The Standard AND PEOPLE'S ADVOCATE. (PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SATURDAY.)
SATURDAY, JANUARY 30, 1875.
“ We shall sell to bo man justice or right: We shall deny to no man just ice or right: We shall defer to no man justice or right.”
Looking upon the past and present obstacles that still stand in the way of our advancing at a pace co-equal with the rest of the colony ; and knowing how hard it is to bear with a continued lack of prosperity, we cannot but congratulate the province of Taranaki on the turn the state of its affairs seems at last to have taken. We prefer to consider it to be rather the efflux of that tide which a great thinker, and experience, have taught us to believe ebbs and flows in all things mundane, than a hap-hazard slice of luck which Fortune’s wheel has thrownup. There are, mutatis mutandis, many points of interest, and leading characteristics connected with the past history of the province of Taranaki, that bear a close resemblance to those troubles which have afflicted the district of Poverty Bay; the difference is that Taranaki has always found faithful champions to do battle in her behalf against untoward circumstances. Like Poverty Bay, many districts in Taranaki have been theatres of desolation; battle and murder, and sudden death by the hands of traitorous assassins, have all. tended largely to check, not only an influx of population from without, but have also retarded a settled plan of organization from within. For years after the original outbreak of the war, Taranaki, as a province, had but a small political status. Its sources of revenue were all but dried up, because the settlers had lost heart in the accumulated weight of misfortunes that bowed them to the ground. It was useless to waste the funds of the colony in the prosecution of Public Works of a peaceful character, consequently the disturbed districts were abandoned to martial law and military road making. Settlements that once were populated with a thriving, prosperous, people, were burned and scattered to the wind, while men, women and children alike fell victims to a ruthless butchery which the world—• thanks be to God!—has seldom seen equalled. So far wc have gone hand in hand with our ultra-montane friends in misfortune ; let us hope that both are emerging from the dire miseries of the past, to the enjoyment of a lengthy day of uninterrupted peace : Taranaki obviously is, and we repeat our congratulations.
His Honor, F. A. Carrington, Esq., opened the twenty-fourth session of the Provincial Council of that province on the 12th inst., with a speech which, to quote from the Taranaki Herald, is of ‘‘unusual significance. It has not “that air of impecuniosity which we “have been so accustomed to hear in “ the Council Chamber, neither is the “ present rendered supportable by the “ expression of fervent hopes for the “future. His Honor speaks with all “ the assurance of a man whose trea- “ sury is in a healthy condition, one “ who can launch out into considerable “ money expenditure, if prudence sug- “ gents such a course as one advanta- “ geous to the province. Not only is “the tone assuring, but there is a “manifest improvement in the matter “ of the speech.” And His Honor has a right to spenk thus. With a revenue of nearly £30,000, out of which £15,000 is to be set apart for Public Works. With an advance of £20,000 more to assist the province in developing lands for the introduction of immigrants. With the prospects of a safe harbour ; and peace and plenty in the land, those who have manfully stuck to their colors in times of danger—-
who have successfully pulled the province through the fires of adversity—are the men who have a right to the glory ; and we do not believe one can be found to deny them the reward of their hardly-earned labors. Wc clip the following from the Herald of the ,16th instant:—-
Mr. Kelly, Provincial Secretary, inlayinghis Financial Statement before the Council said
Some six years ago it was my duty to state to the Council the financial position of the Province, and the contrast it now offers appears to my mind as a most remarkable one. A t that period the Province was just emerging from a disastrous conflict with the natives, victorious it is true, but victory obtained at such a cost of life and treasure as to be almost equal to a defeat. The thriving settlement of Patea had been swept by Tito Kowaru’s victorious warriors, the settlers scattered over the colony or cooped up in blockhouses, and the progress of the district utterly paralysed. In our own district the out-settlers were frequently alarmed by the threats of unfriendly natives, encouraged to acts approaching violence by the success of their countrymen in the south. The revenue of the Province was at the lowest ebb, and the departments necessary for the proper conduct of public affairs were in a state of iueflieiency for want of funds. No public works were in progress, the population was at a standstill, and it was apprehended that years would elapse before the result of the depression, consequent on repeated native outrages, would be overcome. It is needless to remark that the revenue at that period was small, and quite inadequate to provide for the public requirements of the Province. From that period the financial position has gradually improved, and the prosperity of the people has participated in the same good fortune.
******* The revenue this year consists of :— Cash in hand, being balance of moneys unexpended £6,6-11. Ordinary provincial revenue 6,300 Estimated land revenue ... 16,000 Rent of Sections ‘ 200 Making a total of £29,141
It is of course impossible to estimate exactly the revenue to bo derived from the sale of land during the year, but as we will be able to place from 24,000 to 30,000 acres of land in the market, and intend to make it known throughout the colony, it is not unreasonable to expect that this sum will be realised, from the known character of the land, and the facilities that will soon bo offered for reaching it. In dealing with this considerable revenue—considerable for our small Province—we intend io utilise it in developing the resources of the Province, by extending the limits of settlement, by making a good bush road to every allotment of land offered for sale, by bridging all the dangerous and difficult rivers, and by every judicious and practical: way to aid in advancing tlie settlement of tlie country. While the now districts are being opened up and made at once available for settlement, and provided with transit facilities unknown io the earlier settlers, we are determined that the older settled districts shall not be overlooked. ******* We propose to appropriate the sum of £15,000 for public’ works throughout the Province. The great bulk of this will be expended in the now occupied districts. £3,000 of this is for roads and bridges in the Moa and ot her blocks, but the bulk of the expenditure in the locating of settlers and opening up these lands, will be borne by the advances made for the purpose by the General Government, and of which I will speak presently. In the distribution of the good things, Patea has not been forgotten. Its members may retire to their constituents with the assurance that their wants will be attended to. ******* .The advance of £20,000 authorised to be made by the General Assembly, is expended by the Superintendent, subject to the approval of the General Government. His Honor has assented to share the responsibility of this expenditure with the Executive ; and ths money is being utilised in supplementing the revenue of lhe Province in opening out the new blocks of land for sale and settlement. The building of huts and cottages is chargeable to this advance. So far the Government has husbanded its resources, and has not lavishly availed itself of this money, feeling that. it. would be wiser to reserve it to provide for the coming immigrants during the winter — to find them employment at a season of the year when the demand by private employers is not bo great. *******
The location of settlers on the new block will be encouraged by nil legitimate means. A carrying service has been established to aid the settlers. Huts are in the course of erection. Potatoes have been planted in the clearing. Grass has been sown in the roads. One hundred and fifty acres of forest —the site of the township of Milton—have been filled, and will be sown down when burned. Work of a local and general character will be offered by the Government, and it. is anticipated that the employment offered by tlie Government will be largely supplemented by private employers when land sales lake p'a~c. ******* I consider, sir, that we have now arrived at tlie turning point in our career. We are at peace with the natives—indicated by their large land sales—our revenue from land will steadily increase if judiciously administered. This makes the construction of a harbor an almost absolute certainty. To further this object, and strike the iron while it is hot, wo intend to obtain as large an amount of suitable immigrants as the Province is capable of absorbing. To enlarge the capacity for absorbing population, we will push on public works, open up fresh laud for sale and settlement, and thus obtain the cooperation of private individuals in attaining the object, of our desires, the construction of a harbor, and the fullest development of our great resources.
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Poverty Bay Standard, Volume III, Issue 243, 30 January 1875, Page 2
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1,601The Standard AND PEOPLE'S ADVOCATE. (PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SATURDAY.) SATURDAY, JANUARY 30, 1875. Poverty Bay Standard, Volume III, Issue 243, 30 January 1875, Page 2
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