The Evansville daily journal., 1858-08-02

| 'i'S i~H0 ~ sAO Soiu uiSSuiS Ou rtt-
\ ger river:
! n mass of documentary evidence has re-
Gently been published in the English papers
in regard to the gold mines ON Frazer river,
the reported richness of which is now. at
tracing thousands of adventures from Call
/ ifornia, as well as from more distant regions.
From the somewhat tediously minute de-
tails of the official dispatches, that during
the past two years have been transmitted
to and from the British ministry and the
Hudson's Bay Company officials, we ex-
tract the following facts:
In April 1856, Governor Douglas of Van
couyers Island, communicated 10 the Home
( Government, the statement of Angus Nc
Donald, clerk of Fort Colville, post of the
Hudsons Bay Company, that gold had been
discovered in considerable quantities within
the British Territory on the upper Columbia,
and that individual miners were earning
t2 to IS day. I'm view, of this fact, the
Governor suggested the expediency of i'm
posing a tax upon the miners, and the adop-
tionof other means to secure TO the govern
ment a proper control over the Territory
and It's products. In a letter dated on the
4th of the following August the Secretary
for the Colonial department replied that any
attempt to raise a revenue from taxes or IL
censes ON the miners would probably prove
Intellectual, and that as the government did
not at present look for any revenue from
that quarter, the means for the preservation
OF order must be determined by the Govern
or himself In his reply to this communion
ton, Governor Douglas reiterated his asser-
tions with regard to the abundance of gold.
stating, however, that the hostility of the
natives had prevented the American immi-
grants from resorting thither in large num-
bers, and that so far the miners had pursued
their labors peacefully, being for the most
part retired servants of the HudSon'S Bay
Company. An examination of the geologi-
cal formations of the district resulted in the
discovery of a striking similarity to those
of the Sierra Nevada i'm California. the
known richness of which last, gave reason
for the strongest hopes in respect to The
newly discovered fields. -
In a later dispatch, dated july, 1851
Governor Douglas spoke still more confident
ly OF the abundance of gold, but complained
that the hostility of the Indians about
Thompsons river, had occasioned the miners
much trouble, and urged the appointment
OF an officer in special power for the reeu-
lation and protection of the gold producing
districts. l-l
With characteristic dilatoriness. the
home government as yet but halt awakened
to the Importance of the new discoveries.
seem neither to have replied to the Govern
ors communication, nor To have complied
fsr.r. T. n. 4
we lind him speaking with great earnestness
q eae rEe4Ss s VI the tor the called
OF an official to look after their iir.~.""thent
Probably despairing of active and season.
able measures on the part of the cabinet on
the 2Sth of December, the day before the
despatch of his letter, the Governor issued
a proclamation " declaring the rights of the
crown IN respect TO gold found in its natu-
raj place of deposit within the limits oil Fra
zer's and Thompsons river districts, within
which are situated the Couteau mines; and
forbidding all persons TO dig or disturb the
soil in search of gold, until authorized by
Her MaieSty's Government This stepscem-
ed to be rendered necessary by the mmigra-
p, ton which now began to pour in from Oregon
/ and Washington Territories.
] Il
effect on the lst of February, 1858, fixed
the price of a license at los per month"; the
licenses to be procured at Victoria, Van
couver's Island. On the ed of January
following, the license fee was raised from
los to 2ls per month.
In three months from this time, the mum
Der of white miners had materially increas-
ed. The Indians who, not daring to modest
the persons or property of the whites, had
hitherto only cndeavored to impede thell
labory, were now coming in constant coils
ion with them, and widespread hostilitie
seemed Imminent unless steps were speedil.
taken for the preservation of order. BE
sides the diggings already being worked ol
ThompSon's river and its tributaries, ricl
d post was discovered by the natives on tn
> banks of the Frazer, about five miles froI
its confluence with the Thompson, and gol
a in small quantities had been found in the
: possession as far as the Great Falls of FrazC
, river. about eighty miles above the forks
, Want Of proper mining tools could alor
% account for the comparatively small produ
; ton of a soil evidently so rich. The licen
:, system was very imperfectly enforced,
r NAV be inferred from the fact that seven
N or eighty adventurers from the Amerie;
p side, had gone to the Couteau mines wit
out paying the required tax.
y By the first of May last the tide of INN
sc grafton had swelled into flood. The Go
~ ernnr writes TO the Colonial Secretary
a. follows:
"Boats, canoes, and every species of SIN
craft. are continually employed in pouri
10 their cargoes of human beings into Fral
river, and it is supposed that not less tn
one thousand whites are already at wol
= and on the way to the gold diggings.
"On the 18th of April, the Americ
~ steamer Commodore, arrived in this pc
lr: direct from San Francisco with 420 p
re' T' sengers on board, the chief part of VIII
.sh are gold miners for the "Couteau " col
~ try.
~ ".Nearly four hundred of these men W
oy- landed at this place, and have since left
boats and canoes for Frazers river.
o. 81 slscertained, through inquiries on
Of subject that these men are all well proyl
for with mining tools, and that there was
lS" Sm dearth of capital or intelligence am
them. About sixty Bri.tsh subjects, "
an equal number of native born Americ
d the rest being chiefly Germans, with
'"P' smtl,er proportion Of frenchmen
- Italians cOmpoScd this body of adven