<P> As the alluvial gold dwindled, pressures for land reform, protectionism and political reform generated social struggles . and a Land Convention in Melbourne during 1857 recorded demands for land reform . </P> <P> By 1854 Chinese people were contributing to the gold rushes . Their presence on the goldfields of Bendigo, Beechworth and the Bright district resulted in riots, entry taxes, killings and segregation in the short term, and became the foundations of the White Australia policy . In short, the gold rush was a revolutionary event and reshaped Victoria, its society and politics . </P> <P> There were rumours abroad about the presence of gold in Australia, but Government officials kept all findings secret for fear of disorganising the young colony . However the Colonial Secretary, Edward Deas Thomson, saw a great future for the country when Edward Hargraves proved his theory that Australia was a vast storehouse of gold . Hargraves had been in the California gold rush and knew gold country, when he first saw it, round Bathurst . The news spread like wildfire, and soon the race was on from coast to gold fields . Flocks were left untended, drovers deserted their teams, merchants and lawyers rushed from their desks and entire ships' crews, captains included, marched off to seek their fortunes . </P> <P> In March 1850, Mr. W. Campbell of Strath Loddon found on the station of Mr. Donald Cameron, of Clunes several minute pieces of native gold in quartz . This was concealed at the time but on 10 January 1851, Campbell disclosed it . Others had found indications of gold . Dr. George H. Bruhn, a German physician, whose services as an analyst were in great demand, had been shown specimens of gold from what afterwards became the Clunes diggings . In spite of these and other discoveries, however, it was impracticable to market the gold, and James Esmond's "find" which was made on Creswick's Creek, a tributary of the Loddon River, at Clunes on 1 July 1851, was the first marketable gold field . </P>

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