106 
This conglomerate formation must be regarded as the real gold- 
field, prepared in a gigantic manner by the hand of nature from 
the detritus of the mountains for the more detailed and minute 
operations of man. 
While the less extensive but generally richer river diggings 
afford better prospect of gain to the individual digger , the dry dig- 
gings in the conglomerate will afford remunerative returns to asso- 
ciations of individuals who will work witli a combination of labour 
and capital. The intelligent and energetic gold digger Mr. Wash- 
bourn, was the first person who has proved the value of the dry 
diggings in the Quartz Ranges , and lie lias demonstrated the fact 
that gold exists in remunerative quantities in the conglomerate. 
1 am indebted to Mr. Washbourn for the following interesting de- 
tails. He writes to me: — “In the drifts into the conglomerate 
of the quartz ranges, the average thickness of dirt washed is about 
two feet from the base rock, and the gold produced from one 
cubic yard of such earth would be, as nearly as I can calculate, 
worth from twenty-live to thirty shillings. This includes large 
boulders; so that a cubic yard of earth, as it goes through the 
sluice, is of course worth more, as the boulders form a large pro- 
portion of the whole. When the whole of the earth from the sur- 
face to the rock is washed, the value per cubic yard is much less; 
not more, perhaps, than from three shillings to six shillings per 
yard, but it would generally pay very well at that.” These are 
the words of one of the most expert Nelson diggers, who payed 
his men for working in the Quartz Ranges wages of from ten to 
twelve shillings a day, and still made a considerable profit for 
himself. With these data, while at Nelson I ventured to mal<° the 
following calculation in order to encourage the public to a m< to 
extensive enterprise in the working of the gold-field. If Ave reckon 
the superficial extent of the Aorere gold-field at 30 square miles, the 
average thickness of the gold bearing conglomerate at one yard, and 
the value of gold in each cubic yard of conglomerate at five shillings, 
the total value of the Aorere gold-field amounts to £22,500,000; 
or in other words , each square mile of the gold-fields contains gold 
