tried and died.’
A Chinese man overheard the conversation and approached the two brothers. ‘Hello, my name is Lee. I have a map with instructions in Mandarin which will enable you to conduct the walk in relative safety. It marks where the water wells are along the route and the best places to camp.’
‘How do we know the map is accurate?’
‘I’ve travelled the route myself and I’m now heading back home to China.’
‘Were you successful in finding gold, Lee?’
‘Yes, I was. I’ve transferred the money back to Hong Kong. I will be very comfortable when I arrive back home.’
‘How much for the map?’
‘It’s £1— much cheaper than the £10 a head that fellow was asking.’
Wang and Zhang agreed to buy a copy of the map, which they thought was a much better option; they handed Lee the £1.
The following day they began their epic journey. Their objective was to walk twenty miles a day carrying their provisions.
Other Chinese prospectors followed them on the trek and by the time they reached Ballarat, over a hundred fellow Chinese were part of Wang and Zhang’s group.
When they arrived on the goldfields, Wang and Zhang and the other Chinese from their village worked as a team. They immediately built shelters and slept crowded together as was usual at home in Zhuhai. Teams were organised to mine, to cook and to tend vegetables. Their mining methods proved different to the Europeans’ in that they seldom tackled new ground and usually avoided deep mining, as they feared that the mountain gods would be offended. Instead, they preferred to go over the ground which had been abandoned by European miners. In their haste, the Europeans were often careless as they sifted through the dirt. The Chinese were prepared to take more time, even sweeping the floors of abandoned huts, where they often found gold which earlier Europeans had missed. They soon learnt to keep quiet about this as it made many Europeans angry.
The two brothers from Zhuhai created a market garden not far from their camp and with their vast experience, they were able to not only feed their group but to sell vegetables to the diggers on the goldfields.
After six months in Ballarat, the brothers found they were making more money from their produce than from digging for gold. They erected a large tent where they established a store selling produce grown in their market garden.
‘Wang, I think we should start importing Chinese herbs and medicines to supplement our green groceries. With the number of our countrymen here I’m sure we would do very well.’
‘I think you’re right,’ agreed his brother. ‘Why don’t I travel into Melbourne and speak to the shipping companies? Father could order the goods from a wholesaler in Hong Kong.’
The Wei brothers imported their first shipment in January 1860. They were required to place another larger order in March. The foundation for The Chinese Emporium had been laid, and after twelve months they leased a shop in Ballarat, selling all things needed by the Chinese diggers, including hardware and clothing.
Many Chinese returned to their homeland their pockets filled with gold. This caused resentment amongst the other miners who felt Australia had been plundered.
Wang and Zhang never returned to their village of Zhuhai, however. They continued to grow the business and became two of the wealthiest Chinese citizens in Victoria.
Change of Fortune
Chapter 8
Ballarat March 7, 1857
Mathew was in his office counting the day’s takings. He had been the proud owner of the Golden Nugget for five months and in that short time had increased the hotel’s revenue by 25%. One of the innovations he had introduced was a high-stakes poker game. The house, i.e. Mathew, charged a 10% commission on all winnings which over the past few months had generated a significant amount. The game was held in a private apartment on the rooftop dome every Friday night. He was expecting a good result this particular night as several professional gamblers, including his good friend John, would be participating.
Friday 8 pm Golden Nugget
John Davies arrived at the Golden Nugget at 7 pm and made his way to Mathew’s office to say hello to his friend.
‘Hello, Mathew counting your money again I see.’
‘Hello John. Yes, just about to place the day’s takings in the safe.’
‘I take it you’re pleased with your purchase?’
‘Oh yes, it’s the best thing I’ve ever done. Would you care to join me for a wee dram before you head up for your game?’
‘Yes, thank you, Mathew, BUT just a wee one. I don’t want to impair my judgment tonight.’
‘Do you know who’s playing?’
‘No. I suppose Doctor James and Robert Kelly will be present they’re the regulars. I don’t know why as they rarely win.’
Mathew warned, ‘There’s a new player joining the game. Harmsworth is his name apparently, and he has quite a reputation.’
‘Charles Harmsworth? He was on our ship and he cleaned up poor George many times.’
‘Well, you’d better make sure he doesn’t clean you up.’
‘Oh, I can handle Charles Harmsworth. He’s good but not that good.’
‘It’s time you made your way up. I wish you well and I’ll drop in, later, to see how you’re going.’
‘Thank you, Mathew, I’ll see you in a little while.’
John climbed the red cedar stairway to the top floor and entered the suite where Dr James and Robert Kelly were already seated at the table, keen to begin the game. John greeted them both and took his place. A young waitress who had been assigned to care for them through the night asked whether he would like a drink. He declined.
Five minutes after John’s entrance, another player arrived. He was unknown to the others at the table and he introduced himself as Victor Worthington. The last player arrived soon after. This was Charles Harmsworth, the professional gambler John remembered from the S S Great Britain.
As the first dealer, John dealt five cards to each player. His cards included a king of spades and an ace of spades. He kept those two cards and threw out the remaining three. His next three included a king. It wasn’t a strong hand, but a pair of kings could win the hand.
Dr James, Harmsworth, and Worthington folded, leaving Robert Kelly and John to play out the hand. John bet £5, Kelly raised him £5 and John saw him. Kelly had a pair of queens; first blood to John.
The following ten hands were evenly matched, and all players were about even for the night.
Charles Harmsworth was the next player to deal a hand. John looked at his cards and saw he had Q♥ J♥ 10♥ 5♠ 4♠. He threw out the spades and called for two more cards. Harmsworth dealt the cards without taking his eyes off John, hoping to see a reaction. John looked at his cards and found 9♥ 8♥. He had a queen high straight flush, which was almost unbeatable. John knew he didn’t have enough money in front of him to make the appropriate bet. Mathew had entered the suite a few minutes before the hand was dealt to see how the game was progressing. John called him over and requested a £5000 guarantee. Mathew knew his friend had sufficient funds in the bank to honour the debt.
John bet £1000, Harmsworth saw him and raised John £1000. John saw him and raised Harmsworth £1000 until eventually the stake was £5000; a small fortune. Harmsworth finally said, ‘I’ll see you.’
John laid out his cards for all to see, a straight flush. He was preparing to scoop the cash in the