1 December 1852
On Monday, the 15th, I started early to inspect the upper portion of the river, under guidance of Mr. Bowman, late Assistant Commissioner for the district. We made for Richardson's Point. Our road lay across the country, which is considerably broken, and we must have crossed the river at least half-a-dozen times before we reached the little township. On the way we passed California point, one of the spots which has yielded so well. Here we saw only a few diggers at work; but such as we spoke to appeared to be doing well. The gold is coarse and nuggetty, and generally of a valuable kind.
On the way, we crossed a great many quartz veins or ridges, which appeared to dip under the bed of the river, and crop out on the opposite side. At the point of intersection, the bed of the river has been uniformly found rich on both sides, - feature which, I believe, does not occur on the Turon, where the opposite banks of a rich point have generally been found to produce little or no gold. At and about these quartz veins various surface diggings have been made, for which considerable quantities of gold has been taken; but which are now abandoned. I have little doubt that if these spots were worked again more thoroughly, still greater results would be realised.
At Richardson's Point I found the nucleus of a small town: there were two or three stores, of which the largest is kept by Mr. Arnold, of Maitland; two public-houses and a dozen or more bark huts with tents scattered about on the flat and the declivities. The diggings at this point have been very rich; the gold of the same character as I have mentioned above; heavy coarse and of good quality. I was told that Dr. Foulis, who is established here, has been one of the most successful diggers, and still carries on the war with considerable advantage, exercising, at the same time, the thespian art for the benefit of his fellow workers, and I hope, to the promotion of his own interests also.
Provisions at Richardson's Point were far more reasonable than at the Turon or Tambaroura, Flour which fetched £60 to £70 at those places, is freely sold on the Meroo at less, the reason being that the supplies to that district are received via Maitland; and the country from Mudgee to the coast being comparatively easily traversed, the cost of carriage is very materially less than from Sydney to the Turon1
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