WEEKLY BULLETIN.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5492, 2 November 1878, Page 2

WEEKLY BULLETIN.

(From the New Zealand Hail.) The broad-bottomed Ministry have drifted on to tho shore of “political rest,” and official comfort, each man on hia own “plank.” To borrow an expressive phrase from the Hon. Mr. Sheehan, they have “ got the Government” for another year. Tho session of 1878 is over. The effect of the legislation upon “ the happiness of the whole human “ race and of the countless millions of “ tho future” will probably not bo appreciably felt, at least immediately. Ministers are, to use a vulgar expression, “ down in tho mouth,” and their organ, after the grand fanfaronade of tho opening, sings small at the close. The “ strong “and united Government” were found not to be agreed upon tho principle or as to tho details of a single one of the “great” measures of policy which they presented to the House of Representatives, and their consequent failure was thus excused by Ministers yesterday morning. It was all the fault of the representatives of the people. We quote from tho Ministers own paper “ They/’ the Members, “were willing that the “ colonial liability should be decreased, ‘ ‘ were anxious that tho public works and “ immigration scheme should be proceeded with, but they objected to “ additional taxation —no matter what “ form it assumed—and were averse to a “ curtailment of local subsidies and “ grants in aid. They were willing in “ fact to improve tho position of their “ country, provided that the melioration “ could bo effected without personal dis- “ comfort to themselves and their consti- “ tuents, and above all things tho “ amendment must bo accomplished “ without tho' performance of any “ act calculated to injure reprosenta- “ tive popular!ty with its consti- “ tuents. Of course under such con- “ ditions real reform was impossible, and “ so compelled to bow to circumstances ‘ ‘ they could not control, tho members of “ the Ministry were forced to alter and 1 ‘ impair the measures they introduced “ until they were utterly impotent to “ servo tho great and good end for which “ they were devised.” If this be a true view of tho character of tho majority who support tho Government it was clearly the duty of Ministers to appeal to tho country. But they have not dared to do this, and for the best of all party reasons, because they know that the verdict would be against them, and that many, it not all, of the Ministers themselves might fail to get back to their “planks.” Tapanui Jobs, and waggon contracts; Bay of Islands electoral scandals; Press Agency jobs ; native land purchase jobs ; judicial jobs, such as tho late criminal prosecutions for libel at Hokitika,—;aro not good evidence of purity and economy in administration, and are not a good title to tho confidence of tho people themselves, whatever indifference their'representatives- may occasionally show in regard to such matters.

The Land Tax Act, ■ survives ; the Customs Tariff Act survives ; authority has been , given to spend eight millions of money 'upon railway lines, many of which , have not even yet been submittod.’to the. preliminary test of a flying survey. The lines that are ready are chiefly in Otago, and thero all the money will at once go. Taxes on tea, sugar, and other articles, the collection of which was easy, and the burden absolutely unfelt, have been remitted to_ the extent of £IOO,OOO a year, and in their stead has been imposed a Land Tax which will not produce £BO,OOO a year, which will create many additional “billots” for Ministerial lickspittles, and cause vexation and small annoyance to thousands of people, besides seriously depreciating the . value of. tho public estate. With this sacrifice of revenue we have greatly increased departmental expenditure instead of the reductipns which have been promised, and we are still required to pay for the Government yatch Hinemoa, for Ministerial residences, for expenses of stumping tours and special railway trains ; for tho now system of advertising, by favor, and without contract ; for the new Government Press Agency, and for all the other jobs, every one of which means unauthorised and wastefulexpondituroof the money of the people, who are taxed for tho purpose. The moat brilliant of _ stump speeches, or a series of these pxhibtious, is very dear at the price, and the Colony will therefore find it very expensive to keep Sir George Grey. Immigrants aro beginning to arrive in season, but not yet in sufficient numbers to meet the increasing demand for labor in every part of the Colony. Mr. Mao Andrew’s scheme for a direct steam service “frao ’yont the Tweed,” and 12,000 immigrants a year, for five years, has been postponed. The San Francisco service and the New Zealand Shipping Company, it is believed, will be able to meet the immediate needs of the Colony, if not tho desires of Dunedin. Wo have already more railways and telegraphs in proportion to tho number of our population than any other community iu_ the world ; it is no doubt a laudable ambition in “ big” things to have also more lines of ocean steamers than other people, and if wo could afford the cost tho ambition might be be indulged.: But we have made appropriations for this year greatly in excess ; of our estimated or possible revenue, and it would be well, therefore, to wait and see how tho new fiscal system works. That appears to have been the view of the House, which, so far, is not in sympathy with tho Government.