THE COLONY'S FINANCES

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11510, 17 February 1903, Page 8

THE COLONY'S FINANCES

STATEMENT BY SEfc J. G. WARD. '|I|| (SPECIAL TO "THS PRESS.") " W^M DUNEDIN, February I_'VS Sir J. G. Word, prior to his departnjtj,/SSi for Melbourne, replied to the cri_casi_ of^-li Mr Fraser, M.H.R., on tho finances of Ujtf^ colony. . -^ Ho said that oven thbugh the expen&M^ ture lias gone up during nine months, it Itj***^ more than counterbalanced by the iai £$ creases in the revenue, to the extent ot J Vd £10,100. There are at the present tisM v^ being carried on economies in different.'rjj directions which no one can assess at theirLvdi* approximately correct value until the ensV'j'jjw of tho financial year. £.g| "it is quite certain that be a,.s^ very heavy increase in expenses during t_«)%nt last quarter of the year, and now Mr Fra* '"^M ser indicates that "without any abnormal IS cause, the expenditure has gone* on increas- fl ing for the first nine monthe of the ye*xy-"'fl but I think he should have pointed out thaA-lrj| the revenue had gone on increasing daring '-W tlie same period, and that tho increase" in revenue was actually, not approximately, »"w £10,100 greater than tlie increase of eav''^ penditure. I should say that instead of '""v| the increased expenditure" fairly looked at, ' 'ii not being satisfactory, so long" as there ja '"7a healthy increase of revenue the increase \fy of expenditure should be regarded as satae- '"£? factoiy, and, in any case, as unavoidable,' \i< "My opinion its that tlie condition of _i»'* v V; revenue of tne colony for tlie nine months'--'^'s is not only a splendid result, but should 'V? t inspire confidence in every avenue of trade '';'< and industry, as well as adding to the high, <^:,> opinion held of the productiveness of oar If' country by those abroad." ' '■* Referring to Mr Frascr's remarks regard-; -Va ing the Public Works Fund, that it was quits' Jjtvi, unlikely that anything like the amount;^ voted could be spent, hecsuio the Govera-f-5 meut could not get tlie money. Sir Joseph , ,3l Ward said: "More money than the Govern-'y^l memt was prepared to take has been offered -S|| in the colony, ever since the colony htdf^Kj; authority for obtaining the money underrj%|| tlie Loan Acta. It may surprise Mr Frater?i|| to know that we have accepted by no means^^ the whole of the money Which was offere4'J§fj in the colony. I have no doubt we could^B have gone on had it, as a matter of po-cy,i|^p been considered the wisest course to hav»J||| followed, without' borrowing on tlie Lqb,<j|S don money market at present. The result o!f|j| the flotation of the present loan, whidi there^^ is reason to believe will be better than t_ssl|l flotation of tlie last loan, shows the w^^M dom of the course followed by the Gov«ro«Jll ment in carrying on tne affairs of thVm| colony until they believed the right t-Whfll had arrived for the purpose of obtain_!gl|§f in London such a portion of the lou^f^ money as it was decided to raise there— UW®. this case a million and a quarter. Owrjp^ revenue shows very large increases mdeedri]^i| Trade conditions throughout Urn colony art/i-. I .* good, and the condition of the colony itseliv""^ is one for which every well-wisher of it? ,"-4: ought to be, quite irrespective of his poU-i<;^i tics, thankful in' the extreme. ■ * r "It will be found at the end of the Marts J| financial year that the general results hi * '£ the whole of the twelve monthe of t-5,,-^ finances of the colony will be of the most -'"•? satisfactory kind, and that there will be _> 'M very- large balance of the revenue over ex- - ~?M penditure. It is beyond question that the - ',-Jf general revenue of the colony is atN_f l > . r "^ and including the transfer of some £200,000 r ' & to the Public Works Fund, ifc will be found r9s that the balance at the end of the year will ?.«ijs be greater than estimated by Mr Fraser. f!s| In. the Railways, 'Post Office, end Customs 'frfs Departments, the results will be found'toS^ be a record;" '■,' Yjs?s In reply trf' the "Times's criticism in £J®S the shipment of produce to Africa, Sir 'Sjffi Joseph Ward said that out of the vetyfHlj large quantities of oats that have left NeW-V^pl Zealand, there has been only one complsi-V'i^ and that referred to, 200 bags by .©ns's|S steamer, is an infinitesimal quantity, an^Tls the mere fact of it being 90 small was a\sl& very high compliment to the care of t_t}'**||j graders at the different ports where t_*}&s| cargoes were shipped. In this par-6ulaf^ s i^ case tho steamer's cargo was damaged/^!: through her meeting with bad weather ,"'^l4