The Evening Star THURSDAY, JULY 6 1876.

Evening Star, Issue 4168, 6 July 1876, Page 2

The Evening Star THURSDAY, JULY 6 1876.

The Financial Statement, so fully reported by telegraph ©n the night on which it was delivered, must, by all impartial men, be pronounced one of the ablest ever made in the Colonies. Contrary to general expectation, the revenue has proved fully equal to the requirements of the Colony, although it has fallen short of the estimate formed by the Interim Treasurer. Although new loans, amounting together to two millions, will be asked for, L 750.000 of that amount is expected to be required to meet Provincial indebtedness. Perhaps a more difficult task never fell to the lot of a statesman than that which Sir Julius Voqel had to fulfil on Tuesday night. It was not merely that of explaining the financial position of the Colony, and the ways and means devised for meeting existing engagements or anticipating new ones ; nor was it the comparatively easy advocacy of sweeping away existing abuses. He had to mark cut an entirely new course. Old things have passed away, but new ones have not yet filled the : r places, and those new things were the difficulty. The Treasurer's speech afford* subjects for careful study. It marks out a scheme of government that, although distasteful to some, must commend itself on the whole to every economist as mainly based on sound and equitable principles. So far as Centralists tendencies are concerned, whatever the people of Dunedin or Otago have been informed, the Financial Statement must undeceive them. No attempt is made to centralise administration. Law-making as a necessity mu9t rest with the Parliament, but the spending of money is to ba remitted to the people themselves. There ig also this striking principle prominently standing out - a principle that must be accepted as sound and just, however distasteful to a class who are accustomed to seek for the public to do everything for them and to do nothing for themselves—the principle that those who desire to improve the district in which they live—that is, to improve their own property in value—shall pay a fair proportion of the cost. The speech recognises that there are some works of general utility aud some of local. Those that aro general affect the Colony as a whole ; those that are local may be regarded as suggested by individual interest and initiated for individual advantage. They may benefit a district, and therefore that district must bear the lion's share of the cost. This v.aw is much in ad* vanoe of the practice of Provincialism, which, has been to spend larjje sunn on

favored localities and leav« the rest uncared or. Another principle 'a somewhat more ! feebly laid hold of in justification of advancing the pi ice of land. That 25 per cent, on present prices is ilxtd as the lowest upset price throughout the Colony seems ' but very slight advanee upon the value of our lauded estate. Were money the only object it would be a very inadequate onsideratiou for the vast advance in the value of property consequent upon railway construction. "We know of persons holding land for winch they gave what was thought the high price of £7 an acre to the original grantee, who are now asking £26 an acre for it, with no additional improvement. Admit that this is an extreme ease, it yet serves to illustrate the position of affairs. But the monetary is not the only view that should betaken. We believe that the country and the world are not prep red t> adopt 'the principle of retaining the land in the hands of the Crown and granting leases for its use ; and therefore, however sound the principle, it would be wastg of time to make a stand upon it. The next bes 1 ; thing, then, is to adopt such a land system as will secure the settlement of competent cultivators possessing capital, and this the Government propose to effect by extending the deferred payment system to the occupation of 2QO acres, and to extend the " provision to new-comers and old sett-ers, to poor and rich." Whatever may ultimately he found advisable when generations have passed away and new and enlightened social organisations are fo med, the present obvious duty is to induce set tlement. Men, women, and children are of far more importance than abstract theories, and firmly as we believe that no generation has any right whatever to part with the common property to individuals, we are quite content that families should occupy and utilise land that, without their industry, would be comparatively useless and profitless. Singularly enough the great fight of the evening was on this land question. Sir Gkoroe Grp.y, as usual, played in Opposition on that mono-string Auckland. Injustice to Auckland was his theme. His cry was: "Don't raise the price of land in Auckland, it is not good enough to bear it;" Messrs Macankrkw and Stout were violent because they said it would stop the sale of land in Otago. His Honor did not say some two years ago that raising the price of land in Southland was wrong. He telegraphed for authority by the General Government to do so on the plea that in the prospect of railways being constructed there, the whole of the land would otherwise pass into the hands of capitalists who were applying for and obtaining large areas. It seems strange that what was thought right when done by Mr James Macandkew should be held wrong when proposed by Sir Julius Vogel. The House, however, affirmed the advisability of making the upset price 25 per cent higher from yesterday's date, so as to preclude speculative applications to purchase. We can hardly see how this v.ery prudent course can be objected to. That it will meet general approbation whether the plan is or is not ultimately affirmed we have no doubt, although there may be many who regret not having foreseen so favorable an opportunity for investment. We are glad to observe that instead of propositions for increased taxation the expressed desire of the Government is to diminish it. It is a work that cannot be immediately accomplished, nor do we know that, as a reality, future contributions for public purposes will be less than at present This is, however, the theory : General Government expenditure confined to purely Colonial expenses, such as Police, Courts of Justice, Asylums, Telegraphs, Postal Services, Lighthouses, and" Legislation, will not increase, but rather decrease proportionately to increase of population. There may be an increase of local rates, through the General Government handing over administration to local bodies, but that depends upon the people themselves, will be under their immediate control, and for their own benefit. Judging by the division list, the Opposition should, by this time, become aware that the Colony, as a whole, does not sympathise with Provincialism Thus far, the Otago members have not enlisted the sympathy of the House Mr Rkid's amendment limiting the operation of the advance in land to three Provinces in the North Island and excluding Auckland, was too selfish and too transparent a dodge to succeed; and instead of securing sglherents it seemed to induce opposition. It must not, however, be assumed that the division was a true test of the strength of parties. The motion was one that no business men could doubt the propriety of. It affirmed nothing more than that pending the will of Parliament the upset pr ce of land should be an advance of 25 per cent, on present rates. Had it been refused, a premium would have been offered for speculation. It really does not give a clue to the temper of the House on the policy enunciated, although were it thoroughly disapproved the vote would have assuredly gone against the Government.