ORIGINAL COKRESPOISrDENCE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 383, 13 March 1863, Page 4

ORIGINAL COKRESPOISrDENCE.

TREATMENT OF PASSENGERS PER. TIIKODA.. '■'--'. .. •■;'•• (To the Editor, of the DAirA-TiMES,) Sin, —I am very glad to find by the evideiice of tlio passengers, given at the Police Ciiuri on Monday, thatalthough complaint was made _of: the,.quality of provisions, all were "unanimous in tho opinion that the behaviour bt Captain Sewell towiirdS Jus; passengers, was that of a gentleman, which 1: tojretlier with many raore (who were not at tlie Police Court) will aprree with. ■.„.,. I addresa you in this matter because many of the passengers and the public thought th'e'captain was to blame, but I beg to inform you that,:.the captain had nothing whatever to do with the arrangements of the charterers respecting the provisions, &c. Hoping you will insert this in your- valuable journal. _.: ' ~.^.^ I remain yours, &c , ~ ».-j.-:g.; ! -:. : . A Passenger.

GARDENING- IN OTAGO., , .. ; v (To the Editor of the Daily.-.TftMss.y, Sir,—l take great pleasure In answering the Queries of "A Horticulturist,'/ although- I, would— -a "-^—T—^"' - • • —rt— »->— ■ j; •—: ■.. ot-jlength on the points to which he refers. " -Qoodf -will no doubt, result from a little discussion^as information, upon various points connected with horticulture iu tliis Province, is greatly needed. ." A;l£or,ticultnrist " is aware that it is difficult tQ.giKe. directions for gardening operations which sha'.ly during a particular month, be applicable to aa extensive* district of country. Here/in Otaf»oy brie? portion of a garden may be on the summit of a steep 'hill, while the remainder maybe in a valley,andthus in the same gardea the work recommended cannot always be done'at"*tGe same time of the, season .."iftAHowanca must be made fur ditf.Tenct'S in soil, situations' and seasons. Some seasons, are nearly, a month,, earlier than others. I, sir, have unclertakeni.ttf perform a >vork which is at the present time Wu;ch?-fequired, nnmelv,.to furnish new arrivals and others with infurnuition through jouv columns, .upon;, gardeuinfr, which they can obtain from no oilier saurc.e. JUany persons who have tho meaus of cultivating a'^arden possess.no knowltdge whatever of Hie subject. ;t And to tliem a few '' seasonable hints'' are of Jhe greatest yalue.^ I am aware that there, are persons'enfl'?-6d iiere in the cultivation of gardens^who are thoroughly acquainted with the mode'of managemsnli pociiliarly adapted to the various soils in different situation.? in tliisrrovince,andthebesttimesandmethpds6fpbn.tmg aai Gu'<t vating the fmits and vege'tables:g:roWii i:lfei'e; but this iuformation they have teretof6re i: lt'epfto themselves.' Now, However,.that-1 haye-iindeitaken to furnish the required information,-1 am catechised upon a few trifling points, upon nekrly all of.wliich there is a difference of opinion among-the. most oxperiencsd gardeners. lam gratified, lioweverj.that "A HorLicultuiist" has ventured so far a? to:put those questions in print, and I trust tliat-:;his~next step will be to give us through your columns the result of his experience here as a gardener: * \ , I now reply to " A Horticulturist's" queries:— 1. " What injurious effect will exposure to the sun have on potatoes intended for seed 1" '• -'..-.;■ It is certain that exposure to the sun injures the flavor of potatoes intended to he eaten,-especially when they are not perfectly ripe.- lam aware that it is customary in some parts of the old country, to expose pofcatoe sefs to the sun, but some cultivator disapprove of the prac'ioe. . Tho point i£ simply one on which there is a uifference of opinion, but itis probably immaterial witeiher the sets are " greened" or riot.' .'• ■ .

2, "Is it safe to cover potatoes a foot thick with straw and a foot thick with .mould at this seasoa of the jew ■]'' ' • .••;; . » There are various methods of preserving for winter and spring use, and a very common plan is to cjver them over first with straw and thorn with earth'. As a means of preventing humidity, it' is recommended to place in some porous, vessel in 'the centre of each heap, a quantity of uns'acked lime. Perhaps " A Honicultunst" will enlighten. U3 a little on the subject. • 3. "Is the present the best month' for sowing winter onions 1" ■ ' ■

Anrwer : No; and I have not asssrted that it was. I stated that Avintcr onion seeds might' be' sown in March, and I maintain thac they may be sown with very gooil results. ■ .:'. ■ '

4. "Is it; safe to prune gooseberry and currant bushes in March V

It is, certainly, rather early for pruningl, but;some of this woik may ba advanlageuusly done, and Without danger, towards the end of tbi* month, when clearing- away the rubbish which accumulates at this season.

5. "Is it advisable to plant oat young hawthorn during the present month V ■. -•>

It certaialy i3 advisable to do so, aUhouarli it is not .he beat season for work of the kin I. Frequently tie frost is not severe enough around Bunedin to injure the young plants, and when they escape, they always thrive better than those set out iu the spring. The Writer of "Seasonable Hints."

THE PROPOSED WIDE STREET THROUGbH THE CITY. ■~ ITn tho V,i;tnr nf the DAT!/! TrMES.)

Sir, —In spite oftlie pooh poohing1 the writer siaming himself " Broadway" receives in t hog letter from a member of the Town Board in your issue of to-day, I am glad to see the above important (and it properly carried out) mo3t essential project occupying some attention beyond that of our Town Board, and I think the letter of " Broadway" will do good servieo by ventilating the subject, puttingtliose on tlio alert whose interest will be most materially affected, and may thus lead to the best route being finally adopted. The main thoroughfare through the city should iiav

tho easiest graients. slionkl ns nearly :w possible intersect the centre of the city, ami in carrying out the alteration it skouUl be effected nt the least cost consistent willi the object in view—that of conferring now and hereif or tlia g:eifest benefit,on the whole body of the inhabitants. Now, in spite of "A. Member of the Town Board's " asMinuices to the contrary, I still think the route proposed by "Broadway" will be considfiie Iby all impartial judges to be the best to secure those advantages. Great King street, which intersects . two-thirds of the city midway is level its whole length, yet admits of thorough' drainage, is already used a«i the main streetViiroupjh that part of the city, and is partially fornieil auiTinetnlleJ, yet so few buildings nave been erected on the east slle that u 'comparatively small sum would be required ns compensation to those whose improvements would be interfered with in widening the street. Continuing the main route by Moray Place across the site of XJell Hill, it forms a junction with the proposed new street, next to and parallel with Princes - street, in a straight line, and if the plan of the extension is to be relied on, the new street does not •' end nowhere," as asserted by "a Member of the Town Board," but forms a junction with the Mam South Road, a few chains beyond that of Princes street. By adopting the new stwet. as the route south of Bell Hill, no holders of valuable sites will hare to be bought off by grants of costly allotments of reclaimed land (as proposed by the Town Board), to gain the width in Priuctsstieet. On tho contrary, the whole proceeds of the allotments on both sides of the new street will be available to.defray the cost of the reclaimed ground. In thus reviewing Broadway's letter, I think I have shown that the reasons he gives for preferring the route pointed out by him still remain unanswered by " A Member of tho Town Board," although he tells us " the result arrived at is not an improvement oti the choice of the Town Board." Castle-street, the route from the North as intended by that body, skirts instead of intersects the city, and is far removed from what must continue to be the most populous part, and important interests would be seriously injured if such a diversion were practicable. Neither would its river bed and half-lide peculiarities fit it to be the main thoroughfare. Again, if Great King-street would cost twenty times as much a9 Castle-street, to fit it as the main street, I think it may ba safely concluded that Princes street will cost twenty times as much as Great Kins-street in undergoing tho same alteration. As to " tbe ignoble half-chain road" entrance, to the city northwards, it is surprising that " A Member" does not perceive that those few chains of road can as easily be widened as other poitions of the route, or can be avoided altogether, by following the line of Great King-street north to its termination at the. Water of Leith, the boundary of the Town Belt, across which a wide thoroughfare could be made to join the North East Valley Road. As to the grave error of Broadway's prop'osed line blocking up 33 feet of docks only existing a< yet on paper, and intended to be 18 or 20 chains long, if ever carried out ; if that is a serious objectliu it certainly is a very amusing one too. 1 have rescived to the iast to express my admiration of the coolness with which " A Member of the Town Board" tells Broadway he should have submitted his scheme of another route to that body to obtain its cooperation, knowing well, at the same time, that the first the public learns of the matter at all is the fact of the Board applying to the Government to carry out its own scheme, already cut and dried. I enciose my card, and am, Sir, Yours, &c, Main Thoroughfare.

THE TOWN BOARD.

(To the Editor of the Daily Times.) i Sir, —Your correspondent "Veritas" evidently considers me p. very ridiculous sort of person. Bujt no man is expected to stand being1 chaffed without retorting, and so he is welcome to bis opinion ot me!, and to the expression of it. " _ i But he would make it appear that I have tried to pervert the truth.' If he really thinks so, and believes he discerns a hidden motive for suoh conduct on my part, I desire him to obtain my name from you. He will then be aware that, except, the author of the queries to the City Engineer, which have raised the present discussion, I am one of the only two members of the Board whoseopiuions about leaving our Water Supply to private enterprise have been pub • lioiy elicited at the Board nieetings._ He will ascertain that these expressions of opinion have been not only in favor of private enterprise, but specially so of the Water Company, of which he is so valiant a champion. His statement of what the Board has done about this question is as erroneous as his definition of the functions imposed on the Board by the Legisl ture. A member of the Board has put certain questions to one of its officers, and the same gentleman has procured a special meetinoc to consider the motion he wishes to bring: forward,' in an open Board meeting instead of the usual form by written requisition to the clerk. He has also procured the appointment of a committee to procure information pertinent to the question he has in hand. Ido not see, Sir, bow he is justified in hooting me for saying that all this is no expression of opinion by the Board upon any part of the question of Water Supply. Notwithstanding his opinion to the contrary I regret to believe that the embryo Water Company is not popular in Duncdin, and that action on the part of the Board will be so.

I am. yours, &c, A Member op the Board.

RESIDENT MAGISTRATE'S COURT. WEDNE3DAT, 12 TH MAROII. (Before A. Clietbam Strode, Esq., R.M.) Drtjnkkkskss. -.- Arthur Fowler, Richard Rothwell, and William Kelly, were fined 20s each, and costs; in default of payment, to be imprisoned 48 hours. Kelly, who has been three times previously convicted of drunkenness during the last six months, was further ordered to be imprisoned seven daj'S, and kept at hard labor,. A. Nice Fellow. —George Ashworth was fined 30s and costs for bfiug guilty of indecency in PrincesBtreet. When Constable Daly took the prisoner to the station for this offence, he found in the inside pocket of his coat a black plush hat worth 17s 6«1. An assistant from the shop of Messrs Hugh Kirkpatrick and Co, Princes-street, stated that yesterday morning he hiiug the hat at the shop door, and saw it there at noon. It was not missed till Daly called ; but he (the witness) could positively identity the hat, and was sure that it had not baen sold. The Prisoner said that he bought the hat of a man who was hawking a lot of them, together with caps and women's boots. There was no proof at all that he (the prisoner) hal stolen the hat. The Magistrate said he thought otherwise ; _ and the prisoner would be imprisoned for six weeks, and kept at hard labor. An Officer of the Gaol, who had been fetcheiJ, said that the prisoner was released on the previous day, after three months' imprisonment. There was a third charjje aerainst the pnsonar, that of having stolen a letter from the office of the Provincial Solicitor. He was seen to pocket the document and walk off with it; but the Magistrate thought the charge might as well not be pressed. The prisoner's story as toeaeh offence was that he remembsred nothing about it. " Violent Assaultat WestTaieki. —David Walsh, Michael Walsh, Wm. Walsh, and Patrick Bain, four miners, were charged by Mounted Constable Bngarty with having at West Taieri, on Tuesday, violently assaulted John Goodfellow aud Michael Tyman. SubInspector Simcock produced a surgeon's certificate that Tyman was so much injured as to be unable to appear, and he therefore asked that the prisoners might be remanded. Mr Ward said that he had in- | tended on the prisoners' behalf, to make a similar application; and he would now ask that bail might be accepted. The Magistrate said he would take for each prisoner his own recognisances in LBO, and two sureties of L4O each. Mr Ward asked whether one surety would be accepted for two or more of the prisoners. The Magistrate said that that would depend upon what was proved as to the sureties' possessions. Mr Ward further asked whether, if sureties could nofc be obtained, the deposit of cash, or of a bank deposit note, which was as good, -would be accepted. The Magistrate said he woull decide the matter when a definite proposal was made. The prisoners were remanded for a week. .. A Nuisancr. —S. B. R. Jones was, upon the information of Nimon, fined 1.3 and costs, for failing to abate a nuisance caused by water in the cellar of the Old Commercial Hotel. The Magistrate said that if this flue did not quicken Mr Jone3 to do the work, he should probably try the effect of one of

LlO. Unregistered Dogs.—George Marnier was fined LS and costs for keeping three unregistered dogs. George Grant, sumiiioned by Nimon, for keeping one unregistered dog, was represented by his wife, who urged lliat the dog- was obtained a few days ago only and then iu consequence of things being stolen from their place. Nimon said he knew that the dog had been very recently brought upon the premises, an4 as registration was effected directly after the constable's visit, the case was dismissed. Both these moseculions arose from complaints contained m an anonymous letter addressed to the Commissioner of "charge op Using Threatening Language.— Robert Borthwick was charged by Jano Kastwood with using tineaten ing and abusive language towards her The Complainant stated that just as she left the'Court House with her husband on Tuesday, the defendant called her husband "an old Einner." she remarked, "It's you who have been the cause <i£ all our ruin;" and the defendant then, turned

towar "s hor, shook his fist in her face, and threatened to tear her dress off. As she waj going away, she heard some oue call, " Here! Mrs Eastwood;" and looking back, she saw _the defendant thrusting his tongue out at her. The Defendant admitted that, he did say, as Eastwood was passing, "It serves you right, you old sinner." Mrs Eastwood came up, shook her fl-st in his face and abused him ; and ha did say to her, ••' Why, what you have cm your back doesn't b Ions? to you." The Magistrate thought thht "threatening and abusive language" had hardly been proved. There was evidently " bad blood" between the parties: so they had better not go near each other, and had also better remember that he would punish the first that was proved guilty of tlirea's or annoyance. Jemima Lang -was called to answer a summons of a very pert girl named Mary Ann Farrell. The defendant's husband appeared and said that his wife couldn't come, because she had gone out of town. Ths Magistrate—what do you know about this1! Lang: t"believe its a quarrel between two servant girls. The Magistrate: Then send your wife here. Going into the country, after being served with a summons ! It's just contempt of Court, and I'll not allow it. The case was adjourned for a day.