Melbourne botanic Garden
17/11/70
Sir
I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of yesterday in reference to the location of earthcloset manure from the Industrial Schools,1 and beg in reply to state, that the spot chosen by me for the purpose is one of the remotest from the lines of traffic that can be found on the ground. I inspected it personally yesterday, and found that the man, to whom the duty of deposing the manure is allotted and who is an employee of the Industrial Schools Establishment, did not cover up the dung properly. I have accordingly given strict instruction, that he should be more careful in his work hereafter.2
Thanking you, Sir, for drawing my attention to this matter I remain your very obedient servant
Ferd. von Mueller, M.D.,
Director of the botanic Garden
E. G. Fitzgibbon Esqr
Townclerk of Melbourne
&c &c &c
E. FitzGibbon to M, 16 November 1870.
On 3 December 1870 John Fullerton, Inspector of Nuisances, wrote to FitzGibbon: 'I have the honor to report that I visited the place referred to in the annexed letter, on the 24th ultimo — and found a pit of Nightsoil uncovered, and flowing over the surface of the ground. I called at Dr Muellers Office, his Clerk accompanied me to the place and saw the filthy condition it was in, he stated that steps would be taken to have the work done better, I explained to him the way it could be covered so as to prevent it spreading about — I again visited the place this day and found a pit had just been covered up but the Clay put into the pit had forced a portion of the manure out it which had spread about five or six yards over the surface of the ground. I met the man who attends to this work and directed him to have the soil covered that was running over the land from the pit — The manner in which this work is done is to dig a pit about two feet deep, then fill it with nightsoil, and when the Clay is put on it the soil is forced out of the pit over the adjoining land'. E. FitzGibbon to M, 19 December 1870, drew the continuing problem to M's attention.
Please cite as “FVM-70-11-17,” in Correspondence of Ferdinand von Mueller, edited by R.W. Home, Thomas A. Darragh, A.M. Lucas, Sara Maroske, D.M. Sinkora†, J.H. Voigt† and Monika Wells accessed on