H E Hall to the Inquirer, 1854
| Title: | H E Hall to the Inquirer, 1854 |
|---|---|
| Identifier: | archives.org.au/H_E_Hall_to_the_Inquirer,_1854 |
| Parent item: | |
| Storage location: | Trove |
| Date: | |
| Authors: | Henry Edward Hall |
| Source: | |
| Format and extent: | |
| License: |  This work is free of known copyright restrictions.It entered the public domain in Australia on 1 January 1930. |
| Related people: | Henry Edward Hall · William Shakespeare Hall |
| Related places: | Bendigo |
| Keywords: | gold (create) |
| Description: |
Correspondence. (1854, July 5). Inquirer (Perth, WA : 1840 - 1855), p. 3. Retrieved February 17, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article65741776
Transcription
Correspondence.
As a general rule we wish it to be understood that we do not identify ourselves with the opinions and expressions of our correspondents.
To the Editor of "The Inquirer."
Dear Sir, — In my last I endeavoured to communicate, by extracts from my son's letters, some idea of the situations and soil in which the gold is generally found in Victoria. It is my intention now to give you a brief account of the labour that is generally necessary to procure it. The following is an account of three week's work, which may be taken as a general average: —
| White Hill. | Buckets of earth. | Gold. |
| Monday | 288 | 15 dwts. |
| Tuesday | 104 | 5 |
| Wednesday | 128 | 5½ |
| Thursday | 424 | 24 |
| Friday | 416 | 16½ |
| Saturday | 352 | 14½ |
| 1642 | 80½ — 4 oz. | |
| Buckets of earth. | dwts. | |
| Monday | 240 | 9 |
| Tuesday | 320 | 10 |
| Wednesday (no water) | ||
| Thursday (ready heaped) | 712 | 24½ |
| Friday (no water) | 160 | 4 |
| Back Creek. | ||
| Saturday | 204 | 8 |
| 1696 | 2 oz, 15½ dwts. | |
| Back Creek | ||
| Monday | 168 | 17¾ |
| Tuesday | 286 | 28¼ |
| Wednesday | 312 | 32 |
| Thursday | 360 | 47½ |
| Friday | 336 | 34 |
| Saturday (½ day, no water) | 96 | 6½ |
| 1560 | 8 oz. 6 dwts. |
| £ s d. | |
| 4 ounces, at 75s | 15 0 0 |
| 2 ounces 15½ dwts., do | 10 0 0 |
| 6 ounces 6 dwts, do | 31 10 9 |
| Or 15s 10d per day for each hand. | |
| 30 19 9 |
This is the result of surfacing, that is, washing the earth from 3 to 18 or 20 inches deep, by means of a cradle.
"In a late visit to the Ballarat Diggings, I found the gold laid at about 10 to 35 feet in the Canadian and Prince Regent Gullies, while that in the bed of tho Buninyong Gully was from 60 to 110 feet deep. The parties working, divide into three gangs, and work 6 hours each, so as to prevent the accumulation of water. The holes are slabbed from top to bottom, and the actual outlay, without the expense of labour, is often more than £100, for tools materials, &c. These brief sketches will convince any one that the gold is not procured in the richest situations without great risk, labour, and expense; and those who have formed an idea that nuggets may be picked up like shells on the sea-shore, will be wofully disappointed."
Yours truly,
H. E. HALL.
Woongung, May 18, 1854.
