Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), Tuesday 6 June 1882, page 9


THE EARLY DISCOVERIES OF

GOLD IN VICTORIA.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE ARGUS.

Sir, — Since my former communication on the above subject several letters have ap-peared in the Argus which have awakens memories of the past, and as the various incidents relating thereto belong to a gene-ration which is rapidly passing away, and as they appear to be of interest to the Victorian public, I will, with your kind permission, add a few particulars which, it seems to me, ought to be recorded. To do so in a very short letter I find impossible, but will endeavour to condense the subject as far as I am able. "Garryowen" says that in the year 1847 Captain Clinch took a sample of gold to Hobarton. In reference to this, I say that was present with my husband on the occasion of his breaking a piece of gold off the nugget sold to me by Chapman, which he gave to Captain Clinch, and which he took with him to Hobarton. He was then in command of a vessel called either the Swordfish or Flyingfish. There are relatives of Captain Clinch's living in the colony who can probably bear me out in this. Another piece was given to Captain White whose vessel was then the first on the berth for England. He returned from England and shortly afterwards was lost in the Monu-mental City on a voyage from here to Sydney. Another piece was given to Superintendent Latrobe. I remember distinctly that, in con-sequence of the discovery of gold by Chap-man, official printed notices were posted on a number of prominent places in the town pro-claiming the fact that gold had been found in Port Phillip. I need hardly say that all this caused intense excitement, and our place of business was thronged from morning until late at night by persons desirous of inspect-ing the nugget, and asking all sorts of questions as to the place where it was found. I must again revert to the first expedition made up by my late husband. Although they kept their intended expedition as quiet as possible, by some means it was noised abroad. The party started in the morning before daybreak, fully provisioned for a trip of three months, from what my husband told me on his return it seems that they were tracked and followed from day to day by a string of spring carts and other nondescript vehicles. These, I have no doubt, were the string of spring carts re-ferred to in the very interesting letter which appears in the Argus of today signed "W.E.S." However, the whole party, trackers and tracked, returned to Melbourne in about a week's time. They appeared to have made heavy inroads upon the good things they had in the shay carts, but they brought, in-stead of gold, large quantities of some shining stuff, which I think they found out was mica, a most practical illustration of the old adage ''all that glitters is not gold." I know that it was lying about our front door for some time as a sort of reproach to the gold-seekers. The authorities of this time seemed to think that no person had any right to the precious metal. Captain Dana and Lieutenant Dana his brother, then in charge of the mounted troopers and some native mounted men, were sent out to hunt the gold seekers, and they did order them to desist from searching for gold. The excitement seemed to die out for eight or nine months after May, 1849, and then it suddenly blazed out afresh in the year 1850 the gold came down from the country in all directions. I remember that at first we bought it at £2 15s. per ounce, and it gradually rose to £3 18s. We had great difficult in supplying the money required for its purchase, as at that time the money was not in the country. In conclusion, I may say, in answer to "Garryowen" that I first came to Melbourne in 1841, when Collins street existed only in name, and when bullock drays were bogged in Elizabeth street, when the blacks camped in front of Lorimer's Prince of Wales Hotel, in Finder's lane, upon the site now occupied by the premises of Messrs. M'Arthur, M'Millan, and Morrow. I did not stay very long in Melbourne on this occasion, but joined some friends in the Island of Tas-mania. I returned in 1845, having married in the meantime, but I again state that the fact that gold had been found in Victoria was not a matter of public notoriety until May 1849, and that the gold Captain Clinch took to Hobarton must be part of that found by Chapman, and I shall not be convinced until "Garryowen" can produce some printed record of the circumstances he refers to. —

Yours, &c.,........ANN BRENTANI.

June 2.