Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1898-11-03

sun in profusion, water alarmingly
scarce and gold scarcer! Such is the
lot of the Australian gold miner.
True, there are exceptions, when gold
can be picked up for the trouble of
STOPPING and food and water freely
purchased Mt reasonable prices. But,
being exceptions, these cases only go
to prove the rule. And SO there is
nothing surprising in the fact that
three diggers, with whom we are now
concerned, found themselves on the
very edge of the Great Victorian des-
ert in West Australia with pockets
none too full and themselves often
empty. They toiled patiently on
against persistent ill-luck, hoping that
each day might bring the turning
point in the tide of their affairs which
would lead to fortune.
An Engishman, boyishly hopeful;
an Irishman, ,humorously despondent,
and an Australian with strong an
tipathy to discuss his ancestors ORR
gin-his grandfather had journeyed
from England at the expense of the
government-made up the party.
Their camp lay at place called Brook,
in the neighborhood of Mount Weld.
To the east the great sandy deserts
stretched right away as far as the eye
could reach in billowy sandhills
clotted with spinifex lonely, arid, i'm
penetrable. TO the north lay low
ranges and stony plains, unknown,
but seemingly good for gold. Thither
they daily journeyed looking for likely
spots, with variable luck-mostly in
different.
On certain day the Irishman, hav-
ing wandered farther than his wont,
was led by tickle fortune into the
midst of perfect paradise of reefs.
Kindly-looking quartz grid-ironed and
intersected the country for fully a
square mile.
Pat stood and looking round pulled
thoughtfully at his scrubby beard and
mnttered:
"Great Christopher! Here we've
been toiling to the tune of three
or four weights day when
within two dozen miles there lay a
sort ~of natural Bank of England,
stuffed full of gold and ours for the
askingw
Selecting a likely-looking rock of a
dark ferrnginous color, he gave q con-
venient corner crack with the poll
end of his pick. Off few fragment,
which he examined carefully with the
aid of pocket lens.
"Good goldr'
But where there was quartz as rich
as this, Pat knew that better could
not be far. This would prove to be a
''stringer" or ''gash vein," one of
several overhowings of great parent
reef running through them all. He
was right. Only a few minutes walk
brought him to thick reef of quartz
running north and south and crossing
all the others. This was the ''parent. "
Selecting a conveniently crumbled
part, Pat knocked off corner. Even
before picking up the severed rock he
could see the gold shining in bright
beads.
''Be me sowl," he said, "that's koind
stonep'
With crack he knocked off another
lump and broke it in two. Pat gasped.
1t was simply permeated with particles
of gold. This was enough for Pat
O'Lochlin. That COLA in unwonted
abundance was here he now felt sure.
The next thing was to secure it for
himself and his mates.
Twenty-four acres is the full extent
of one mans claim. This must be
pegged out with four small stakes, a
notice put up and the fact registered
at the Office of the neighbouring war
den. In case of two claimants, the
one who first succeeds in registering
his title is, ipso facto, in possession
of the miners rights over the claim
in question.
Having made certain of the value OF
his find, Pat looked for pegs with which
to mark the ground. He soon secured
four from dead malga tree, two OF
which he ramme6 into the ground at
the proper dictance and proceeded,
with the remaining couple over his
shoulder, to step out the number OF
yards necessary to cover full claim.
As he walked he whistled and men
tally patted himself on the back as the
cleverest digger in the colony. In
fact, Pat felt at that moment as proud
as though he himself had put the
| gold in the reef and made the rest oi
West Australia as we'll. Such is the
miners way. When gold is scarce he
curses his ill-luck, the country, the
sun, the absence of water-anything
But, when his claim is rich, yielding
ounces a week, and he finds himself
on the high way to fortune, he never
then suggests that plain strength and
stupidness might account for his luck,
or that anyone but the miner himself
is accountable for the fact of gold
being goM or its presence in the par
ticular spot where he has found it.
HereIPat had come, all by himself
much hrther than anyone else hat
ever dreamed of penetrating. NJ
one, Dot man in the country, hai
ever suspected what Pat, Of course, 81