HAY. The New Hospital – The building committee of the local hospital has been instructed to collate all possible information in connection with the project of building a new hospital, toward which there is present £2600 in hand. £1000 of this was the gift of Mr. Livingstone-Learmonth, and another £1000 a special Government grant.

The Fortunes of a Ballarat Mine. (Melbourne Age – A Famous Mine Story) Now that the famous Egerton mine has again come somewhat prominent under public notice in Ballarat and elsewhere, consequent on recent discoveries in the claim, a few particulars regarding its early history may not be uninteresting. One of the oldest settlers in the Gordon district relates that the claim was opened in 1854 as a quartz venture by a Scotchman named Jenkins. The shaft was marked out on the sheep run of a squatter named Egerton, after whom the claim was called, and the subsequent operations were remarkably successful. Work was carried on by several co-operative parties, by which Jenkins was the leader. Encouraged by the success of these small bands of diggers, Mr E. O. Witherden, J.P., now of Ballarat, and Mr H. Wyatt, of Buninyong, and eight others formed in February, 1855, a party of work what was known as the Crown Claim, and here also payable gold was obtained. In those days £7 per ton was paid for crushing, the owner of the wheel being Mr Lane, afterwards police magistrate in the Western district. At this period matters in Ballarat were lively, and the excitement following the rising at the Eureka stockade had extended to the Egerton district. Verne and Black, fleeing from the sleuth hounds of the law, sought refuge in the bush at Egerton, and they were given shelter by members of the party working the Egerton claim. The police got a clue to the whereabouts of Black, whose capture was prevented by Jenkins stating that it was a “case of mistaken identity,” as the person supposed to be the Eureka insurgent, Black, was his wife’s brother, a new arrival from the home country. In 1858 the rush at Gordon took place, and the Egerton claim, although still a paying concern, was, together with the other claims in the neighbourhood, deserted for the new field, which was named after the surveyor, Gordon. The Egerton ground, it should be added, was a prospecting claim, and had a frontage of 48 feet along the lode, which was discovered by Jenkins. When the rush to Gordon took place the Egerton claim was left in charge of two men, McLaren and Willis. Among the successful gold seekers of that time was Robert Evans, formerly a carter, who from his first crushing obtained a return of 27ozs to the ton. Evans was familiarly known as “Kangaroo Bob,” which soubriquet originated through his being the owner of a number of kangaroo dogs, which played great havoc among the sheep of the district settlers. “Kangaroo Bob” became a wealthy man in a very short space of time, and he then returned to Melbourne, and, it is stated, engaged extensively in the sport of horse racing, lost all his money, and was compelled by his adversity to retrace his steps to the goldfield, where he followed bullock driving as a means of livelihood. The excitement at Gordon having abated considerably, attention was again directed towards the working on Egerton’s run, and the Egerton tailings were taken up by Messrs W. Harrison, John Goode, Oliver Randell, Charles Terry and others, who worked with profit. The claim was afterwards worked. This party sold out their interest in the ground to Messrs Reid and Birrell. Then Reid bought out Birrell, and later on Reid sold the property to Mr. Learmonth for £7500. At this stage of the existence of the mine work was not profitable, as a slide came in from the north end, throwing the lode out to the east. Learmonth thereupon became disheartened, but on the advice of some friends he decided to expend a small sum of money in driving for the last lode. The search proved successful, and the lode on being regained yielded golden returns valued at about £100,000. Subsequently the stone again became poor, but Loughlin and party purchased the ground for £18,000, and were richly rewarded for their speculation as later events showed. Following on this purchase came the celebrated lawsuit, Learmouth v Bailey, in which a large sum of money was expended by the parties in the action. Nearly the whole of the legal talent of the colony was engaged in the case, the hearing of which occupied many months. The result is known: the suit was decided in favour of the defendant. The Egerton Company was registered under the act in 25,000 shares of £4 each. On the whole of the capital being called up in 1890, the company was reorganized, and has experienced the ups and downs of the mining world. The highest price paid for the shares has not exceeded £6, and at times since the registration of the company the scrip changed hands at 2s 6d, and other small prices. Up to the end of the last half year the gold obtained in the mine was valued as follows: – Company, £641,769; tributers, £67,220; and dividends amounting to £283,854 have been paid, and in wages and contracts the sum of £265,000; and the legal costs of the company total £24,371. The machinery and plant has entailed an outlay of £33,621, and on the lease and mine account £84,621, has been laid out. The tribute account totals £33,147, exclusive of value of mine. The assets in January last were estimated at £11,225. Excellent specimens of gold-bearing stone obtained recently in the mine were publicly exhibited a day or two ago, and were much admired, and it is hoped that the celebrated claim will be shortly again on the dividend paying list.

The Pictoral. Country Homes: Ercildoune. Excerpt – There is no rural estate within the wide bounds of Australia that is better known to the residents of these colonies and to a considerable number of Europeans and Americans than Ercildoune, the home of the famous flock of merinoes that for almost half a century has produced the finest and highest priced wool in the world. A trip to this estate is a matter of easy accomplishment now-a-days, but it was very different in the year 1837, when three adventurous pioneers, the Learmonth Brothers, set out from Mount Aitken to find a home in what was then the wild West. Very little was then known of the country beyond Buninyong and the blacks out that way had a bad name. Messrs. Learmonth travelled by way of Mount Alexander, which 15 years after gave its name to one of our great gold-fields (Castlemaine). They ran up the course of the Loddon, and making for a line of hills that jutted out towards the great Western plain, and formed part of the Dividing Range, they haled in a beautiful glade on the southern side. Here they took up a large squatting run. They gave the name of Ercildoune to their holding, that being the ancient home of “Thomas the Rhymer,” from whom they are believed to be descended. Even in its wild state Ercildoune home station was a beautiful spot, while stretching far and wide in every direction were the grand pastures of the Western district – one of the best sheep lands of Australia. The climate is an excellent one, the range of hills sheltering the place from the north wind of summer, while, the site being high above sea level, the nights are cool even in the hottest time in summer. When the freehold estate was formed, Messrs. Learmonth built the present house. In 1873 the state was purchased by Sir Samuel Wilson, now residing in England…

Death of an Old Pioneer. Mr. James Robertson, one of the earliest pioneers of Victoria, died suddenly at his residence, Mount Mitchell, on Sunday last. The deceased gentleman was born at Glen Muick, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on the 18th May, 1818. In company with his father two brothers, and one sister he sailed for Victoria in the ship John Bull, which was then commanded by Captain Ormond, father of the late Mr. Francis Ormond, M.L.C. The passengers were by the means of a small boat landed at the foot of Batman’s Hill, Melbourne. Having determined to engage in pastoral pursuits, he inspected the Benalla and Broken River districts with that object in view. He was dissatisfied with the nature of the country, and next tried the Ballarat district, where he ultimately joined Messrs. Learmonth Bros., undertaking the supervision of a cattle station in the Ercildoune portion of the run. Lake Burrumbeet at that time was quite dry, and formed a portion of the grazing area. In 1848 he left the Learmonth Bros. and took up Mount Mitchell Station, which had been purchased some five years previously by his father and Mr. W. Skene, M.L.C. In 1854 he had an adventure with bushrangers, which excited a good deal of comment at that time. An attempt was made to stick up the Ercildoune Station, but the bushrangers were repulsed, and took refuge in the Mount Misery Ranges. Mr. Thomas Learmonth sought the assistance of Mr. Robertson and a trooper who was stationed at Lexton to dislodge them from their stronghold. This they accomplished successfully in a courageous manner, and also managed to capture one of the gang whom Mr. Robertson had covered with his gun. In 1856 Mr. Robertson was appointed a justice of the peace, and, while health permitted, for many years he devoted his time and attention to a strict and impartial performance of the duties. He had acquired considerable station property, and some years back, when he gave up active participation in public matters, he retired into private life, surrendering the management to his sons, who formed themselves into the well-known firm of Thomas Robertson and Bros. The principal stations owned by the firm are Mortat, Congbool, and Mount Mitchell in Victoria, and Gundabooka, in New South Wales. To those to whom he was well known the deceased gentleman had endeared himself by a kind and genial disposition. He leaves four sons and three daughters.

Excerpt – “The rest of the community are already too heavily taxed, and it seems surprising that the wealthy landowners residing in other countries should so long have escaped the payment of a fair sum annually towards the expenses of the Government. Property owners require the greatest amount of protection, and yet they complain the loudest about taxaxtion which must be enforced to uphold their rights. Sir Samuel Wilson holds more land – to wit 95,872 acres – with one exception, than any other individual person in the colony, and the whole of the profitis arising from his rich pastoral estate…..indecipherable…..” “That the best of our lands should be held by so few people and allowed to remain practically unproductive is purely the fault of our land laws, and in order to raise a revenue sufficient for the purposes of government the land must be taxed according to its unimproved value”.

The Will of Late Mr. A. J. L. Learmonth.
Excerpt – The testator states in his will that he was accustomed to devote one-tenth of his income to charitable purposes, and, with that object kept a tithe account.

Review. History and Development of Sheep Farming. In this book, just issued by Messrs. Tilghman and Barnett, Sydney, Mr. Clarance McIvor has taken up what is virtually a new subject to him; and although he has given nothing, which is new or original on the subject, he has shown great aptitude for research, and has produced a valuable book of reference. In his preface Mr. McIvor does not lay claim to originality, his object being, as he states “to condense into a small compass the leading facts in connection with sheep farming from the earliest ages to the present time.”

Excerpt – In connection with the celebrated Ercildoune flock there is an unaccountable omission. Sir Samuel Wilson is given credit for having brought the clip of that flock into notoriety. It is a fact well known to all old colonists, that it was the Messrs. Learmonth, under the guidance of Mr. Shaw, who first established an Australian type of merino on Ercildoune, and at the time they sold the property the Ercildoune clip was the finest and highest priced clip in Australia. Throughout the work there are numerous well-executed illustrations of some of the most noted prizewinning sheep of recent years.

Ercildoune. (By Our Agricultural Reporter.) Excerpt – In places a good deal of Yorkshire fog is to be seen, having been sown many years ago by the Messrs. Learmonth. This grass is not highly thought of by many, but Sir Samuel finds that it is an excellent fodder.

Livingstone-learmonth – Gillespie. Excerpts – A very pretty wedding took place in the Kew Presbyterian Church on Thursday, March 8, between Miss Celia Gillespie, daughter of Mr. R. Gillespie, of Manono, Barry-street, Kew, and Mr. T. L. Livingstone-Learmonth, of Park-hall, Polmont, Stirlingshire, and formerly of Ercildoune station, Victoria… The best man was Mr. Frederick V. C. Livingstone-Learmonth. Their home will be Bringagee Station, N. S. W.

Anecdotal Photograph. The Reverend John F. Macrae (In 1883, he married Miss Livingstone Learmonth, whose father was the eldest of the three brothers Learmonth, who owned the Ercildoun property, which they sold, some years ago, to the late Sir Samuel Wilson). Excerpts – Even in London, where an endless variety of preachers and styles of public oratory is concentrated, the “Scotch pulpit” takes a place in the best class. And here, in our limited community, the Presbyterian Church has had many men amongst its ministers eminent for their talent in the pulpit and for their general learning and literary attainments… The Rev. J. F. Macrae was born in the fifties in the beautiful Island of Arran in the Firth of Clyde, where his father was minister of the Free Church of Scotland. One Sunday, a gentleman appeared in the Church of the Martyrs at a time of the year when there were very few strangers. The result of his visit was that, then days later, Mr. Macrae was asked to go to Toorak! He accepted the offer, and in the end of June 1891, sailed for Melbourne in the ship Rimutaka, of the New Zealand Shipping Company. There were very few passengers on board. In the second class there was a broken down actor, with his wife and family, and at the Cape of Good Hope, the ship was joined by Mr. D. J. Fowler, of Adelaide. When Mr. Macrae arrived in Melbourne, the Land Boom had burst, and people were beginning to look very grave; and it can be safely said that no religious congregation has felt the financial depression more than the Scotch Church at Toorak. A great many prosperous Scotch families had settled in Toorak, and in consequence of the depression, these have nearly all been removed. Mr. Macrae has, however, stated, on many occasions, that no minister in the colony has had less reason to complain of the treatment he has received from his congregation than he. The congregation has stood by him most loyally, and in proportion to their means; give more liberally than ever they did for the maintenance of the church. Of course, the position and influence of a minister are very different here from what they are at home. Over an old gateway at St. Andrew’s, there is a device, which is symbolic of the church’s influence in Scotland. In the centre, is a king on horseback. On his left, is a knight representing the nobility. But on his right, close to his elbow, is a mitred bishop. The influence of the church in Scotland has to be taken into account by politicians. It is the dominant force in Scottish life, and must be reckoned with. Here, of course, it is quite different. The office of a minister, apart from his own character, gain him (it is sad to say) little respect, and the church has to take its place among a great many other forces that are at work in colonial life.

Sheepbreeding. Writing to the Australasian Pastoralists’ Review on “Sheepbreeding” Mr. Thos. Shaw says: Excerpt – …”We have booms in sheep-breeding – one year Ercildoune, then Larra, then Wanganella, then all Tasmania, then the loud-sounded fleece of Americans, with all its grease and nastiness. Such is life, Mr. Simpson! The breed I must go in for is the Chinese – three and four lambs at a birth – only imagine that. With these and a cross of something else I may some day meet Mr. Simpson on the tented field.”

Literature. An Old Merino Stud. One of the objects I had in view in taking a run through what may be described as Central Riverina was to pay a visit to Mr. J. M. Sanger at Wongamong, and see something of one of the oldest stud flocks in this parts of Australia. Excerpt – ….His first sheep were 5,000 ewes purchased from Messrs. Jeffreys Bros., of Wantabadgery. These sheep were of the old Camden blood, but Mr. Sanger kept only a portion of them for his own breeding. Shortly afterwards he bought a small lot of large-framed ewes from a Mr. Bond, and for these he paid 16s per head. The first rams used by Mr. Sanger were drawn from the Ercildoune stud, then owned by Messrs. Learmonth. In 1863 Mr. Sanger bought 30 young rams from Messrs. Peppin, of Wanganella. These rams were by that famous old stud sire, Emperor, an imported Rambouilet ram. Mr. Sanger had a good opportunity of examining this sheep, and he describes him as the finest sheep he ever saw…

Weddings. A pretty wedding took place at St. Jame’s Church on August 10 between Mr. Lestock L. Learmonth and Miss Marcia Cox, fourth daughter of Dr. James Cox.

The Western Stud Flocks. By Bruni. The Terinallum Estate. The country now comprising the Terinallum Estate, was taken up as a squatting run in the early days of the colony, by Messrs. Land and Elms, who I believe, obtained their first sheep from Tasmania. In the year 1846 the Clyde Company purchased the run, and effected a deal of improvement in the flock by the use of rams bred in the Clyde Company’s stud at Golf Hill. The run was purchased by the late Mr. John Cumming in 1857, who, afterwards secured 47,000 acres of the sound, healthy sheep country that constitutes the present estate. Excerpt – History of the Stud Flock. The Terinallum merinoes were originally of Tasmania origin, and the Golf Hill stud, from which most of the rams were obtained while the Clyde Company owned the property, were derived from Tasmanian originals. The late Mr. John Cumming formed his stud flock in 1860, with a selection of the finest breeding ewes in the flock. With these he used eleven rams, obtained from Messrs. T. and S. Learmonth’s then famous Ercildoune stud. Writing to Mr. Cumming of these sheep, Mr. Thomas Learmonth said: – “All these rams save one that was not shown have taken one or more prizes, and the two old ones, to my fancy, are the finest rams I have.” Mr. Cumming afterwards used rams bred by Mr. J. L. Currie, whose stud was at that time held in high estimation by sheepbreeders throughout these colonies. Rams from the studs of Mr. T. Shaw and Mr. J. Bell were also used.

With Shotted Charge. “Nine members of the Burrumbeet and Ercildoune Sparrow Club tried conclusions for the Amberite Powder Trophy…