LYELL.

Inangahua Times, Volume IX, Issue 1403, 21 May 1884, Page 2

LYELL.

A „ (FBOM OUR OwVcOMIESPONDENT). Dullness reigna up here supreme. The long spell of rlry weather has interfered seriously with the up river sluicing claims, owing to tho scarcity of water. It however enabled many of the old hands to try the be.-nh.es with considerable success, as the Bailor ha? not beon so low during the la -t ton years. Some very good patches havo been got far out in the river-bed. The general opinion is the i dullness ia only temporary, as our big . friend the Alpine is expected to jxive us all a start in a few months. The United Tta'y Company are prospecting, and making regular monthly calls, while the Tyr C'tnuell Company are trying hard to discover a payable reef in their ground. \ Of course any of the claims striking a good gold-bearing roef would bring back . again speculative tendencies, despite the virtuous indignation of the Dtnedin brokers. Had the claims, turned out dividend paying it would have been a capital investment, and splendid district for mailing money. Now Messrs Dunedinites you wore no 'more taken in than qoiiio. of our local residents ; as a'i instance, the working manager in one, of the collapsed claims was feo confident of the claim being payable that ho held and paid caMs upon two thousand scrp until the last minute, and has since cleared out penniless. I kno.w another instance of a shrewd and respected business resident, who invested fifteen hundred pounds in a claim just before crushing commenced,' and he never expects as many hundred pynce -cm ft of it. These instances will show you the failures cannot be the rank swindles which you people get your virtuous backs up about. A perfect tornado of good old West Coast, weather visited us on Tuesday last, a perfect delngp. of rain accompanied by a fierce gale, with a few flashes of lightning thrown in to make up the picture. Several large slips .were brought down on thy roads by the rush of water down the mountain sides. Midway between the Lye! l and Junction one creek was scoured out to H do;ith of eight feet where the road crossed it, and the mails had to be brought on horse-back. I am informed one of . the pji-rs of the bridge lately erected over tht» Tnanyahua river at its ! junction with the Buller, shows signs of settling down This is probably owing to the quantity of rock specified to be placed aromu] tins piles as against the strong current running during floods, only about oue-third of the original quantity specified having been put down. As the County will have to take over the bridge it. is as well t > see the structure is complete liefore doing po. A protective work, called

ii dolphin, is being erected to prevent ' timber coming down the river during floods, striking the piles. Messrs Da in m s and "Ray, of Westport, are the successful tenderers. About 100 tons of a slip have blocked up the road at the end of the bridge. A passage ha 3 been cleared o open the road for traffic. The road around the bluff, where Courtayn's waggon capsized, has been widened out about three feet. The teamsters say it is only a tr.ip, aa it is built up on the outer edge with loose stones, and should a loaded waggon wheel <jet on it the whole structure would collapse. Court ay n, whose waggon and hoi sun capsizod some time b*ek, narroly escaped with a good shaking, and having the upper part of the waggon smashed up. The Buller County Council are calling fresh maintenance tenders a month before the present contracts expii-B. The General Government have paid £2,000 a year for maintenance during the last three years— thanks to the energy of their local representative, Mr M uiro. Why not stir up the member for Reef ton ? The down mail only got through to-day, owing to a slip on the road. Lyell, May 16th, 1884.