Download (14Mb) - VUIR - Victoria University

The antagonism showm towards the Chinese in part resulted from the mining
methods which they had adopted. At first content to work claims or part of a field
abandoned by white miners, sluicing dirt which had already been washed to glean a
second harvest, the Chinese had begun to buy new claims and to win small fortunes by
their mass-mining methods.'*" The white miners, jealous and resentful of their success,
were further inflamed by their practice of sending the gold back to China. As well, the
Chinese were viewed wdth suspicion and fear because of their appearance and odd
cultural practices. Gangs of Chinese jogged about the diggings in single file clad in
blue trousers and jackets. They wore wide-brimmed, high-pointed straw hats and
wadded slippers and some had pig-tails hanging dovm their backs. Added to this, they
lived in a special Chinese quarter on the diggings ~ at Daylesford, the Chinese
occupied the area known as Wombat Flat, later Lake Daylesford ~ built temples and
installed images of the Sacred Dragon.'*^ According to popular prejudice, they smoked
opium and practised strange vices. Among the Anglo-Celtic and European populations,
their physical and cultural diversity created a sense of unease.
The Italian speakers, though isolated through their own language and cultural
practices, were more accepted by the Anglo-Celtic community with whom they shared
greater similarity of appearance and dress as well as a Christian faith. Forming mining
partnerships, patronising one another's business establishments and socialising
together, there was an exchange of cultural traditions, such at cooking methods (far
more so than wdth the Chinese), and a growth of mutual respect. Despite some miners,
including ItaUan speakers, venturing into the Chinese quarters in search of
entertainment, the Chinese remained largely ostracised and abused. They became the
241