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Grey River Argus, Volume VIII, Issue 569, 9 September 1869, Page 2

An amount of money will shortly be paid to the credit of the County, which comes most opportunely to relieve her from her financial embarrassments. We refer to the sum of about £12,000, which will be the proportion of the sinking funds of the Canterbury Loans, payable to Westland in proportion to the division of the liabilities on account of these loans, which was recently made by the Arbitrators between Canterbury and Westland. This was accomplished by the passing of the Public Debts Sinking Funds Act Amendment Act, 1869, which contains a clause to this effect : — " It is hereby provided that so much of such moneys as shall be the proceeds of any part of a Sinking Fund of a Provincial Loan shall be paid by the Commissioners to the Provincial Account of the Province by or on behalf of which such Loan shall have been raised. Provided that where by law the liabilities iv respect of any such Provincial Loan or any part thereof or the liabilities in respect of any portion of the Consolidated Loan into which such Provincial Loan or any part of such Provincial Loan shall have been converted shall on or after the constitution of a new Province or on or after the constitution of the County of Westland have been apportioned between the Province by which such Loan was raised on the one part and the new Province or County as the case may be on the other part then such moneys being the proceeds of the Sinking Fund of such apportioned Loan shall be apportioned by the Commissioners unucr the said Act between the Province raising such a Loan on the one part and such new Province or County as the case may be on tho other part in the like proportions aa such liabilities have beeu by law apportioned." It was at first thought that the amount payable to Westland under this clause would have to be applied for the purpose of wiping off existing indebtedness on account of her proportion of the loans ; but it now appears that it can be made available for general purposes, so that this addition to the County finances will be very welcome.