The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1877-08-21 00:00:00

OUR WATER SUPPLY.
To the Editor.

Sir.—! don't like rushing into print to complain nt the ;
managenient of public affairs, or the conduct of public
officers, but I do think I have some reason for complaining
so-day, and shall be glad if you will give me just a brief
space to give vent to my feelings. If it were the first
time I had had to suffer siniilar annoyance I wouldhit
my a word, but several tinsos before the same thing has
occurred. I refer to the practise of suildonly turning off
the vat u- in different parts of the town, without giving
any notice to the inhabitmts of their intention to do no.
This in-irsing, Mean 10.30, I discovered that the supply in
nor neighbourhood hail been suddenly stopped—no notice
hat been given, and myself, with many of my neighbours
were left without evens sufficient supply for the ordinary
domestic purposes. On enquiring I am coolly told it is
not to be turned on again until 3 p.m. Now, sir, this, I
maintain, is enough to provoke a saint to complain—to
Is, left five or six hours in the middle of a warm August
; day without a drop of water, to say nothing of the incon-
venience to good honse-wives who after a Sunday's quiet
; have always extra wasibing and cleaning to perform.
Surely there mud be something rotten in the manage-
ment; for, if they did no more, the "Powers that be" could,
I I should imagine, afford to pay the crier a shilling to
announce in the neighbourhood that the water would be
turned off at a certain hour—if they can't afford it there
are those who would rather pay for it to be done than to
; be subjected to the annoyance of which I complain—
, although Heaven knows we pay dearly enough for our
; water already.—Apologising for troubling you, I am,
; yours truly,
, Dorchester, Monday, noon, August 20th, 1877.

J)RL

THE CASE AGAINST MB. DUNNING.
At the County Petty Sessions, held at the Shirehall,
Dorchester, on Saturday, William Henry Donning,
a farmer, of Charminster, surrendered to answer the
charge of assaulting Henry Cox.—Mr. Weston again
appeared for the prosecution; and Mr. Andrews for
the defendant —Supt. Batty was bound over to
prosecute at the Quarter Sessions to be held on
October 15i, and the various witnesses were also bound
over to appear. —The defendant was formally com-
mitted for trial, and one surety in 1:.1111 accepted for his
appearance.
We have received a letter from the Rev. W. L.
Barnes, of Channinater, which obviously, the case
being still std jediee, we tamed publish, in which the
rev, gentleman accuses no of having circulated "all
unfair report." Now we emphatically deny this, and
we challenge Mr. Barnes to show us one single sentence
in it which did not officially come before the ceurt and
which at all has been misconstrued. Mr. Barnes com-
plains of our sensational heading and Mr. Weston's
sensational opening. Whether the one or the other, or
both, were warranted by the facts elicited we don't
trouble to argue. We hold our own opinion, With
Mr. Dunning 's private character we have nothing
whatever to do. Our reporter who took the case knew
nothing whatever of Mr. Dunning—in fact, had never
seen him before, and, therefore, on his part there could
be no grounds for what Mr. Barnes for some occult
reason calls "a party attack." Mr. Barnes speaks
highly of Mr. Dunning, and, we have no doubt, feels
himself justified in doing so, and we would not for use
moment say he in wring. But, when he continues an
elaborated defence of the affair, we must remind him
we are not allowed to comment upon it.
"MAN ANOUT CotINTRS" in the Slevi,oroc Joorwil
writes: —Rumours of an extraordinary kind have been
heard in theneighbourhood of the county town of Dorset
lately. It was said that a Fanner hail bunted a
Labourer with a pack of dogs, and worried him to
death. Here was a case for the Unionist+ t. It was
hoard last Satin ilay before the l•weliester bench, and
although the primecuting attorney had got up flock
Tom's Cabin, awl piled up the pathetic high the ' Man
Hunt resolied itself into this: A fanner found •
strange man on his fano, and told hint to go. lie
declined ; the farmer had his slogs with him, anti he
set them on, as ii sliephenl acts his slog to drive sheep.
'lle strange visitor shrieked, but would not go, saying
lie couldn't; but when the dogs came near him he
found his legs and fled, and he is now in Forstou, a
lunatic, as, no donld, he was before. When examined
by the doctors he is found covered with scratches from
thorns and brambles, but with no injury that could lie
I traced to a ids,. I am not gluing to defend the farmer;
but one would like to know how you are going to
proceed when you have got an intruder—especially if
lie be a lunatic—in your grounds who won't go by fair
means,