金礦古事 An Old Story of Gold Mining

Yesterday, an old miner from Queensland shared some stories about the gold mine in the past, which made the listeners fail to hide their laughter. According to him, forty years ago, there was a gold mine in the land of the Glengarry, Victoria, that contained gold dust as small as dust particles and gold nuggets as big as fists. The largest nugget weighed about ten pounds, and people called the mine "Jewelry Shop" because its gold shone like the windows of a jewelry shop. One worker once found a lump of yellow clay containing 60 ounces of gold, but unfortunately, the vein did not extend further. However, many people still made a fortune from this mine, which soon became famous far and wide and attracted many Chinese people. When the Chinese first saw the guards at the entrance to the mine, they asked, "Are you here to dig gold?" and the answer was yes. However, when they entered the mine, the white men became jealous and claimed that they were the first to discover and occupy this lucky place, so why should they let the yellow-faced people from heaven come and share the wealth? The listener replied, "There's no room for mercy. Let's unite and attack the Chinese tomorrow morning, drive them away and scatter them in all directions." After careful consideration, everyone agreed. Some suggested that fighting the Chinese didn't require weapons such as knives or guns, but only sticks of various sizes, long or short, which were more than enough to avoid greedy and ambitious officials. One man who returned from a foreign liquor store and was known for his bravery said that if the Chinese dared to fight back, he would kill six of them. Others said that not far away, there were people riding fat horses, carrying long sticks, and holding rocks. Soon, the Chinese and the white people met. It seemed that the Chinese knew the information beforehand and stood on the back of a tree behind a rock, waiting for them to approach. The white people shouted and lifted long sticks in the air to scare them like mad dogs. They threw rocks, and the riders from behind came running like war horses. However, the Chinese were more cunning and used sharp sticks, causing both the riders and horses to be terrified.

It was because the Chinese hid in the woods, and no one saw them, only heard their voice, which was like that of a lion or a tiger, calling and howling like a windstorm. The leader of the white group, who called himself a “general”, stood like his horse that stood on two hind hooves like two pillars, causing everyone to feel fear. After a brief moment, the yellow people rushed out of the woods. At this point, the white realized they had not brought their weapons, and it was as difficult as trying to catch a tiger in the mountains. Seeing that the Chinese had sharp and pointed sticks, the white were frightened and scattered. They thought that this was a minor matter, and they had not underestimated the fight and then failed to plan properly. It turned out to be as easy as using a small stick to scare away a ghost. After the confusion, everyone ran away. They were afraid that the Chinese had cannons, which made them even more frightened. At this time, the horses clenched the iron in their mouths, ignoring whether their masters had taken the reins, galloping as fast as they could. “The Chinese knew that we had lost the battle and chased after us. Some of us lost our sticks or horses, and some of us ran far away before stopping to look for our horses. We English people were defeated by the yellow race. This is a true story. At that time, I had no other thoughts and only knew that I could not go back without a face. Some of the younger people who were waiting laughed at us, which was very embarrassing.” The Chinese stood by the roadside and laughed for a while, but the general was angry and could not accept the fact that the whites lost to the yellows. He was forced to leave. When he turned around, he immediately set up another plan, and the leaders discussed the matter together. It was not like the previous time, where we stepped on a rotten box. Now our bodies and bones were in pain, and our faces were injured. The general sat on a wine box and said to everyone, "The English are heroes in the world, but we have lost face this time. We must swear to seek revenge together." The decision had been made. Each leader was in charge of long guns and short cannons, preparing gunpowder and bullets. An onlooker was horrified and sarcastically said, “if the bullet were missed, the Chinese would be fortunate; if they do get shot, they would be regretting not escaping away.” However, those who were hurt did not need to say much, and revenge must be taken. Soon after, a constable heard of this and was afraid that there would be more trouble in the future. Therefore, they contacted the Chinese privately and, the next day, the general and his men came with guns and cannons, but the enemy had already left without a trace. It became a laughing matter.