AN EXPLANATION AND REPLY.

Tuapeka Times, Volume V, Issue 251, 21 November 1872, Page 8

AN EXPLANATION AND REPLY.

(To tlie Editor.) Sir,— Our attention has been called to a censumble. epistle signed " Autiskunk," winch appeared in your issue of the 7th instant. We regret to see .that you have allowed a respectable journal like- tlip Tuapeka. Timjss to became- tbe' means, of.distributing sucLpdis'repiuable aspersions' upon the characters aliict motives of pvLyatu individuals", as. are eonLiiinwl in that production. Our objeciV how-, ever, in addressing you at present is not so much to complain of tho want"' of consideration which you have displayed in the matter, as to assure-, people at a distance, who are not cog-! nisant . of all the circutnstancesj that there' is .no justification whatever for the insinuations of "Anti-skunk." Tbe facts are shortly these : That in order to cheapen coal for ourselves (a great crime, of course), and in doing so, to assist a very deserving arid muchrespected practical coal minor, who has n, larj^e family to- support, .we have applied for a coal Jicenso, and set. him to work upon an excellent seam of coal which he' discovered, and which, happensto be secure from floods and other drawbacks, which in past ye.trs have "deprived the community of fu«! for weeks "together." Tiie inhabitants of Alcxandra,_'with' one or two excep- j turns not woltfh mentioning (to wit, the lessees 'of- other- pits ),'-ftr^'ve'^y much 'indebted to 'fts'for th 4"f at&rSsfr we hayp 1 taken in the, ; matter'j' "arid 'they are" : also \vell awa^e, that, v so ''far' as'-'tboy. ' a) s 'e . : cofiPer'nefl,' "our^ action " laas^ b'ecn '.cftiite disinterested." '"_/ * - „ - Pray, assure the " Anti : skurik " that, personally, we have no intention of j opposing the creature in the coal busi- j J_ne,ss. • ~\V"e trust thar he is correct in ; [' his" sstatement'5 statement' that ''there are any! j amount of coal deposits" o.i Galloway '

yMfo-dr • /ife~brd«? ■■toyd.everb'p r tfteW, and further to' #heap.eh ' the price" of coal in^ the' district — thus conferring,, a benefit upon ourselves and the rest of. the community — we will be only too glad to treat with him — first, of course, requiring him to consent to have his teeth' filed down, and other : wise rendered" a safe and harmless creature to deal with. Atf present, we fear ho is of rafher' a venomous turn of mind, and we are not disposed to < run any risk. "We cannot, however, pretend -to much acquaintance with the " Anti-skunk " family. Judging "by the specimen you have introduced to ournoh'ce, in such n,n unkindly way, we' should say they are of a low organisation. Let us hope that they are in no wise correlated*to our old acquaintance'the " dog in the manger."

Apologising for* troubling you at such- length upon a personal matter, We remain, sir, yours, &c, • Campbell axd, Low;