WHAKATANE.

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume IV, Issue 312, 4 September 1875, Page 3

WHAKATANE.

(yimi OIT. OWX COEHi:?rOM)EXTA I west apologise for leaving the WTmkataue column of your valuable paper a Flank tor above a mouth, but there has Hvu little doing here in the staple occupation of our population—that is, in farming; indeed tlm season of tlie year does not admit of such, and everything has been quiet, in order to improve the time, our aboriginal neighbours have, lionetcr. been spending"their days as evilly as one cun well conceive. Over one of their ancient rites they have planted a modem vice. Having dug up a dead body for removal to the sepulchres ol its kindred, thev have been expending all their loose cash on the demon Hum, to such, an extent as to make the very atmosphere redolent of the stencil thereof. Fortunate, that in such an excited state oi the public mind, no bones were broken and no lives lost. In these orgies we cannot fail to mark the inferiority of the Maori; in fact, even when soben tlio Maori’s constant excuse for any of his failings or shortcoming—which often arise from pure laziness -is that lie is a Maori. Now what cun your philanthropist make of a. people that are content to count themselves as inferior to other people in the scale ol: humanity ? pi’nun wouks. Now that the season approaches •when surveyors and road contractors fro forth to open up the count in , it may bo well to state publicly a few 1 facts relative to this district. On the ; To TVko ami Whalcatano Hoad there 5 lias boon next to nothing done since [ April, 1871, when the road wanted only about ten small culverts and, (no miles of swamp made to render the * whole passable for a coach and six. It ' is to bo hoped that the additional ’ price offered ol nearly double uhat was paid ior that already completed i.i’., forty-live instead of twenty-five ■ shillings'per chain—will induce the : so-called native “contractors” to go on 1 with {heir contract, or else will move the department to provide imiuigi guts oi mukor workmen to complete the job. As * "('"’ards the ol her road, heie, on -.-mUffi has boon hognn, namely) tlm v.vjuikatano Valley Hoad, some earth work f omi ,; n o. a h-'.w eight feet wide has , Urewora tribe at uiffin •’ throe miles, being ■ tween the Warm' confiscated H that rose 1 1 ido"

mg expenses, wear and tear, Ac,, nw -T likvly absorb ai : rcwi’*' irom ll'ai source- » f not more besides-T-h* fmmo years. Of the North .IVlanti’a s'juic in the unexpended borrowed mone\ n -w <■ minus ot *he (u*i) ,>r a Government. the gr. ; n, r portion, if no f . ' ' whole, is to ho appvd n completmg 0 “ f lowing North Island ;x .* v ,w. too to } pn- • ’ -pier to Walpukarau, AucJ’ • mid Auckland to Subm. •-. . . > ■■ -bung can be calculate i a-mu to:r- - \s\cd Irot that quarter. >•' . • lha £600,000 per annum - . .-rcvenu,the North Island ear •' I.* puul upon having. And now It m- .. wh u demands are likely to be made upon 1 aat .euv.ue us the event of separation. Of the whole of the old Provincial loans it will be found that the four North Island provinces are liable for about one-third, or £1,150,000, out of some £3,500,100. This proportion (one-third) also expresses, as nearly as possible, the rontribu> lions of all the North Island provinces to the consolidated revenue, as compared with those of the whole colony ; and, although it is difli* cult to ascertain exactly what proportion of ! the X 1£.000,000 borrowed by the Genera! Government has been expended on the North Island, 1 do not think we should be far wrong in estimating it, including our share of wiv expenditure, at one-third. Assuming, tlmr* fore, that in the apportionment oi the pu ’ burdens, as they are called, of the colonw 'no North Island would have to bear ouo-third, and to provide interest on that amount, at per cent., and sinking fund at 1 per cent., wo should have to face, as a first and permanent charge upon our annual income, no less a sum than £305,050. To this must be added our (North Island) share (which I shall continue to estimate at one-third) of the cost of public departments, such as Legislative, Executive, stamp, printing, Ac., £25,(00. One*third cost of the Administration of Ji slice, such as Supreme Courts, District Courts, KM. Courts Crown Prosecutors, land transfer, deeds registry, Ac., £22,000. One-third, cost of Postal and Telegraph Departments, postal contracts, &c., £7-1,000. 0«e-third cost of Customs Department, £lo,oo(X Ono.thmi of proposed grants to Municipalities and Loan Hoards, £2O 000 ; and miscellaneous, still one-third only, £14,000. Wc should be deceiving ourselves, however, by assuming that one-third only of the present cost ol: mamtaining the Armed Constabulary and Mmtia and Volunteers would full upon the Norto Island. On the contrary, out of the present estimated cost of £113,000 per annum for these forces, it would, 1 think, be found that wo could not safely set down cur ImbdOy under these beads at less than namely, Armed Constabulary, £85,000, and Militia and Volunteers, £15,000. Provision should also be made for ‘education in lieu ol the present bouse and manhood taxes, ami this, for the North Island, cannot: bo estimated at under £50,000 (lackland alone requires £25,000 per annum.) Thus, it will be seen, that while, in the event of separation, wo could talk sentiment about being our own masters, and having at our own disposal the £OOO 000 we now contribute to the revenues ol the whole colonv, the feeling of self-satisfaction would ho considerably marred when wo rnnerd™ that., with our £OOO.OOO, we 1 liabilities to the extent pf and probably mm- 1 ' ahovn^second