AFFAIRS IN NEW CALEDONIA.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5308, 30 March 1878, Page 5 (Supplement)

AFFAIRS IN NEW CALEDONIA.

(From the correspondent of the Sydney Evening News, February 21.) Mr. Higginson has been unsuccessful in his efforts to form a new bank, and contrary to my expectations, the Government here are not yet instructed to pay the liabilities incurred by their protege the Bank of New Caledonia, There is no money coining in, and the place has been regularly pumped dry by the representatives of three Sydney banks. Works and mines of all kinds have been stopped, a reduction has been made in the salaries of the officials by the Government ; a considerable number of the staff have been sent Home by the Navarino, which sailed yesterday, and people are leaving the place by every opportu-nity—seventy-five last mail, sixty leave by this out going mail, and I understand 350 left by the Navarino. Disease and death have been busy since my last, and many respected and deserving citizens have gone to their Hnal rest-ing-place. Altogether such a scene of woe, misery, and wretchedness, I suppose, has never been witnessed before; and the coup de yrace to the colony has been given by the Government granting to Mr. John Higginson, of this colony, the little favor of 300 men for twenty years, the men to be fed and clothed by ihe Government, Mr. Higginson the men the munificent sum of Id. each per diem; and, to sum up, I see no remedy, unless speedy assistance is given by the Government, but for Noumea to compound with Sydney. Some £SOOO per month was expected by Mr. Higginson in working the Balade Coppermine; but immediately there will be an end to this expenditure, as Mr. Higginson will be enabled to work the mine gratis, I mui-t explain to you that Mr. Higginson has a speciality as to making contracts. He made one with the Government some years ago whereby he erected sugar mills, plant, So. as Bourail. The Government had to supply sugar-cane—-a great number of tons per year, and to make a great quantity of rum, half of which would revert to Mr. Higginson. The contract was for twenty years (the Government like this period—2o years —for some particular reason). The Government could not fulfil their contract, and it was estimated Mr. Higginson was a loser to the amount of—or properly speaking if the contract had been carried out, Mr. Higginson would have made £28,000 a year by the contract, or £560,000 for the twenty years ; so, to compensate Mr. Higginson, the Government gave him 300 men for twenty years on the terms above stated. Mr. Higginson not expending £SOOO per month on the Balade will only effect a saving in the twenty years of £1,200,000, and whether copper is £7O, £SO, or £4O per ton is of very little consequence to Mr. Higginson. Of course, Mr. Higginson is perfectly right to make the best terms he can with the Government, or any institution, or any individual, but for the interests of the colony at large 1 consider it would have been better for the Government to »ive Mr. Higginson even a sum like £-300,000 cash, if he would accept it, and cry quits. However, the Government have made the second contract with Mr. Higginson, which I consider far more foolish than the first, and the papers were signed yesterday. This is how we do things in Noumea. As far as the bank matters are going on, we hear of fresh revelations every day as to the peculation of the bank officials. Mr. Monmigny, the cyndic, or official assignee, has some happy knack of bringing fresh cases to light. But what is the use of locking the stable door when the horse is gone ? This institution is under the entire supervision of the Government, and if ordinary scrutiny had been observed what misery and ruin would have been avoided; and we now blame the Government more for their laxity than the officials for their misdoings. Eumanum est errare. Since my last the Society Fonciere has been made insolvent. Some property might have been saved if this happened some months ago, for the manager has been sacrificing property right and left to put off the evil day. The Governor leaves the colony next month. He has made many friends by his strict impartiality. He pushed on the public works to a considerable point ; and we have to thank his Excellency for the introduction of the water to Noumea. He, with great foresight, saw that Noumea would suffer to a terrible extent if we bad not water ; with great determination he stuck at it, until we got it ; and this summer, if the water had not been laid on, the entire population would have been swept off. The treasurer of the transportation service has just hanged himself. He was going in the Navarino, with his wife and family, to France, when, at the last moment, it was discovered his accounts were irregular—short, I believe, to the amount of 14,000 franks. He was greatly respected, and his friends here would have made up the deficiency, but the ordinateur would not have it, and, dreading the disgrace, he committed suicide.