THE Grey River Argus. TUESDAY, JANUARY 3, 1871.

Grey River Argus, Volume X, Issue 774, 3 January 1871, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. TUESDAY, JANUARY 3, 1871.

In rnaking*our a.htia&ljesii'rhe. of .'the contmercial relations nf the "port of Greymouth as in a general way representing the actual condition of the; district of which Greymouth is trie, key, we regret that we are not able to our readers with complete tables in this issue. Owing to the year terniinatinw on Saturday, which is usually a half holiday, and-the fact that yesterday was a day closed to public business, several of the returns that we have been in the habit of publishing at the commencement' of the ne\y year have not been made up by the CustomsJ authorities, and *fcheir publicalfon * has* necessarily to be deferred. We arc able, however, from the returns that are at our disposal, to form a very fair estimate of the relation which the transactions of the district for the year just expired bear to those of *, the preceding twelve months. The result of the comparison, although ft one sense disappointing, is-however encouraging. The increase in the imports and decrease in the exports is comparatively slighf in each case, whilst if we contrast this with the diminution under the.ss heads at other, parts of the Colony, 'we have great reason, to congratulate the district upon its'healthy condition and the evidences it 'affords of -steady prosperity. We .are- unfortunate in being^ only able to view the returns which are*snpplied by .the^ustom H^puse^w no means at present of judging . how^far the sinallness ," of increase in importations is^ to be accounted for by increased " powers of home production. That the district is much less dependant upon- foreign supplies in respect of 'many' articles of general consumption than-nt was formSrly is proved by the fact that local agricultural production in sthe district has^bee^nmiich»increasgd. wJk* u ' : ajr/.great pront^to tfie prbdricerHr Tne transition also of the habits oijg the population from their previous*reckles3 and -improvident character to one. more befitting * a settled and industrious community, 'may. to a considerable extent account., for a large . deficiency in-y&he import duties on liquors. One great cause foj congratulation lies in the fact that the general; depression throughout tlie Colony has been less severely felt in this district, thauift any in New Zealand. Gfquld "we also furnish our readers withihe valuable#information that will be 'supplied by the forthcoming census, we should find maffy additional causes of satisfaction. Whilst possibly the floating population of miners may have fallen off, there is no doubt that the. population of a more lasting^ character has increased.' The mining industry in this "part of the Colony is undergoing that change which has already taken place in California, Australia, andinOtago. More "systematic appliances, involving the investment of large capital, are a taking the r jourof the superficial efforts of old. Time is required to deve.lope the results of this ' change ; but no one can doubt that those •'results -will' fully justify the most sanguine expectations. The evidences that we see .abound us on every side of conb'denc&*jin the f«tirr£f of the district —the increased occupation of the soil— the^dditions to fhous^hold property— and the' vitality of our commercial interests of e7ery kind, really ard more, reliable data than any formal returns. Judging the Grey District with anj r other part of the Culony, it may be regarded as equalling, if not sur- • passing, any of its rivals in all tU&so conditions %hich go to form a prosDerouit commiynity. ' %iw^ .^ ..".*".. '..,** .*« Th*e" contrast 'of our "trade returns for ! 1870 with those of 1869 may?be stated as follows I:- '* ' . CUSTOMS KEVENUE. '. 18G9 £42,224 * * 1870 ... 45,796 Showing an increase on this itemgrf £3,572. KXPORT REVENUE. .1869 * £14,609 • 1870 12,577 Showing a decrease of only 1,032 The above return of course is indicative of a slight falling off in the production of gold, 'but it is so small as to occasion little or no feeling of distrust as to the resources of thejlistrict. From the above naked returns we may draw this inference that,;jwhilst the export of gold has only declined ,£1(5!32, our imports have increased by more than double.Jhat amount — an evidence that capital is increasing, and that other products than golcjrtrovide th 9 population with the means or paying for their imported supplies. It is an indication of the* relative condition of this district with older settlements that wtlilst the gprt of Wellington is one of the * oldest in the Colony, its import revenue in 1869 was only £58,212^; while that of Greymouth, in the fifth year of its existence, was little more than ,£12,000 less than tnat of its older' cousin,%hile its exports wereujnore than double. The lesson conveyed^jby the short review we • have just made is one of confidence in the land we live in, and of *hope for the future. *^ _ *