Part 56

The land to which most of the Russian convicts are banished, Siberia, is, curiously enough, less dangerous for a traveller than the European possessions of the czar. In a land journey of five thousand miles, in Northern Asia, I was never disturbed by footpads, and suffered no apprehension. Had my tour been in midsummer, there would have been less security; but as it occurred in winter, when the thermometer frequently reached forty degrees below zero, the circumstances were not favorable to lying in wait for several hours, when the prospect was good that the highwayman would freeze to death before he could find some one on whom to try his skill.

[Sidenote: HOLDING PRISONERS FOR RANSOM.]

Of all European countries, Italy is the one at present whose sculpture, begging, painting, and highway robbery have attained the highest stage of perfection. In the southern part of the kingdom robberies are of frequent occurrence, and the mountains are full of bands, that have a regular organization for plundering travellers. Sometimes the scoundrels add murder to robbery, and they have a pleasant way of holding men for ransom. If the ransom money does not come as promptly as they desire, they detach a prisoner’s ear, and send it as a gentle hint for his friends to hurry up. If the ransom is still delayed, the other ear follows, then a finger, and so on, until the unfortunate traveller is about as much his former self as Hamlet without Hamlet.

The Italian brigands are a pious lot of thieves, and when they set out on a marauding expedition, they generally offer up prayers for a successful result. Russian robbers are equally devout. There is a story of a Muscovite highwayman, who one day killed a traveller, and, while rifling his pockets, discovered a cake containing meat. Though very hungry, he could not eat the cake, as the church fast then prevailing forbade the use of meat. The King of Italy has made very earnest efforts to suppress brigandage in his dominions; but he has not succeeded, partly on account of the pope declining to coöperate with him as fully as he desires, and partly owing to the fondness of the inhabitants for a wild life. The Ex-King of Naples, who resided in Rome until quite recently, was well known to be in league with the brigands, whom he hoped at some time to make the nucleus of an army in case he should deem it prudent to endeavor to regain his throne. Men who had been plundered on the roads of Southern Italy told me that they afterwards met their robbers on the Corso, or in the Piazza di Spagna, and saw them enter and leave the house of Ex-King Ferdinand.

[Sidenote: ROAD AGENTS IN CALIFORNIA.]

The most prosperous parts of the United States, in the matter of brigandage, as elsewhere stated, are the new states and territories west of the Missouri River. In Montana, Idaho, Nevada, and California, highway robberies are frequent; and it is sometimes the custom for the stage companies to supply passengers with rifles for their protection. But the robbers generally take the opportunity to approach when least expected, and in many cases they do not trouble the passengers, but content themselves with the treasure in charge of the express messenger. Generally the messenger shows fight, if the driver does not, and in some instances the robbers have paid dearly for their attempt. They are well armed, and the passengers usually find it best to submit, and hand over their money without grumbling. The Californians speak of these robbers as “road agents,” and I was much amused at the name the first time I heard it. I was starting from Stockton for Mariposa, and some one suggested, as I mounted to the outside of the coach, that the road agents might trouble us. I innocently asked if we were obliged to pay the tolls on the road, and suggested that the duty belonged to the company. There was a general laugh at my expense, as a fellow-passenger explained to me what a road agent was.

Spain can boast a fair allowance of brigands, though not as many as she could twenty years ago, on account of the construction of railways along the principal routes of travel. Probably the present troubles will leave the country in a very disordered condition, and for years to come there will be many men seeking their living by plundering others. The Spanish robbers are no less cruel than their Italian brethren, and they regard human life as of very little consequence. They do not hesitate to kill their victims when they think they will endanger their safety by leaving them alive. Mexico, Cuba, and the South American countries in general, copy the customs of the people who colonized them, and especially in Mexico robbery is considered one of the fine arts. Many wealthy people are not exempt from the suspicion of having acquired their property by foul means; and not unfrequently some of the high officers of the government are known to connive at the exploits of Mexican Jack Sheppards and Claude Duvals.

[Sidenote: ADVENTURE WITH SPANISH BRIGANDS.]

A few years ago a gentleman of my acquaintance had a curious adventure in Spain, which I will endeavor to relate in his own words. “I was travelling with my wife,” said he, “and we had a long ride before us to Grenada. I found that two diligences were to start the next day, one of them quite new, and the other an old one. I engaged the _coupé_ of the new diligence, paid for it, and was told to be ready at six o’clock the next morning. When I went there, I found that an English woman and her servant had installed themselves in our place, which they preferred to the old carriage, in which they had chartered the _coupé_. I protested; but the woman cut me short with, ‘I am the Duchess of ——, and shall retain this carriage.’

“‘Ah,’ I replied, bowing low, ‘but I am the Prince Thomas of America, and my other titles are Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Salt Lake. We are all princes in America; and, madam, my wife is the Countess of Michigan, Illinois, and Kentucky.’

“But the woman repeated her title, and refused to move. She did not care for an American prince; and I was about to call the officials to eject her, when my wife said, in her hearing, ‘If she is so unlady-like as to act in this way, we will leave her to herself, and ride in the old diligence.’

“The new vehicle moved off, bearing the English duchess, and we followed ten minutes later in the old one. About two miles from the starting-point, we passed the new carriage with a broken pole, and the driver and conductor were endeavoring to get another from a neighboring farm-house. As we passed them, I shouted to our postilion that I would give him a real for every mile he kept ahead of the other carriage, and a dollar for every hour he arrived in advance of his usual time.

“He accepted the offer, and urged the horses to their best speed. Every time we changed, I distributed a few reals to the men about the stable; and I heard the postilion hint to them to make the changes as fast as possible, but to be in no hurry in supplying the other diligence. We went at a killing pace, and every time when we halted, the postilion said, ‘You will owe me a great deal of money for this; you will owe me a great deal of money.’

“I found on calculation that I should owe him a very liberal gratuity, and assured him that I would pay everything I owed. As we passed through a certain wood, I observed that he watched the road-side very closely, and soon after repeated his remark about my indebtedness to him. I could not understand what he meant, but was wiser afterwards.

[Sidenote: ENGAGING AN ENTIRE HOTEL.]

“We reached Grenada more than three hours ahead of time. There was then but one decent hotel in the place; and I knew that my duchess would be certain to go there, as it was not only the best hotel, but the point of arrival and departure of the diligence. The house was nearly full, and I engaged all the vacant rooms, paid a part of the money for them, and took a receipt. Two or three Spanish travellers arrived in the next hour, and I gave up some of my rooms to them, but enjoined the landlord under no circumstances to admit the duchess, or I would prosecute him for a violation of the contract.

“We dined, and took our ease in our room, and, after dinner was over, we watched for the other diligence, which was somewhat overdue.

“When it arrived, it was three hours behind the regular time, or six hours later than ourselves. The delay in consequence of the pole giving way had been more than an hour; but this was the least important mishap of the journey.

“The diligence had been robbed, and the brigands had done their work most thoroughly. They had an understanding with the drivers, whom they never disturbed, and expected the diligence at the wood where my postilion looked around so anxiously. The rapid rate at which I was travelling in the old carriage took us past the haunts of the robbers an hour before we were expected, and thus I unwittingly saved myself from being plundered. It turned out that the frequent remark of the postilion, that I should owe him a great deal of money, referred to this little business of robbing more than to the fast driving. By following my desires in the matter of speed, he had saved me from an encounter with the brigands, who would have relieved me of all my spare cash, and of everything else of any value to them.

“As soon as I found how the matter stood, I sent for the fellow, who had been all the time loitering about the court-yard, and asked him how much he thought I owed him. He replied with the utmost dignity, though he could not suppress a smile, that he thought ten dollars, in addition to what I had given him, would be satisfactory. I paid with alacrity, and should have been equally satisfied had he asked five or ten times as much.

[Sidenote: ROBBING A DUCHESS.]

[Sidenote: COURTESY AND AN APOLOGY.]

“The Duchess of —— had been robbed about as much as she could be. The brigands were, no doubt, indignant that our diligence had escaped them, and determined to make complete work of the one they captured. They took her trunks from the carriage, and rifled them of everything they contained. They compelled my lady to hand over all her money and jewelry, and even stripped her of her travelling-dress, leaving her to finish her journey in her under-clothing. They offered her no indignities, and were as polite as could be expected under the circumstances. Not relishing the idea of arriving at the hotel dressed as she was, she had cut away the plush lining of the carriage, and hung it around her waist as a sort of skirt of a decidedly gaudy pattern. She was the most woe-begone picture I ever looked upon, and my heart relented when I saw into what a plight she had fallen. I had fully determined not to allow her to stop at the hotel; but when she arrived in utter destitution, I told the landlord to tell her that all the rooms had been taken by the American prince, who was only too happy to accommodate an English duchess. She apologized for her rudeness in the morning, though she could not rid herself of her haughty demeanor.

“My wife supplied her with clothing enough to save her from inconvenience until she could communicate with the English consul. That gentleman did all in his power to aid his countrywoman, and, although he ran the risk of losing the money, he cashed her draft upon her bankers in Madrid. We left town before she did; and I think she never after set up her privilege of rank to take possession of places that did not belong to her. I have always felt obliged to her for driving me into the old diligence, rousing my indignation, and leading me to be prodigal of my money in securing the highest speed, and thus escaping robbery.”

LIII.

MINERAL RESOURCES OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND.

COLONIAL EXHIBITS AT THE PHILADELPHIA CENTENNIAL—WONDERFUL MINERAL WEALTH OF THE ANTIPODES—CURIOUS FEATURES OF THE GOLD FIELDS—HOW A PARTY OF CALIFORNIANS WERE DECEIVED—DISCOVERIES OF GOLD AND HOW THEY WERE MADE—TROUBLES WITH THE MINERS—AN INSURRECTION AND ITS RESULT—FIELD OF THE AUSTRALIAN MINES—COAL, IRON, AND OTHER MINERALS—THE RESOURCES OF NEW ZEALAND—ITS GOLD YIELD—GEOLOGICAL PECULIARITIES—AGRICULTURAL AND OTHER WEALTH—VICISSITUDES OF MINING LIFE—PLANS FOR ENCOURAGING IMMIGRATION.

At the International Exhibition held at Philadelphia in 1876, the Australian colonies attracted much attention by reason of their exhibits. All the products of the continent were displayed, and there was an interesting array which embraced a wide variety. Vegetable products were those from grains and grasses up to sections of trees and specimens of limbs and bark; and a fine exhibit of minerals was displayed. In the center of the space occupied by each of the colonies, there was something of great interest to the gold hunter; it was a monumental record of the gold taken out from the time of the discovery of the precious metal in Australia, down to the year of the Exhibition. In one case, it was a tall obelisk covered with gold leaf; its cubic contents were equal to that of the gold taken out of the earth in the colony, that presented it. Another of the colonies had a similar monument, but gave it the shape of an oblong block, and a third put it in the form of a gilded pillar. One of the colonies had plaster casts of the most famous nuggets it had produced; they were gilded so as to present a wonderfully deceptive appearance, and as they lay in their cases, they attracted large crowds, including many persons, who supposed they were gazing upon the genuine lumps of the precious metal.

[Sidenote: RESOURCES OF AUSTRALIA.]

Down to the date of the discovery of gold, Australia was almost a _terra incognita_, and the chief knowledge which the outer world possessed of it was as a place of exile for English convicts. It was known to have excellent qualities as a grazing country, and attracted emigration among those who wished to follow farming and sheep and cattle raising. It had long been known to possess iron and other minerals, but none of them were supposed to be of great value. Indeed, a geological survey of Victoria and New South Wales, less than fifty years ago, was fruitless in its results, and the engineers who were engaged upon it reported that the country must rely for its wealth upon its agricultural facilities alone.

It would be useless to attempt a classification of the districts in which gold has been found, as new deposits are opened up every year, and no man can determine with precision the limit of the auriferous territory. The deposits are unlike those of most other countries, so much so, that old miners of California who go to Australia, find that their previously acquired knowledge is of comparatively little use. Quartz and pipe-clay are generally associated with gold in the Australian diggings; the quartz is found in all sizes and shapes, from minute pebbles worn and smooth by many centuries of attrition, up to huge masses weighing many tons, and cropping out from the surface in fantastic forms.

Gold is also found intermixed with sandstone, iron-stone, and white and blue clay. In fact, it is found in many conditions, unknown in California and elsewhere, and this state of things has given rise to some curious incidents.

During the first years of the golden age in Australia, many miners went thither from California. They looked at the ground with practical and critical eyes, and some of them declared that the whole story of rich deposits in places where they were said to exist, must be wholly false, as gold “could not” be found there, according to their knowledge of mining matters. A party of them went one day on a prospecting tour up a small valley, and returned in disgust. No gold was or could be there.

[Sidenote: A JOKE AND WHAT CAME OF IT.]

While they were at supper in their tent, three or four freshly arrived gold hunters came up and innocently inquired their way to a good place to dig. As a joke, the Californians told them that they had that day visited a valley which was very rich, and would make a handsome return to anybody who worked it.

Bright and early next morning, the strangers, who were novices in gold digging, were on their way to the new mines. They found nobody there, somewhat to their surprise, and hesitated for fear they were in the wrong place. One of the Californians followed them stealthily, and finally saw them begin work. Then he returned to his companions, and all had a good laugh over the “sell” upon the new comers.

The latter worked diligently, and in almost complete ignorance of mining rules. The first two days they found nothing, but on the third day, they struck a rich lead and were happy.

The Californians had forgotten the sell upon the strangers, when, a couple of weeks after the perpetration of the joke, one of the latter came around and asked why they were not at work in the place which they said was so rich. The Californians laughed, and one of them said:

“You hain’t been working there all this time, have you?”

“Of course we have,” was the reply.

“Well, now, give it up,” said California, “the joke’s gone far enough.”

“Joke, what joke?” the stranger asked.

“Why, we sent you up there just for a joke, because you were greenhorns. There ain’t no gold there, nor never was.”

“Well, if that’s so, the joke is on you,” was the reply, and the miner told of the good luck of his party.

The Californians devoted a few minutes to unincumbered profanity, and then went and staked out claims near those of the strangers. Thus they indirectly made something out of their practical joke. Thus was discovered one of the richest fields in the Bathurst district.

Profitable diggings are scattered all over the country, but are chiefly in New South Wales and Victoria. The gold was at first found in small lumps in the surface earth, but this was soon exhausted. Then deep excavations were made, and though the deposits were not so numerous, the lumps were found to be larger. At Ballarat, near Geelong, where the most valuable lumps were found, the shafts were sunk sometimes to a depth of more than a hundred feet. Masses of pure gold weighing many pounds were brought to light—one of them weighed no less than one hundred and thirty six pounds, and was valued at more than thirty thousand dollars.

Previous to the gold discovery, copper ore of great richness was found in South Australia, not far from Adelaide. Other deposits of copper have been found, and there are many fine veins of tin, lead, and silver. In fact, the mineral wealth of Australia is by no means fully known, and the opportunities for making fortunes are very far from exhaustion.

[Sidenote: VAST BEDS OF COAL.]

Coal exists in many localities, especially on the eastern coast, where it is found associated with beds of sandstone. The seams are large and of great extent; the coal is of good quality and easily mined; it has proved to be a source of great wealth to those engaged in putting it upon the market. By facilitating steam communication, it has done much toward the development of the colonies, especially that of Victoria.

The history of the gold discovery in Australia is no less romantic than the account of the finding of the treasure deposits in California.

The first discoverer of gold in Australia is believed to have been the Rev. W. B. Clarke, of Sydney, who, in 1841, found gold in the mountainous regions to the west of the Vale of Clwyd, in New South Wales; in 1844, he exhibited a specimen of gold in quartz to the then Governor, Sir George Gipps, and others. But the subject was not followed up, “as much from considerations of the penal character of the colony, as from general ignorance of the value of such an indication.” Mr. E. H. Hargreaves returned to Sydney from California in 1850, for the express purpose, as he states, of searching for gold; and on the 12th of February, 1851, he succeeded in finding gold at Summer Hill Creek, in New South Wales. This discovery afterwards led to gold being found in other places in that colony, and to the discovery of the gold-fields of Victoria.

[Sidenote: SEPARATION OF VICTORIA FROM NEW SOUTH WALES.]

Previous to this time, however, the colony of Victoria was a dependency of New South Wales, and a strong feeling had gained ground that it suffered in consequence. Complaints were made that the expenditure of Government moneys in the district was not equal to the amount of revenue yielded by the taxes levied and lands sold within its borders. The distance from the capital was also found to operate injuriously to the interests of the colonists, and a cry was raised for separation. The demand was, as a matter of course, resisted by New South Wales, but as the agitation was carried on with increased activity, it was at last yielded to by the Home authorities. The vessel bearing the intelligence arrived on the 11th of November 1850. The news soon spread, and great was the satisfaction of the colonists. Rejoicings were kept up in Melbourne for five consecutive days, on three of which not even a newspaper was published, and on the night of one the city was illuminated. Before, however, the separation could be legally accomplished, it was necessary that an act should be passed in New South Wales, to settle details in connection with the establishment of a Legislature in the new colony, and that sundry other observances should be gone through. The requisite forms were at length given effect to: on the 1st of July 1851, a day which has ever since been scrupulously observed as a public holiday, it was publicly announced that the Port Philip district of New South Wales had been made a separate colony, to be called Victoria, after the name of the Queen of England.

In little more than a month after the establishment of Victoria as an independent colony, it became generally known that rich deposits of gold existed within its borders. Two years and a half previously a lump of gold had been exhibited in the shop of a jeweler at Melbourne, named Brentani, which it was said had been found in the locality of the Pyrenees Ranges by a shepherd named Chapman. This created some little excitement at the time, but as the man could never point out the place where he had found the specimen, and indeed soon deserted a small searching party he had undertaken to guide to the spot, it was readily supposed he was an impostor, and had obtained the gold by melting some articles of jewelry he had stolen, and so the belief in the existence of a goldfield gradually grew weaker. The discovery of gold, however, in New South Wales, by Hargreaves, in February 1851, caused numbers to emigrate to that colony. This being considered detrimental to the interests of Victoria, a public meeting was held in Melbourne on the 9th of June, at which a “gold-discovery committee” was appointed, which was authorized to offer rewards to any that should discover gold in remunerative quantities within the colony.

The following is a short statement of the order in which the Select Committee appointed by the Legislative Council to consider claims for rewards for gold discoveries in Victoria, placed the various claimants in their report dated 10th of March 1854:

[Sidenote: HISTORY OF THE GOLD DISCOVERY.]