The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY). WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 1879.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5786, 15 October 1879, Page 2

The New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY). WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 1879.

Majok Atkinson undertook to show the country and the House last night the financial position of New Zealand. He did the work admirably. He stated his case simply but forcibly, and was listened to with the most profound attention throughout. We have no intention of following the Colonial Treasurer through the whole of his Statement. A full report of it appears elsewhere, and we refer our readers to it. But some comment is called for upon the very grave state of affairs laid bare by Major Atkinson. So far as the income and expenditure of the last financial year is concerned, there was but little to add to or retract from what was already known. The expenditure on nine departments of the service, which might have been cut down, was shown to have increased from an estimated expenditure of £866,000 in 1877-78, to an estimated expenditure of £903,000, and an actual expenditure of £953,000, in 1878-79. The expense of the Na tive Department has risen‘from £34,000 in 1876 to £43,000 in 1877, and £58,000 in 1878-79; but it was pointed out that whereas salaries had formerly been set down at £19,000, they now appeared at £15,000, but contingency expenses had meanwhile risen from £4OOO to £16,000, which showed that the House no longer exercised th« same control over this branch of the expenditure as formerly. It was not until Maj or Atkinson pointed out the enormous diff orence between the revenue and expendil jure for the coming year as estimated by his predecessor that his speech caused m uch surprise. Ac-

cording to that estimate there would be a deficit of £003,000 to meet either by retrenchment or extra taxation. However,

the Colonial Treasurer went on to show that he was now much bettor able to estimate tho revenue for the coming year than his predecessor had been. The revenue returns for the first quarter of the financial year afforded him a new and trustworthy guide in preparing his estimates, and after a careful consideration of tho position ho was led to anticipate a deficit of not less than £312,000, to bu met by retrenchment or fresh taxation. Turnin'' his attention to tho condition of affairs as disclosed by tho returns for the September quarter, he showed that the expenditure exceeded the receipts by £330,000. ThelateGovernmenthad issued no less than £400,000 worth of deficiency bills to meet current expenses, which was the full amount allowed to be issued by law. Nevertheless the new Government found, on coming into office, that no provision had been made to meet the payments of the subsidies to the local bodies which were now due, or to meet other payments, some of which were urgent. It was this present necessity which compelled the Government to ask the House to pass a temporary measure for the issue of an extra £200,000 worth of deficiency bills.

In the Public Works Department Major Atkinson made some very startling revelations. They were challenged both by Mr. Macandebw and by Mr. Baliance. However, the Colonial Treasurer declared that the figures had been supplied to him by the heads of the departments, and he had every reason to believe them strictly accurate. He stated that, to meet the outstanding liabilities of the Public Works Department, to which the country was committed up to the end of the September quarter —including the advances outstanding—a sum of £712,000 would be required. Of this, about half-a-million would have to be taken out of the five million loan. The late Government had also entered into engagements which would necessitate the payment, on public works, up to tho 31st of December, of a further sum of £733,000, and bad also entered on works which would, if carried out, entail a further expenditure of £902,000, up to June 30th. Consequently, the country was already committed to an expenditure of £2,100,000 out of the new five million loan.

In regard to tlie purchase by the Government of native lands, the expenditure in the past was shown to have been very heavy, but the prospective liabilities are simply enormous. Money has been expended upon native lands, in part payment for the land, to complete the purchase of which would require a further expenditure of about a million sterling. These are startling facts, and call for the attention and consideration of men of all parties in the House. Whatever Government may be in office, this matter cannot be neglected without a grievous injury being done to the country. The late Colonial Treasurer, Mr. Bailance, asserted that but for the late no-confidence motion having been passed last year the information would have been supplied to the House. Wo maintain that Sir George Grey had a far better opportunity of making a Statement than Major Atkinson has had, and that the no-confidence motion which was passed did not furnish any valid excuse for suppressing important information. It will be remembered that on August 4 Sir George Grey postponed his reply to Major Atkinson’s criticism on his finance until he made his Financial Statement, and that on the sth the Premier asked for a delay “ for the purpose of preparing the Financial Statement” which was never prepared, or if prepared was afterwards ca ncelled. When the public have once realised the fact that a keen judge of finance has declared that a deficit of £900,000 has to be met either by retrenchment or taxation during the next year ; that the land tax imposed last year will barely realise £IOO,OOO ; that the income tax proposed this year was only estimated to bring in £200,000, the gravity of the situation will be recognised. At the present time no class in the colony is in a position to bear a large increase of taxation. It may have been, as stated by Mr. Ballance, the intentionof the Grey Government to increase the Customs duties for the sake of raising revenue, but Sir George Grey has always vehemently denied it. It may also have been the custom of Colonial Treasurers to anticipate the raising of a loan. But such a thoroughly reckless system of finance as that exposed by Major Atkinson in connection with the Public Works policy has never hitherto been even suspected, still less countenanced. If the new loan hung fire where would the country be I The increased expenditure on postal and telegraph, and on public buildings and domains, may have been necessary, but extravagance in building is one of the commonest and most popular extravagances of spendthrift Ministers, who are anxious to purchase public favor with the public money. Everyone who heard the Colonial Treasurer’s statement last night admitted that it was a masterly effort, and quite a model of clearness and conciseness ; that it showed a perfect grasp of the subject, and that it contained as little comment and criticism as was possible under the circumstances.