is where I had intended my second pre-emptive right should be exercised. It would seem that every obstacle was thrown in my way to prevent me from getting what I consider is my just rights. Although this is by no means all that might be said on this matter, I will not give further particulars, as it could have no interest for the general reader, and must apologise for having taken up so much space with a private grievance; this account, however, shows what treatment may be expected on the gold-fields.
I will just make one or two further remarks, and then conclude my narrative. That the Maoris were the first to find and bring in gold in any quantity there is not a shadow of a doubt, and that they were the leaders for a long time, is, as I have before shown, quite certain. I believe, however, that some years ago, when Mr. J. Rochfort, the surveyor, was exploring the Buller district, he found some little gold up the Buller river, and I believe it was in consequence of this discovery that the Maoris went to look for gold. It is evident they knew but little about gold, as, when they came to the Aorere, they did not know the value of it. I may as well state here that the Buller Maoris first brought gold from the Karamea. They used to take provisions from the Buller to the Karamea on their backs, and bring back as much as fifteen or twenty ounces of gold as fine as flour. How they saved it I cannot tell. All that a Maori wanted was flour, tea and sugar, and tobacco. He could get everything else, and live where a white man would starve. My opinion is that the whole coast, from Wanganui Inlet to the Buller, is more or less auriferous and will eventually be worked. Had the Collingwood district had the trial the West Coast has had, and with the same appliances that are now being used for getting the precious metal, thousands of ounces more would have come from there than has come. I have had a great deal of travelling about in that district, and I am of opinion that there is just as good digging in that district as there is on the West Coast.
I hope that what I have written will give offence to no one, as I have done it with the desire to please, if possible. I have written entirely from memory, and there may, therefore, be some little errors I trust, however, that the account which I have given will be of interest, and as the main particulars are at all events correct, that my narrative will be of some value to those who care to know what was the true origin of the West Coast gold-fields. -Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle, 22/2/1868.
Mr Reuben Waite's "Narrative of the Discovery of the West Coast Goldfields" is among the smaller brochures in Mr Munson's stock, and as it costs but a shilling, there will no doubt be hundreds who will acquaint themselves with Mr Reuben Waite in his new character as a historian and commentator. -Westport Times, 22/7/1869.
Testimonial to Mr. Reuben Waite. — We understand that a subscription is being raised throughout the Province for a testimonial to Mr. Reuben Waite, as the pioneer of the West Coast Goldfields. We cannot more effectually recommend this to the notice of our readers than by quoting the words at the head of the subscription lists: — "The many advantages that have been derived by thousands from the efforts of Mr. Waite in developing and giving prominence to these Goldfields, at much outlay and personal sacrifice, the the numerous prospecting parties equipped at his private expense, and the numberless kind and charitable actions, held in grateful remembrance by numbers of the mining population, who testify to his benevolent disposition, have led to this means of substantially recognising an essentially public benefactor." -Nelson Evening Mail, 3/8/1870.
It is stated by the Nelson Mail that Mr Reuben Waite, of West Coast fame, proposes starting for the Karamea with the intention of looking into mining matters there, and seeing whether there is an opening for starting a store in that district. -West Coast Times, 24/10/1870.
A TRIP TO THE KARAMEA.
We are indebted to Mr. Reuben Waite for the following description of a visit he has recently paid to the Karamea district: —
According to promise I give a description of a journey up the mountains to the so-called Karamea diggings, although they are not within twelve miles of that river, being on the table land near Salisbury's Open. I had intended to start up the Loadstone Mountain by myself, but I was fortunate enough to meet with two companions, Mr. Chas. B. Gabb, and Mr. Chas. Biggs. Up the Loadstone is a fearful road, being almost perpendicular in some places. How some men manage to carry 701bs. on their backs I cannot tell. The perspiration was brought out of me pretty freely with 30lbs., for it was step by step like one immense ladder, for five miles, which seemed to me more than any thirty I had ever travelled. We started from Heath's Accommodation House, at the foot of the Loadstone at 8 o'clock in the morning (the thermometer being at 56, the barometer 29.87), with food, blankets, &c, and dined at an elevation of 4,440 feet above the level of the sea. We had snow for dinner, but took the precaution to boil it, and put some tea and sugar in it before we used it.
I will now give you a description of the diggings which are not, as some people suppose, at the head of the Karamea, but on some table land near Mount Arthur, known as Salisbury's Open. "Diggings" is hardly a correct term to apply to this place, for the workings are confined to two or three small blind gullies not more than a dozen men being there. The others, about 40 in number, are scattered in all directions prospecting; some were gone to the Roaring Lion, others to the Leslie, and the Karamea bend, others, again to Mount Peel towards the Gouland Downs. I met with a very hearty reception on all sides, was supplied with every information I desired, and as for my personal wants, I was provided with everything I wanted in the shape of food and lodging, indeed, I need not have carried my blanket with me. I was shown the hole whence O'Brien took his 14 (not 40) ounces of gold, and heard strong expressions of indignation against that fellow for spreading such a report. The men say, and with good reason, that they want to see some of the real stamp of diggers come and assist to open up the country (as one of the old hands told me, there are few but Cockatoos there yet), for up to the present time it has not received a fair trial. My own opinion is that, with anything like a road so that provisions might be conveyed to the ground at a moderate cost, there is a gold field there capable of supporting some hundreds of men. All stores might be furnished from Nelson, but by different routes; for instance, the Roaring Lion would be supplied from the Baton, Salisbury Open from Motueka, and the Karamea Bend, and down the river, from the mouth of the river.
The men at present on the field say that when the winter sets in they can always make a living out of the banks of the Karamea, and if even a foot track were cut up the river for 20 or 25 miles, payable diggings would be found all the way. This I knew seven years ago, for I remember then some men coming from the Karamea to the Buller, and telling me that they had found good diggings, but could not work them for want of a road. I recommended them to go to the then Superintendent, and went with them to see him in Nelson, but as it always has been, his hands were tied. "Good old soul!" he would have done it if he could, but for the miserable Opposition that existed, and which would have induced people to say — what business had he to spend money there without our consent? To my certain knowledge, that country would have been opened by them had it not been for this reason, but, perhaps, it is better as it is, for this district may prove a good source to fall back upon in the present circumstances of the province. But if it is to do any good, a better track than the present one must be cut over the Loadstone, otherwise the diggings in that quarter will die but, as it cannot be expected that men can carry 70lbs. on their backs up such mountains without something like good pay. At present it takes about seven hours of sharp walking to come down, and if the weather, is at all bad you cannot, return, as the mountain is like a piece of glass, the yellow clay, just under the dead leaves, being so slippery that it is impossible to walk. There are two men, I believe, carrying provisions up the mountain, for which they charge £2 per cwt., at which rate they do not, taking one day with another, average over 8s. a day. This shows that the diggings are not so rich as O'Brien tried to make people believe, for if they were, is it likely that any man would make a slave of himself for eight shillings a day?
Gold may be got anywhere about Salisbury's Open, but not in sufficient quantities to pay. The sinking is very shallow, or, as I have before observed, merely working in blind gullies, but water is very scarce, an d those whom I saw at work were obliged to dam up the water, and get wash-dirt ready to put through as quickly as possible. The diggers do not think so much of this part as they do of the Roaring Lion and Karamea, as in those places they would be able to work all the winter through if provisions could be obtained from the mouth of the Karamea with any thing like moderate facility. Now is the time for the owners of sees ions in the Karamea township to put their shoulders to the wheel, and see what can be done towards opening up the country, as it would be greatly to their advantage to do so, for in addition to the diggings above referred to, there are the Gouland Downs, and the head of the Heaphy, in the same district, where gold has already been found. Give the digger the chance of getting about the country so that he may prospect it thoroughly, and that is all he asks from you, and he will more than repay you by his exertions. Now, in the spring of the year, is the time to do this, so that something may be done before the winter sets in again, and the effects of opening up this country would soon be visible in the town of Nelson, for a great stimulus would thus be given to trade.
I must remind all diggers going to this field that they must not be led astray by flying reports; they must not think that all that glitters is gold, for they will find that they will have first to prospect for a claim, as the others have had to do before them, and I would advise none to go there but those who have been accustomed to a digger's life, for I can assure them they will have to put up with many hardships — even to travel over the road in its present state is worse than slavery. There is a mountain at Collingwood which the diggers named Kill-me-dead, and I think this name might well be applied to the Loadstone.
I want to say a word or two about the bullock that was lately taken up there. It took four men to drive it up the mountain, and from the different camping places, and the hair I saw on certain stakes as I came along the road, I fancy they must have had some trouble to get the poor beast to where they killed it at Horse Shoe creek, about 5 miles from Salisbury's Open. I saw the gold they received in payment. It was coarse and nuggetty, and not much water worn, but the fine gold which is got about there shows the effects of water considerably, and is similar to that got at the Waimangaroa in its early days. The coarse gold is intermixed with quartz.
In going up the track there is no water to be found for five miles, which comes very hard on the traveller, as he must lose a considerable amount of perspiration and consequently will be very thirsty. This can be remedied at a very small outlay. Mr. Winter is laying off a track there now, and it would not be a day's work for a man to dig one, or even two, holes in the five miles, and under the debris there is red clay which would hold water like a tank, and by leading the water from the track into it, there would always be a plentiful supply, for from what I can learn, there is any amount of rain up there. Mr. Jennings, one of Mr. Winter's party, informed me that they were very sanguine about finding a track, if so it will be a vast boon to the digger, and a great benefit to Motueka and Nelson.
On my return I came by myself, and as it rained the whole day, the track was fearfully muddy and slippery, and I found it far more tiring coming down than going up the mountain. At Harding's accommodation house, five miles from the foot of the Loadstone, I had a comfortable clean bed and good wholesome food at a very reasonable rate. A bell is much wanted at the ferry, as it is a good distance across the river. I think that sheep might be driven up to the diggings, as I have seen them taken over worse places. There are no rivers to cross except the Motueka, and the principal drawbacks are the narrowness of the track, and the absence of feed, there being nothing for them to eat except the snow grass, and even that is very dry now. Mr. Gabb set alight to it on Mount Arthur, on Friday last about 11 a.m. and the fire might have been seen in Nelson. It is astonishing how dry the grass is so close to the snow. I hope the other papers will take notice of my experiences as I know there are a number of men waiting for a reliable report of these diggings, both on the West Coast and in Auckland, and it would be as well to make as public as possible the true state of things. I certainly would not advise any man who can make his living in any other way to go to these diggings in their present state, for until something like a road is made to them no one will ever do any good there. -Nelson Evening Mail, 26/10/1870.
The KARAMEA.
A gentleman in town has received a letter from Mr. Reuben Waite, now at the Karamea, which contains some interesting information relative to mining affairs in that district. As yet, he says, there is no rich ground discovered, but several parties are out prospecting. Those at work on Fenian Creek are making from £4 to £5 per week, but the road over which they have to carry their provisions is something fearful, and yet a much shorter and better track might be made at a very small expense. The men now there say that there is any amount of ground that will pay £2 or £3 a week, and new comers report that there are hundreds down south who are doing nothing, and would be only too glad to come this way if there were anything like reasonable facilities for getting about the country. Mr. Waite says that he is doing all in his power towards assisting the prospecting of the district, and considers that he who has to put up with all the hardships, ought to receive some assistance from proprietors of land in the township. -Nelson Evening Mail, 10/4/1871.
EXPLORATIONS NORTH OF KARAMEA.
We have received from Mr Reuben Waite the narrative of a journey northwards from Karamea to Collingwood. The writer, accompanied by his nephew James Waller, started on May 1st, and reached the Heaphy river; but, in consequence of detention by heavy rains, returned to Karamea for provisions. The journey was resumed on the 11th, and the Heaphy river was reached the same night. This stream is described as having a fine entrance for small craft, but no shelter in bad weather. On the 12th they started up the Heaphy for the Gouland Downs, but, owing to unsettled weather, camped after proceeding a couple of miles. The bush here is perfectly alive with wood hens, and Waller caught five without moving from the camping place. The following morning they searched for a track made some years ago by the then Superintendent, Mr Robinson. This track was cut in consequence of the privations that the Buller miners were exposed to by the irregular visits of vessels with provisions, and may be cited as a laudable instance of the promptitude of that lamented gentleman. The course of the track was from Collingwood, running along the Aourere Valley, over the Saddle, and the Gouland Downs, and down the Heaphy river to the coast. They succeeded in striking the track, but after following it a mile lost all trace. Under the impression that a portion had been washed away by freshets, they cut a passage for a considerable distance through the bush; but, still unsuccessful, retraced their steps, and camped, not making a mile that day. While Waite dried the tent the following morning, Waller stripped and crossed the river, and was successful in discovering the track. They continued their journey, crossing the river fourteen times that day in a distance of fourteen miles. The late rains had swollen the current, which was fearfully cold, and they decided to forego the process of stripping when crossing the river in order to save time. The rain had also saturated the bush, and their upper clothing was consequently as wet as if they had been completely immersed in the river. Our travellers finally arrived at the Great Spur leading to the Gouland Downs, which Mr Waite thus describes: — "It was a long and arduous journey — none of your piccaninny Mount Rochfort spurs, but a real "Old Man" Spur. The brush having grown over the track, and the continued rain, together with our heavy swags, made it hard and tedious work. My nephew carried sixty pounds and I fifty-six pounds, and this weight was greatly increased by the wet that had saturated our clothes and blankets. We camped that night on the Gouland Downs. For some distance up the Heaphy the country is open and level, containing several large flats of good soil."
The Gouland Downs, which were reached on the evening of the 16th ult., are named after a gentleman now resident in Nelson, and who was formerly Resident Magistrate at Collingwood. Ho took up some country in that locality for a sheep and cattle run, but abandoned the enterprise. The country is similar in appearance to Waite's Pakihi, but of wider extent. As far as the eye can reach a gently undulating table-land is spread, the ridges having the appearance of earthworks constructed for the purpose of defence, and numerous creeks intersect the country in every direction. The surface consists of a light soil, resting upon a bed of fine gravelly quartz, and beneath that again is a yellow clay. Had the weather been favourable, the explorers would have remained a while, the country being easy to get about, and no bush to drag through; but it was one continuous downpour of hail, snow, and rain, with the wind blowing a hurricane, and thunder and lightning at short intervals. It was also piercingly cold, so that to remain was impossible. Mr Waite continues his narrative as follows:
"We frequently lost our track, the snow poles being blown down in many places, and the track not being much worn and covered with snow. We were the whole day dodging about, wet through, until we made a bush, and camped. Just before camping we saw a wood-hen on the snow. My nephew "down swag," but his hands were so cold that he had some difficulty in tying the flax to make a snare to catch it. (We always carried the wing of a bird for a bait with us.) We soon had the bird, for my nephew is a capital hand at catching them. We camped soon after, but had some difficulty in making a fire, as it was snowing, hailing, and freezing. We always carried from camp to camp a bundle of dry brush to light a fire with, or we should have been often without a fire — our greatest friend. I am of opinion that these Downs and the neighbourhood will be yet a vast goldfield. It has not as yet had a chance to be properly tried. In the spring, summer, and autumn it will be a pleasant place. The ground over which I passed is not soft or boggy, but was good walking, and it has the same appearance all over. If like this in winter, what would it be in summer? This night we had to keep watch, as it was snowing and freezing, and it was not safe to let the fire go out. Our blankets were wet; ourselves wet also; we took turns to sleep, the wind blowing strong and cold all night, with thunder and lightning What a treat it was to see the daylight again. Next morning we caught another wood hen, which gave us a warm drop of soup for breakfast, thickening it with oatmeal and currie, minus vegetables." -Westport Times, 17/6/1871.
EXPLORATIONS NORTH OF KARAMEA.
On Saturday, June 3rd, we caught several wood hens, which with nekau furnished a hearty meal; and, having packed up tent and blankets, continued our return journey with greater cheerfulness. The weather was fine and clear, and in the distance we were able to distinguish the bight of the Heaphy. A fine sandy beach, with here and there a few rocks, was now traversed, until reaching an abrupt promontory, the spur of which we climbed, and from the summit saw with delight the broad valley of the Heaphy lying at our feet. From the Heaphy we knew that an easy day's journey would bring us to the Karamea. We descended into the valley, reached the river about three o'clock the same afternoon, and having crossed, proceeded some two miles before camping. Nearly opposite to our camping ground was a mussel bed. Waller went for a dishful, and in returning fell, hurling his arm severely. Ee were both liable to fall at the slightest obstacle, having become much weakened and exhausted by exposure, wet, and shortness of food. Here we fell in with a camping place but recently deserted, and found & 21b coffee tin three parts full of leaven. This we fried in the dish with some wood hen oil, and enjoyed amazingly, being the first bread we had tasted for many days. The wood hens were very numerous, so that we had no difficulty in getting a meal, and there was an abundance of nekau. The weather was fine, and having an excellent night's rest, we resumed our journey the following morning, Sunday, June 4th. We started in excellent spirits, confidently expecting to reach Karamea the same night. The first eight miles were very bad travelling, large boulders the entire distance, which were very slippery, and, the nails in our boots being much worn, we were the more liable to fall. I had travelled about five miles over these boulders when I met with a terrible fall. I slipped off a large rock, falling heavily on my right hip and arm. My hand was severely hurt, and at first I thought the hip was dislocated, as I was unable to rise for several minutes, and felt deadly faint. After a rest of a few minutes I managed to crawl along the remaining distance over the boulders, and having surmounted a spur reached the Ninemile River (a stream so named by the diggers from its being nine miles from Karamea). From this river to Karamea the road is a good sandy beach, and I managed to reach home that night, though with great difficulty. I attributed my fall to mere weakness and exhaustion, and indeed I had passed hundreds of places on the journey infinitely more difficult and dangerous. It struck me as singularly unfortunate that an accident should befall me just at the close of the journey, but I was very grateful that the result was not more serious. Many times during the journey such a contingency as the breaking of an arm or leg caused me much apprehension, when the only course would have been to pitch the tent, to make the sufferer as comfortable as possible under the circumstances, and the one who was unhurt would then have left for assistance. Personally, I would rather be killed outright than be completely disabled under circumstances of such difficulty. We crossed the Oparara, and arrived at Karamea about ten o'clock at night, worn out and exhausted, the remnants of our clothing presenting one mass of tatters.
The result of the journey has proved to me that there is a vast tract of the Province still untried. One hears it often said that the Province is done, that the entire country has been thoroughly tried, and other similar remarks. My experience teaches me that it is generally this class of croakers who derive the benefit from the exertions and energy of others. They will do nothing themselves, nor will they render the slightest assistance to others in discovering new country, but let the prospects of a new district once be assured, these very same croakers are among the first to take advantage of the opportunity. I am satisfied that the Province of Nelson is not half worked, and that it contains thousands upon thousands of acres of auriferous country yet untried. I am confident that if encouragement were given to diggers by making a fair road, so that provisions could be obtained at a reasonable rate, the Upper Heaphy (where good prospects have already been obtained), the Gouland Downs, and the valley of the Aorere as far as the Quartz Ranges would become one large and payable goldfield. All the rivers and streams from Anatori to Kaurangi Point take their rise from the Gouland Downs, and some of these have been proved rich. Along the entire coast from Bocks Point to the Heaphy river there were likely looking creeks, but the bush is so impenetrable that I fear there will not soon be a goldfield of any importance in that locality. Prospecting is almost impossible in the absence of roads, and in the rough condition of the country in that portion of the Province. Reuben Waite. -Westport Times, 24/6/1871.
Mr Reuben Waite has purchased the ketch Amateur, and purposes taking her round to the New River, Nelson Province, with a cargo prior to opening a store for the accommodation of the miners in the surrounding district. -GRA, 22/11/1871.
The ketch Amateur recently purchased by Mr Reuben Waite, is now named the Pioneer. She is loading at Stanley Wharf for the Big River, via Karamea, and is to sail this morning. -Westport Times, 5/12/1871.
THE WRECK OF THE PIONEER.
The following particulars in connection with the loss of the above vessel, has been furnished us by the owner, Mr Reuben Waite.
We left Westport on Thursday evening 8th December, at 5 o'clock for Karamea, arrived off that river about midnight, and kept off and on till daylight, (being high water about 5 o'clock in the morning.) When daylight came we could not make out the land there being a heavy mist until after high water. It came on to blow very hard from the south-west and we held on until two o'clock on Friday the 9th. In the afternoon the wind increasing to a gale and the vessel making a deal of leeway, we had no alternative but to run for it into the Big River, which we entered easily in three hours after we commenced running, the vessel almost flying through the water. Next morning, Saturday 10th, the master and myself went along the beach to Anatori to look at the bar, Captain Black said he could get in easily enough so we returned to the Big River the same day to bring on the vessel, and next day we took her into Anatori. I did not have an assortment of goods, neither weights nor scales, nor a house to put anything in. I intended bringing the store round from the Karamea. The diggers were soon on board, and commenced operations on a quarter cask of beer. They soon emptied the quarter cask, and I could have disposed of half a dozen easily. The following day, the 12th, I landed my goods and intended returning to Karamea. On going out of the Anatori the wind, that had just before been blowing fresh, lulled, and there came a dead calm, while the heavy surf caused by the wind drifted the vessel ashore, and the sea made a clean breach over her. Myself and crew got off without accident, and a messenger was despatched to the diggings for assistance. In the evening about a dozen men reached the wreck. We discharged the ballast, and landed some cargo for the Karamea, but could not extricate the vessel that tide, as the anchor ballasted with a cask of stone came home. Renewed our efforts the following day, got the vessel on some ways, and got her down a few feet with the intention at high water to tow her into the river. A breeze sprang up from the south-west, but not a heavy oiie, and we hauled the vessel afloat, those on shore hauling on to a line. They had to haul to windward, and the breeze blowing too strong, the master set the staysail, and the vessel would have gone out. At this juncture one of the men aboard said he would jump from the vessel's side if we intended to put to sea, and his mate refused to proceed without him. Under these circumstances the master had no alternative but to lower the staysail and allow the vessel to drift ashore. She was then beached further from the river and in a worse position than before. For some days we were unable to do anything as it blew hard from the south-west, and as the spring tides made the sea struck the vessel heavily. I despatched three men to Wanganui for rope, but they were unable to procure any, and on Christmas day I started for Collingwood, bringing back 521b of rope, a distance of 62 miles over a rough road. On my return the master and his mate had left for the diggings, and when sent for he refused to come down. At this time she would have been got off as the sea was as calm as a mill-pond, and the wind blowing steadily from the north-east. The arrival of ten new hands from Collingwood enabled me to obtain assistance, and a party named Jones, who had come into the Anatori with a cargo of general stores, together with H. Moffat, formerly mate of the steamer Lyttelton, offered to take charge of the vessel if we got her off, and run her into the river or Wanganui. We got the anchor out to some smooth, soapy rock, and ballasted it with stone (there being no drill to be got), and then put the vessel on the ways with the assistance of about sixteen hands. As the tide advanced the wind freshened, until it had made a very heavy sea, so that the men on shore dragged home the anchor, which put an end to operations for that day. The following morning I found that the sea had knocked two large holes in the hull, and one of her masts had snapped in two. When the anchor came home the previous day I must mention that all hands went to their waists in water to try and push the vessel off, but the sea was too heavy. The next day I started overland for the Karamea and Westport, to report the wreck, but being without compass and the sky overcast was lost in the bush for six or seven days, which will account for the delay in my arrival. -Westport Times, 30/1/1871.
There was a fray at Reuben Waite's Accommodation House on Wednesday, which resulted in the offender finding speedy justice meted out to him. A man named James Ellis, from Reeftown, had, with some companions, been drinking and becoming noisy and troublesome. Reuben Waite put him out of the house. Thereupon Ellis kicked in the door, smashed the windows and then decamped. Reuben saddling his horse went to the Lyell for police assistance and Constable McMahon, returning with him, found Eilis in the neighborhood and took him in custody, keeping him prisoner all night at the accommodation house. The nest morning Mr Warden Broad arrived there on his way to the Lyell. and holding court on the spot fined Ellis £5 and costs, 16s. Prisoner's companions subscribed the money among them and he was released. -Westport Times, 19/10/1877.
At the Inangahua Junction the Buller river rose, during the late floods, about 45 feet above its ordinary level, backing up the Inangahua on to the main road, overspreading Christy's paddocks and rising three feet in the house, which the inmates had to vacate. Frank Courtney's and Reuben Waite's accommodation houses were also flooded, the inmates having barely time to clear out on horseback, and take refuge on the hills at the back. -West Coast Times, 15/11/1877.
Mr Reuben Waite, probably the earliest pioneer of the West Coast, through continued bad health, offers to dispose of his hotel property at the Junction of the Westport, Reefton, Lyell and Nelson roads. -Kumara Times, 30/4/1884.
FOR SALE.
REUBEN WAITE'S HOTEL
at the Junction of the Westport, Reefton, Lyell and Nelson, Roads. The house is well and faithfully built, and has good accommodation. There is a good dry sixstall stable. A good garden, and a constant supply of excellent water close to the house. There are Ten Rooms, And Twelve Beds made up. All the chimnies are built of stone and iron, in fact, every convenience to carry on the business. There are nearly 12 acres of good land Attached to the property (Government reserve), the rent of which is one pound £1, per year. Part is fenced in for paddocks.
From continued bad health I am compelled to part with this property.
For particulars apply to the office of this paper, or
Mr J. McGaffin, McGaffin's Hotel, Reefton;
or to Reuben Waite, on the premises. -Inangahua Times, 14/4/1884.
Mr Reuben Waite, who was recently an inmate of the Hospital, suffering from the effects of an epileptic fit, is, we are pleased to notice, about again. -Westport Times, 5/12/1884.
REUBEN WAITE, A WEST COAST PIONEER.
It will be gratifying to the numerous friends of Mr Reuben Waite to learn that the four counties on the West Coast have agreed to unite in making some slight recognition of the great service tendered to the West Coast and the Colony by Mr Waite as an explorer of the West Coast goldfields.
The Buller, Inangahua, Grey and Westland Counties have decided to contribute the sum of 5s weekly each to the veteran prospector as some slight reward for the share he bore in opening up the West Coast goldfields. -Kumara Times, 4/3/1885.
The Goldfields Committee (says the Wellington correspondent of the Dunedin Star) have made a strange bungle in reference to the petition of an old West Coastite, Reuben Waite. Last year a large number of West Coast residents forwarded a petition to the House stating that Waite was the pioneer of the West Coast goldfields, and asking that some consideration might be shown him in his old age. The first signature to the petition was a "Patrick Newman," county chairman; and the Goldfields Committee, after due deliberation, recommended the Government to give Newman, instead of Waite, some consideration. This is the report as taken from the appendices to the journals of the House: — "The Goldfields and Mines Committee have the honor to report that Patrick Newman is one of the pioneers of the West Coast goldfields, and has undoubtedly claims on the Colony, and his petition is therefore referred to the Government for their favorable consideration." This year Waite petitioned Parliament to grant him some consideration in old age, stating that the petition of last session had been favorably reported on, but no effect had been given to the report. The Goldfields Committee having had the latter petition before them have perpetuated their blunder of last year, for they report as follows: — "The Committee do not see their way to take further action in the matter, and refer their former report to the Government." -Nelson Evening Mail, 28/7/1885.
POOR REUBEN WAITE.
We regret to learn from the Westport Times of Friday last that poor old Reuben Waite has been obliged to go into the Hospital at Nelson.
The Goldfields Committee made a singular bungle in reference to the petition of this old West Coast pioneer, Reuben Waite. Last year a large number of West Coast residents forwarded a petition to the House stating that Reuben Waite was the pioneer of the West Coast goldfields, and asking that some consideration might be shown to him in his old age. The first signature to the petition was "Ptk. Newman, County Chairman," and the Goldfields Committee, after due deliberation, recommended the Government to give Newman, instead of Waite, some consideration. This is the report as taken from the appendices of the Journals of the House: — "Patrick Newman claims to be the pioneer of the West Coast goldfields, and begs for some consideration to be shown to him in his old age. The other petitioners are in support of his claim. The Goldfields and Mines Committee have the honor to report that Patrick Newman is one of the pioneers of the West Coast goldfields, and has undoubted claims on the colony, and his petition is therefore referred to the Government for favorable consideration." This year Waite himself petitioned Parliament to grant him some consideration in his old age, stating that the petition of last session was favorably reported upon, but that no effect had been given to the report. The Goldfields Committee having had the latter petition before them, have perpetuated the blunder of last year, for they report as follows: — "The committee did not see its way to take farther action in the matter, and refers the former report to the consideration of the Government." It is an excellent commentary (the Times remarks) on the great care exercised in considering petitions, that a person who has never asked for or possessed any claim for compensation should have it thrust upon him, while the poor old claimant who is really entitled to consideration is left destitute. [We presume "Newman" should read "Brennan."] -Kumara Times, 3/8/1885.
DEATHS.
Waite. — August 2, at the Nelson Hospital, Reuben Waite, of the West Coast, aged 62 years. -Nelson Evening Mail, 3/8/1885.
An old settler, an intrepid pioneer, and the discoverer of the West Coast goldfields passed away from amongst us yesterday morning. A quarter of a century ago Reuben Waite came down here from Victoria and, together with a few other miners from the same place, chartered a little ketch and sailed down the Coast, then scarcely known at all, to the Buller. They were successful, and the news of their good luck quickly spread, and very soon there was a large population in the Buller Valley rooting up the beaches and tearing up the terraces from which they took considerable quantities of gold. From thence Reuben travelled to the other West Coast districts, Hokitika and the Grey, and then back again to the Buller, but he never did much for himself, being of too restless a disposition to be a successful man. For some years past be has kept an accommodation house near the Inangahua Junction but a few days ago he was compelled to come up lo Nelson for medical treatment in the Hospital where he died at an early hour yesterday morning, at the age of 62. He vas of a generous disposition, and there are many who are now far better off than was poor old Reuben at the time of his death who are indebted to him for holding out a helping hand when their fortunes were at a low ebb. -Nelson Evening Mail, 3/8/1885.
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