ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

Otago Witness, Issue 317, 26 December 1857, Page 6

ORIGINAL CORRESPONDENCE.

" To the' Editor of the Otago Witness. \ Tokomairiro, Dec. 21, 1857. < Sm, — I am directed by the Tokomairiro District , Road Trustees to forward you a copy of the resolu- . tions passed at a meeting hold to consider the queries of his Honor the Superintendent respecting ' the £1000 voted to tire Dunedin Town Board by the i 'Council of 18-57. — I have the honour to be, Sir, Your obedient servant, , John Dewe, \ ' _ Clerk to Tokomairiro Trustees. "At a meeting of the Tokomairiro Road Trustees, , "heJd. at the house of, Mr. Dewe. Dec. 19, 18-57, to an"swer a Circular forwarded by his Honor, the iollow- ; 'ing resolutions were passed unanimously : — { " That it is the opinion of the Tokomairiro Road Trustees that they have no right to interfere in any -way with the Town Board in their mode of applying -the £2000 granted by the Government, so long as • the sum voted is applied to such road or roads as, joining with the main trunk country lines, shall give the.best means of access to the centre of Dun--edin.'.' , The Road Trustees b"eg to call your Honor's attention to the recommendation of the Committee of the General Road Board to the Dunedin Town 'Board on the subject of the best outlet from Dunediri. ■ ' They beg also to call your Honor's serious attention to the state of the Taieri Ferry, as unless something is immediately done, all traffic must be suspended ; the present punt being unsafe for horses, both in itself, and the approach By which it is entered; and they would suggest for your Honor's consideration the advisability of placing the Ferries ■generally under the supervision of the General Road *JBoard and their surveyor. John Dewe, Clerk to the Tokomniriro District Road Trustees. To the Editor of the Otago Witness. Clutha.-'lOth December, 1857. - Sill— You will oblige me by publishing the following upon the capabilities of the Pkormium tenax or New Zealand^ flax. Having for some time past closely studied Vnd experimented upon it, I have •arrived at the conclusion that it is an article of 'great value, and capable of supplying to a great degree the wants, of .advancing civilization in the following manner :— First, it is well adapted to supply <a material. for the manufacture of paper ; and to any reflecting mind, the great importance of paper to the wants of civilized life is- at once seen— the merchant in, his office, the student, the mechanic, the lady sitting, in her parlour" lined with beautifully paper—all olasses more or less enjoy some .bene.fit from paper ; in short, paper is an article in ■universal demand. To elucidate the subject a little, it mar be well to state that, the supply of rags for " the manufacture of paper in America has caused a trade I ' to -such an. extent that at the port of New •Yorkulone, in the year 1853, 70,000 bales were imported, and taking into account the quantities used in England and the rest'of Europe, the vast extent of the paper trade is at once seen, and the fact that as Ligtit, Liberty, and Truth spreads throughout the nationsofthe earth, an ever-increasing demand ■' -is likely to take place : and the growing scarcity of il--i 1 --- the material cpmmonly.used for the manufacture of " •Awp'ervtfas.'of lafe caused some apprehension and attention to the capabiliVitieVbfthe"'*New Zealand flax plant, has convinced, 9 " me" that <i|{destined' by a bountiful Providence to i "-Vsupply ,'Aeiwa"nt{i of mankind in the article of paper, i/f for. which 'i'tSiS pre-eminently adapted. ' Again, it is - ",\ve'U-k"nown'*Jt*hat rope may be made from the fibre. - ItAias'-beeTvlsaid, that it will r»ot take, on tar, but I 'V^thrnkjit had' better been said', no one, has yet found ,'\V oul^a^niethod ioff tarring it properly. I may here ' 11 *Ja€'d§rtn v atffr6ni^h.e result 1 of -my "own experiments, 1 j i^Jb'aVe^bj^titft 'that New Zealand fibre, skilfully": 1 plant" propierly^ cultivated j" rmgh.t, j cTambriCj ?r|£aisgTOi£Ks> ente,r 1 argelyii nto/those tasteful.produc,t,s

dng of which into useful T fiArics"woruld-iri no caseinterfere with the production of wool. , Hoping our : merchants and- other,. gentlemen, will at, once see the advantage which such" an article of export -wouldbe to this colony — I am, Sir, yours, &c.,. ._ -„ " - , w. A. M. >