Crrespondence.

Colonist, Volume IV, Issue 406, 13 September 1861, Page 3

Crrespondence.

To the Editor, of the Colonist.

Sin—l, for one, have to thank you for the extract in your last from a London paper devoted to colonial matters. That extract clearly informs us how meretricious is the so-called information, in many cases, supplied to home papers by' Our Own' or other correspondents. Of course I rejoice with that writer that our Dun Mountain is by no means done up, and that the railway is in a good train for completion; but the moral conclusions he draws from a ' small brick chimney,' and the immense immigration field thus opened reminds one of what has been said about ' sermons in stones,' though such statements preclude the possibility of coming to the conclusion that there is ' good in everything.' For my part, I do not think it would be a very great charity to send for the starving thousands from Great Britain upon the pretence of a few public works that when : completed will have nothing to succeed them, and would leave mechanics in a far worse position afterwards than they would be in at home under similar circumstances.

He says that out here there is no such thing as stoppage of work through frost, but he forgets that the rain here has the same effect; that constant employment is scarce, and money still scarcer; and that the applications for payment often take up as much time as the work itself did. The writer also forgets that mechanics are constantly arriving and departing from the neighboring colonies; Australia has far too much surplus labor already, and the provinces of New Zealand have sufficient in the aggregate to do anything that is likely to be wanted, and these soon equalise supply and demand.

If ♦ Our Own' should again require a bricklayer to put up a * small chimney,' I would recommend him first to catch the money, and then advertise for tenders for contracting to build it, he wonld then soon find that there was no necessity for wasting time and misleading others by something worse than stupid statements that are put into air the gravity of print sixteen thousand miles off by those who, having no means of testing our local absurdities, do not know half so well the true position of the New Zealand labor market as Yours, &c, BRICK.

To the Editor of the -Colonist. Sir—Should the following extracts on bridge building in New South Wales be of any interest at the present time, when we are, I hope, about to commence this most important work of a civilised community, please to iDsert them at your earliest convenience; and I hope when we have fairly begun with the bridges we shall proceed with them until our principal rivers are bridged throughout the settlement. Out of a number of various sizes and construction I have selected three as specimens out of the list.

1. A bridge over the river Peel at Tamworth.— This consists of two laminated arches of 62 feet span each, with cast-iron springing plates; the total length is 129 feet, four feet over flood level, width of roadway 12 feet. Cost £1650.

2. Falbrook Bridge.—This is a wooden supertructure on stone piers; its design is a queen truss, with radiated braces and a tiebeam passing between the braces at half their height, and carrying the roadway, which is 12 feet 9 inches, four feet over the highest flood level, and consists of three bays of 68 feet 6 inches each, aud one bay of 40 feet; total length 245 feet 6 inches. Cost £2300. 3. Bridge over the river Cox.—This is a queen truss timber bridge on piers, with stone bases and wooden superstructure, of two spans of 63 feet and two of 20 feet each ; the road is 12 feet wide and 6 feet above the flood level; total length 170 feet. Cost

I was present at a meeting held at Spring Grove on Mooday last, where there was considerable anxiety shown as to the best site of the proposed bridge over the Wairoa river; for my. own part, I should decidedly prefer the upper site, had I not a firm conviction that it will be placed in a position of great danger, and would require a much greater outlay to make the approaches secure and substantial.

If you take a view of the tirer, you will find that a few hundred yards above the proposed site the river strikea off into three branches—one, of considerable size, joining the Allington estate, and another on the south side of the river, which conveys a vast quantity of water in the floods : these, being at first separate streams, unite very near the proposed site of the bridge, and the overflow inundating at least thrice the width of the river; it will therefore require extensive approaches on both sides of the river. It was observed at the meeting alluded tp that the river at the aforementioned site had undergone no alteration for a number of years past, which I think is perfectly correct, because there was nothing further that could be washed away, that having been done long ago. But I fear when the approaches are made the water will be found as resistless as ever.

I hope these few remarks will not be considered of an interested nature. Were it not for the above reasons, I should greatly prefer the higher, as proposed by the Provincial Council; but thinking differently, I have taken the liberty of laying the case before the public.

Yours, &c, W. HILDRETH, Mount Heshngton, Sept. 11.