The Sun.
London, England, 1858-12-27 00:00:00

BRITISH COLUMBIA

(From the Times.)
The copious and faithful accounts transmitted
by. our correspondent from the -Fraser River dis-
tricts have, now plaCed the natural riches of that
territory beyond all question. At first, as in the
case of all gold discoveries, the reality was exagge-
rated by.rumour, and a "rush" was made from all
parts to the new diggings, without reason or in-
quiry. This excitement -was, of course, followed
by a reaction, and -then the value of the newly-
opened mines was depreciated in proportion. The
lapse of a few months, however, has brought us ac-
curate representations ofthe facts, and it can no longer
be doubted that British Columbia must be added to
the gold producing regions of the world. The ex-
ploration of the country is still incomplete, but
the banks of the river for many miles together yield
supplies of the precious metal abundant enough to
enrich and satisfy all but the Californian emigrant,
whose cupidity has been stimulated by a long ca-
reer of speculation and adventure. To miners of
this class- earnings presenting 30s. or 40s. a-day
clear profit appear only " moderate," because they
have abandoned rich fields of labour with the true
gambler's hope of finding something richer still,
but the majority of the mining population—" Rus-
sians, Swedes, Danes, French, Norwegians, Ger-
mans, English; Scotch, and Irish "—were found
contented enough with their gains, as well they
might be. - At Hill's Bar, one of the richest on the
river, the produce had risen as high as £l3 per man
per diem. This was an extreme case, but at the
lowest estimate it was said that any common la-
bourer could get his 20s. a-day at this spot by
merely. let:ing out his services to others. All this
while it was believed that the great centre and
source of treasure remained yet to be discovered.
The gold deposits on the banks were held to be the
mere washings of some intensely auriferous soil,
and the miners were eagerly pushing their way up
the river in search of the fountain-head of-wealth.
Sone confirmation was lent to this impressioa by
the fact that --the digg!ngs d;d really im-
prove as the stream was ascended, but it is the
nature of gold-seekers to be incessantly on the look-
out for yields of fabulous value, and the wealth of
the Fraser River comit-Tmay be considered as well
established, even without the discovery of this un-
known mine. The gold is not found in the same
form as in Australia, nor are any miraculous "nug-
gets" described for our edification, but the digging
is attended with little labour when the scene is once
reached. The climate is extremely healthy, and
there is scarcely any sickness. Our co-respondent
met with only a -single invalid throughout his
entire voyage. The great difficulty at present
seems to consist in making the ascent of the river,
but the organisation of traffic sure to follow on the
success of the diggings will soon dispose of this
impediment.

The picture given of the miners and their ways
in this new colony is exceedingly instructive, and,
upon the whole, satisfactory. The greit gold dis-
coveries have now followed each other in such suc-
cession that the practice of treasure-seeking has
been refined into something like a system. Dig-
ging has become a profession, with its rules and
ordinances, its precedents and customs—rude
enough still, in some respects, but based, neverthe-
less, for the most part upon natural justice. In Cali-
fornia the first swarm of adventurers quarrelled,
fought, and squandered without stint or measure.
In Australia things were a little better, as the situa-
tion was no longer novel ; and now, on the Fraser
River, diggers drop into their places and prosecute
their ventures with nearly as much regularity as is
seen in ordinary trades. Intoxication seems to b 3
uncommon, and gambling discouraged. There is a
general love of order, and a marked desire for a
strong and effective Government. " Give us pro-
tection," say the miners, " and we will pay for the
licence willingly." They want, as a body, to live
under the law, are well disposed towards the
Governor, and promise a hearty.. welcome to a
judge. All the barbarous features, in short, of this
mining life are now disappearing, and diggers are
as peaceable, steady-going people in their way, as
any other class of working men. For the rest, it
is amusing to observe how, under these favourable
circumstances, the natural laws of pisblic economy
develope themselves. The accumulation of wealth
and the division of classes occur exactly- as in the
Old World, es:Rept that the process is infinitely
more rapid. A man begins as a labouros at so miles,
a Jay, and sees the chief portion of bis produce
carried off by somebody else who owns the soil, and
thus lives by rent, instead of labour. If our opera-
tive is of an adventurous turn, he employs the first
few dollars of his making in a journey up the river
on his own private account. By the use of his wits,
or his experience, he " prospects" the tanks, estab-
lishes a "claim,'' and becomes the employer of labour
in his turn. If he is less speculative or daring, but
still industrious, he hoards his wages till he can pur-
chase a right of soil in some established digging—
a half or a quarter interest, or a fifth, or even a
tenth. A very few years will probably see even
these exceptional communities separated into rich
and poor, the former class possessing all the land, the
latter nothing but their dailylabour. There will, how-
ever, be this peculiarity in-the cps:—that, owing to
the wonderful rate of progress, the origin of wealth
and the origin of poverty will be plainly under-
stood. Everybody will know that the possession
of the soil represents either skilful enterprise or
sturdy self-denial, and that a worse fortune indi-
cates simply less knowledge or less thrift in the
individual or his ancestor. It is just the same in the
world we live in, except that the origin of the dis-
tinction is a good deal more remote.
That the value of a possession like the Fraser
River territory should still be considered debateable
is a signal instance of the advance made in political
science. Half a century ago a colony yielding gold
by the bucketful would have been set down at once
as the most precious, pearl in the Imperial diadem,
whereas we are now disposed to institute a regular
profit and loss alculation, and ask whether the
thing. really "pays." In our correspondent's opi-
nion, it does not, and will not for some time to come •
—that is to say, it will not be maintained without
contributions from the mother country in the shape
of civil and military establishments, for which no
A
direct return will be forthcoming. new country,
like an old one, has its expenses, though of a dif-
ferent character. Roads and bsidges require to be
made, an administration must be organised, and in
the case of a gold region an efficient police must be kept
up. Already, in fact, we are despatching a battalion
of regular infantry to these parts, and the garrison of
British Columbia will probably figure in our Army
Estimates for some time to come. Such obligstions,
it is said, are not likely to be satisfied at present
out of the colonial Exchequer, inasmuch as the tax
upon miners, though 'willingly paid, is insufficient
to meet the demands of Government. We cannot
exactly see why this should be. If the miners are
sagacious and as successful as our correspondent
describes, they ought surely to understand that it is
fairly incumbent upon them to pay for their own