The Lyttelton Times. Wednesday, October 17.

Lyttelton Times, Volume VIII, Issue 517, 17 October 1857, Page 5

The Lyttelton Times. Wednesday, October 17.

A letter from Captain Bruce of the Glentanner, which we published in our last issue, bears most satisfactory testimony to the capabilities of our port in one respect, the facilities it affords for repairing- damages. The Glentanner arrived in a verycrippled condition as to her spars and rigging-, the result of a serious accident at sea; and, though a careful survey proved, that her hull was uninjured, another voyage in her present condition, or with imperfect substitutes for her lost spars, must have been attended with unusual dang-er. It is, therefore, to the owners, as Captain Brace expresses it, no slight alleviation of a serious casualty to find that fresh spars can be so readily obtained ; and it is a credit to the harbour that vessels in distress are not compelled to go further without assistance. It may be a novelty to our Northern, friends to know that the harbour of the bare plains of Canterbury can supply ships in need with serviceable spars from a mainmast to a handspike, and that in abundance.

Another " alleviation " of the casualty, as well as advantage to the province, lies in the fact that by the time the repairs of the Glentanner are completed she will have ready for her homeward voyage a full cargo of wool. It may be observed by an advertisement in our columns to-day that she has already been .chartered as one of next season's woolships. The circumstance of her having' to remain for repairs in harbour from this time till the period of sailing* renders it possible for her whole cargo to be placed on board direct from the coasting" vessels without being' landed. This will cause a great saving" in the charg-es on landing-, warehousing-, and relig-htering, generally necessary. Though we cannot look upon it as an advantageous thing-, on the whole, for the Glentanner to have suffered so severely from the elements, nor recommend succeeding vessels to follow her example for the sake of showing off the advantages of our harbour and assisting our wool export, we fancy that it may be found convenient in future years to arrange the arrival of immigrant vessels in the largest numbers at the season of the wool clip and the harvest, when labour is most in request, and when the ships, discharging rapidly, will be able to take on board a cargo of wool for London or Liverpool, instead of proceeding in ballast to India and China.