The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY). FRIDAY, JULY 18, 1879.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5710, 18 July 1879, Page 4

The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY). FRIDAY, JULY 18, 1879.

It has now been positively ascertained that the alarming representations which were made by the Ministerial party yesterday, as to the consequences of the delay in passing the Loan Bill, are entirely without foundation. Sir George Grey’s statements to the House, which spread the belief that a serious financial emergency existed, were almost without a trace of truth, and were made for the sole purpose of embarrassing the Opposition. As he always does, he took care not to say anything definitely which he could be held accountable for afterwards. He told, in fact, only those half truths which are the worst of untruths, and he arranged the circumstances of his announcement so as to create a panic which the announcement itself could not have created. It is little to his credit truly, that just when his political career is drawing to a disgraceful close he should have outdone all his previous displays of perfidy and recklessness. He succeeded for the moment, perhaps, in bringing some odium on the Constitutional party, who are now engaged in the beneficial task of ridding the colony of his disastrous regime ; but it was a poor achievement, at the best. It has not caused the loss of a single vote to the Opposition, and, though the Ministerial organs have aided its effect by the most shameless falsehoods and the most insane exaggeration, good care has been taken that public opinion shall not be influenced by it. Outside of Wellington it has hardly had any effect at all, for the simple reason that the country generally never expected the House to rush the Loan Bill through at a sitting on the first day of the session, but is thoroughly opposed to any such ruinous proceedings. Prompt measures were adopted too for letting the true state of the case be known in all the centres of population, and we have every reason to believe that no public uneasiness whatever resulted from the wise and resolute course taken by the Opposition yesterday. Since then it has, as we have said, been clearly ascertained that the whole affair was a discreditable trick on the part of the Premier to burk discussion on the Address, to put the Opposition in a false position before the country, and to stave off the defeat which he now knows is inevitable. We are assured that thero ;<• •Jot.lLy no pressingly urgent reasons why the debentures should be sent Home by the outgoing mail, that the relations between the Government and the Bank admit of all necessary provision being made for the preservation of the public credit, and that the delay that has occurred will not cause an hour’s postponement of the actual raising of the loan. The only difference will be that the House will pass the Bill with decent deliberation instead of indecent haste, and the loan will be’raised by a Government fit to be trusted with the management of the colonial finance, instead of a Government not fit to be trusted at all. What little anxiety has arisen on account of this matter is attributable solely to the unpirdonable duplicity of Sir George Grey, and to the ridiculous misrepresentations of his deluded supporters. Sir William Fox’s mind, and the mind of those who follow him, we are sure, is perfectly easy on the subject, because he did what he did from the very beat motives, and because subsequent investigations have shown that he did perfectly right. He thwarted the devious designs of a trickster ; and, without prejudicing the interests of the colony at all, sustained the constitutional control of Parliament over the public expenditure. This being demonstrated, the victory is entirely on his side.