Correspondence.

Colonist, Volume III, Issue 226, 20 December 1859, Page 2

Correspondence.

■r . To the Editor of the Colonist," : ~«.,.. „•,.,.. Sm,—l must again beg the, favor of a; small space Iri your columns, as I wish to make; a few remarks os a letter that appeared in" Friday's Colonist^ signed Alfred Saunders. On tlie spirit of the. whole letter, I will make so comment, and indeed:would have treated it .with the .contempt it merits; only, that jt contains1 gross a?d smi|fo«nded charges against me, which I cannot .allow to tioiiied. '' ' ■' ': . . . . .■ Tlie aoeusatians which Mr. Saunders charges nj'e ! • with having made and circulated; agai,nst him, dre imaginary on his part, for J. would .scorn making accusations against anyone that|,c;QuJd ppt siibs,tanr tiate. Neither would I employ agentsaJl.Qv^rtlje. country to do my dirty work—to give utterance j to things I would be ashamed to say.myself.' Tlie "Agent," Mr. Saunders seems to lay such; stress on hi his letter can speak for himself, if he thinks ;it worth his notice. lam not responsible for anything he might say concerning/Mr. Saunders or Mr, 4ny-one.else. : . ; . I ;■ i^he .enormous price Mr. Saunders accuses me of charging wi^ appear as ridiculous as his-other charges against me, ,wh,en I inform you:that I gave.' 12s; par bushel for the ,\vh.eat, aftciL demanded'^3o per'ton (delivered) for the flaijr,wh^ch jejrjen" were it aa extortion, is not withoujt a precedent.l Mr. Saunders surely does not forget the tfine whenj therd were iio Steam Floor MUls'm 'the pla.ce/ -when his was the only mill that had water till the latter :end,of July ; how he bought wheat at from" 7s. to. Bs. per bushel, and sold flour at £25 per tori, until the other mills had water; when he found out all at once that he could afford'to contintie to;give the' same price for wheat, and sell flour ■as\£2f) pervton ? ■ 1 really thirikyMri ;E<iit6if it .has'pric&e^ his conscience" ever since, for 111 ovVns iif.his^te^JtiU.at-he" neverrfelt quite sure |ffki^'es^tab^ Ttage-of every''chance' to' rise tlib '■ l puce;'ojf : saeh an -ai*ttele, as, the staff of life/I ahd' AJ Jfeel!'4uiW^err?| tail} U mu?t bavebeen.'a severe: tax on ;:Ml'.,, Saun- j :ders feeiings a to=haye "been compelled to -have; .written a letter so fuUof persQiiala'buse-as the.one j in question,, as indeed, the; writing df-feuch a letter ;must necessarily be to any -one whose pvinpiple is not bitter, paltry spleen,;and sarcasm. I cannot close these'remarks without reniinding:Mr. 'Saunders that he is at uerfect ljbecty., to adopt any style bf coat,- hat, or b(66ts he thinks,. . prdper, without being in the "least afraid that;;!' :shali trouble my head about it. , " ~ ~• • • •".*'"'*'" . I am. Sir, yours;itc, ' " : ;1 ■ -j '•—; ;•-.- :::^;;;-WfLtlM : AV ; HrrE:"'": JJR.S. The V es^^a^93r,i : gap4^rß thinks I should make tot tlie/ prpprietßjrs/ msp[\Wf$ m y&zaininer) ;.of iny. 'ungrafejFii|l^rp^menyp i if r pwmi; ; ehalrbe fortbconiing.at^he.mliest.opportiyinity<r:;

(To the Editor of the Colonist. , , , , Sif^.rrJ- n a letter which appeared in your paper of Friday jiapt, Saundeis, after much .which. does not concern m'e,"say^—" I do not think. Jhat Mr. White's agent was told a*'the Examiner office >thatthey ha"d received a letter frorriiMLr.'Saunders," ■ &C, &C. . r. ', In reply to this, t heij to state roost positively • that a gentleman em})loy<'d upon the Evamtnet . did, ia tl?^t office, inform me that a letter having been received from Mr, t Saunders reducing the pj-iee of iidur from to £26 per ton, and in order to quote the market as it really stood (thinking that some cause must have arisen for flour falling), he sought me, and not finding me about the town, applied to Mr. Bentley, who though a*tQ.9fohed; at th? r^dmjtion^ w$ $& }((. TOte>

flour had better bo quoted at tine; reduced price. That gentleman will, I Hsel" assured, say the same to Mf. Satinders should jte apply at the Examiner office. Mr. Saunders further says,'.that," knowing there was no wheat left in>. the proVinpe" he advised our' principal corn dealing merchant to "send,to Sydney for some"at ariy price." Now presuming that merchant did, after some deliberation, send for flour, how does Mr;, Saunders treat him ?—quotes his price £± per ton lower, though at the time of that quotation he, had neither flour nor wheat; in fact lie shook what was a firm market, and what for—to induce importation? That could not be, because a high and steady market would be the best .inducement: "Was Hr'to'1 injure the merchant whom he had advised to inrport flour at any cost, by lowering the prices, or was it to prevent another jnjller from .realising- the., then market price on the small stock he had on hand f Mr. Saunders surely could not have meant fairly, or why.quote a price for -that which he could not supply ? ( Waait to deceive the merchant and injufe"brother millers? . Let me remind- Mr. Saunders of somewhat., similar acts preceding the one, now in t question. In his'letter he says the accident of there being . very little of any article in this place is perhaps a very legitimate reason for asking some enormous price for the little we happen to have, but I never felt quite sure that a respectable tradesman ought to take advantage of every such chance,-more especially |h such--an article asihe staff-of life. •; In reply I would remind him that in March, 1856 he bought wheat at fr#m 7s. to Bs. per bushel, and because the other mills were stopped in consequence of being without water, he actually sold his I flour at £25 per ton, And continued'doing'so until 'tile month of July following, when from-the fall of rain the Qther mills were able to work, and than this poor man's friend reduced his price immedii ately to .£2O per ton, although there was no cause i for flour becoming cheaper'than it should have been in-March-.- -Was-lie-then taking advantage of that chance, for gej;t.in.g.an enormous price for such an article as the staff of life. Mr. Saunders doubtless dislikes me because I had the-hardihood toresent a rather uritradesmanlike offer, which he made to me in 1856,': at a time, wnen the other mills, being without water were stopped; I had purchased, some flour" from' him' and wanted more, and he said, " I suppose when the' rain' comes ana*.Mr.-" White has flour you will go back to him ; I don't think I ought to let you have any more flour—ln fact if you'do not promWnot to deal again wtyh, Mr. Wlfite, and to" have alfybur flour wholly and solely fronrme I'dhall notteLy.«uftiaS£.-aHy-«i<«jßr" This I instantly resented, and told him that I should have no further dealings with him for the time to come. With reference to the insinuations respecting myself, .he is facetious and I am content, and shall continue to' be/so until, lie accuses me.of having;, deceived those who trustfully regarded iiie.' I am' also pleased to jearri his, determination henceforth to wear high-reeled Upots; these, perhaps lhay tebd to liftliim,somewhatout.of,t.heiiiiirein.-wliich he has hitherto rather frequently;trod;:-I would, however remind' him ."not -to toneh .the bellvtbpper. That will not so well shield M»pate as thti present Panama., <* .-..<■...- -,-• r . , : ,.' ■■;.■.-.■;./', ■'. ..:•: ' "' • •la'tn-'Sir',,':-^"?1;'•• - ; • • ' -Yourbbedient servant,,-.. : ;.'.■ ,: . ,-.. ..*.i ; .--«^r*WHR:'HlI-ME. ' Or-the h}& who swings the big: stick. Nelson, 17th J)ece.i^ber,'Jßs9;: ;r".'; •\ ■ \' " ' '-'TStlie Editor of the'.Cblonisf. ■~ ■ SiKj—W;|U ypu..allow me-through.;your papeX to call the attention of the Waimea Road Board to the surplus labor in the employment of the' Government? I think it only just to the country districts, who have" so many by-roads in a state of impassibility, that a share of the cs|id labor should be employed for their benefit, as they have to dontribute their quota for their; support ; and more especially as the Gity ofN*lson has Had from "the commencement-of the settlement the exclusive'benefitofthe prison labor. . I,feel, satisfiedin,my own mind that an applicatidn"to; his ' Honor the. Superinten4ent,Iby;:'ihe:''nienib(BW^;:.^^thV.;i!6oar^j..' would meet wiHi attehfioh. ■ eK' ."" ~, '■ •:(Yours, &c.|:. *>- .•'■"''•■■OW'"- ---;; james r*; hoM.

To theiJHtfifai- oj'the.O^lonis^ -. T Sm,-~-Among your iiiisceilaneous extracts In your ; columns of Friday last, you have ah article on the Marvels of^Scierice, wherein.we find that within, the \b&{ few;years '"Science, Literature, arid Ait,; made wonderful prqgress.andinventions,that have surpassed the boldest flights of the imagination. If I could hope that my fellow colonists would, favor me with their attention somfc evening, I could, I think, convince them of the truth of that, remark, and prove to them the truth of the words of Shakespeare, by reference to their ownconduct — " pjhat nothing so strange at first appears, that use mi a few gucce^ding^ years would render most familiar." - ;

■ iThere is one other extract, fvoni^the Phur.c^ entitled "How to discourage a Minister," which begins"thus—"lt is a maxim well .understood and acknowledged, to dp.anything well we^must do it heartily," 'pr as the Italians would say il con hnf,qre':' 'The art^e |o'es ( 6n to say ."a philosophical lecture ii?ay'% giye^i '■tyiik perjfect^almness; the factg may be staged, and \veljl stated, §q&§ to answer the purpose inten^esd. w^thput calJing :m,t9 exercise any emo,tions u or feelings of the. l^e^ri' on ; tbjs part.p'f the jlect,urer or.Jbis audience.'' Here Jt emphatigaUyJpfly the ppinclusion. Qn tlje trary, I affirm, without fear,of.c9ntpd|ctioh,; that if the pholosophical lecturer states his facts cleai-Jy and without having recourse to unmeaning deiilamation; oip any of that exhibition of .•violent gesticulation so often resorted to. by a certain. dla;s| of lecturers, lie will hot only fully .have' attained his purpose, but he,will, and cannot, faij to; call into ?exerdise, an3[that: to" some practical'm& useful purpose and. effect, some of those fin,er feeling^ of our nature; which too many are. prone to overload with erroneous ideas, of what really constitute the. true feelings, and enjotiijnj;..of a. well:*#nst}tuted and jgi/ndjtate of mind. ..To^nojtice^heiemaind^ii1 of :tliiij "article w;ou^ Ma^ "^ qn^onsecraiecj. ground;: I; Will close this shflrt critjeisin witj^one, quotation from the concluding part of,it, namely— If I forget thee, 6 i Jerusalem^]eiJMy.'WßKlt hand foigether citnfiingJ" Leaving^iit; of the question the grounds upon which the. prosperity'of the Church may rest, I can only.sayj; that' the word cunning is not to be ifbund; in an honest or Moral mqtis -vocabulary. -The«rdiuavy r and secular demiition ofthe wordbeingarJtful, deceit|ui, trick|sli, subtle, and crafty. , . , ' '*' J";f •,'.'.'..:■::■'.■: ■ -^durs^c.;.:- V •:—;'" - ; • ■ ' ■' -: -r-■■■■ mWL-KL&B^.