Thibodaux minerva., 1853-07-09
Australia as seen by Californian.

The following letter was written under date o
Jan. 10, 1853, from the "Eureka Diggings,
Australia, by Mr.. W. II. Cooper, late City Sur
veyor of Sonora, to a friend in the latter place
by whom it was furnished to the Sonora Herald
1t is conclusive of the question as to the relative
merits of the two great gold fields in the world
and being written by an intelligent and observ
ing man, and witlal practical miner, is ent
tied to full consideration. No one who reads il
will ever think of quitting California for such
prospect as is here depicted. In fact we learr
that hundreds who were in this city on thei1
way to Australia, have changed their minds
Byrne, some having even forfeited their passage
money already paid, rather than go. They arc
wise:
''This country is low and fat and is grea,
deal worse watcred than California. What wa.
ter there is, is nearly all brackish. Sometimes
ii is tinctured with sulphur and iron, but mostly
with salt. The flies are an intolerable nuisance
there is no end to them in the mines. Many
persons have almost lost their sight, on account
of their darting into their eyes, preserve my
eyes and face by continually wearing a veil.
''The laws of this country are exceedingly
oppressive to the poor laborer, taxing him to
death all the time, and leaving him no chance
to accumulate wealth, by any regular course Of
industry. Hence his only hope is to strike al
what is here termed "a dollop,' or in our Ian
guage "a pile, in the diggings and even then,
his license money, and the percentage of getting
it through to the settlements and converting it
into specie eats up great deal of his god-send.
To get tls dollop' in the first place, he stands
only one fifth the chance that he would in Cali
fornia; SO you may judge that it is all lottery.
And yet there are men who have made them
selves independent and comfortable fof life, by
spending only few weeks in the mines.
81 am at present in the Victoria Diggings.
The gold here lies in much heavier deposits than
in California; but these are fewer and further
between. My diggings are fifty feet in depth,
while i'll the vicinity there are places from sew
enty to eighty feet deep, and even more. At
the Ovens, two hundred and fifty or three hum
dred miles northeast from here, there are new
diggings of a shallow character. l am going
to start for there in few days. and if do
not make more than have been making shall
leave and return to California.
81 will give you the key to the excitement at
present going on in regard to this country.
Years ago many English noblemen and gentle
men came to this colony and located all the most
desirable lands and water privileges for farms,
stations, sc. Since then they have been grow
ing wool and rearing sheep, cattle, &C. They
nave, however, become crowded, ana LABOR was
a little too high for them. They therefore
started great outcry about the richness of the
Australian gold-felds; which, as was foreseen,
has caused a rush Of immigration from all parts
of the world. They arrive, and find the mines
to be a complete lottery; and not having the
means to sustain either heightened prospect,
or to return home, they embrace the alternative
to accept farm work, for little or no pay. The
landed proprietors thus secure slaves for con-
siderable time-perhaps for life. They are the
class that is making the most money, and far
the most noise in the colony. Furthermore, the
country is filled up with eonvicts-the offscour-
ings of England-who are mostly the most law
less and worst thieves and vagabonds in the
known world. California is, in comparison, a
perfect paradise I might write pages on this
subject, and then, like the Queen of shebah,
should not have told you the half.
'.Take the advice Of bosom friend, and do
not come here. Keep from under John Bulls
dominion as long as you can. After paying all
expenses, escort, per centage. &C., &c., you have
no security either for life or money. l hope
that all my friends will remain at home, unless
they bring with them the means to return when
they chocse-and that will be as soon as they
find out how things really are"