The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1884. THE FINANCIAL STATEMENT.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1241, 20 September 1884, Page 2

The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 1884. THE FINANCIAL STATEMENT.

The great Financial Statement is now before the colony, and though it has its ridiculous features it must be admitted that it is on the whole satisfactory. The ridiculousness consists in the smallness of some of the subjects referred to, and the self-sufficiency, egotism, and personalities which characterised it ; the satisfactory part is that in which we are told that whilst there is a deficit of £152,012, we are not only to have no fresh taxation heaped on us, but shall get the property tax reduced by one-half. It is right to over look the ridiculous features tor the sake of the pecuniary benefits it promises, and we most willingly do so. Still it is a remarkable fact that the deficit is exactly what Major Atkinson said it was, although at the election times Sir Julius Vogel asserted it was £1,880,000. This proves that Major Atkinson did not try to hide the true state of affairs, while Sir Julius Vogel may be accused of exaggeration for electioneering purposes. Sir Julius Vogel has certainly converted a deficit into a surplus, and at the same time reduced taxation, but to effect this he has “ robbed Peter to pay Paul,” He has laid violent bands on the Sinking Fund, and made use of it, but there is nothing either new or clever in that. It was a matter whieh had been spoken of for a long time, and whieh most of the candidates referred to during the late elections ; in fact one member recently referred to it in the House. Perhaps we may as well see what this Sinking Fund is. It is a sum of money which the Government were putting by every year for the purpose of paying off our debt. For instance, it is computed that 1 per cent, placed at compound interest

every year for SI years will pay off any debt. This 1 per cent, is called a Sinking Fund, and it is this fund which Sir Julius Yogel has laid his hands on to relieve the present depression. Perhaps he is right ;' but it appears to us that the abolition of this fund will have a depressing effect on our credit in London. Borne people object to the abolishing of the Sinking Fund on the ground that we want to wipe out our indebtedness. We certainly cannot agree with the doctrine that we ought to pinch ourselves for the sake of posterity. As someone has said “ posterity has done nothing for us ” that we should do such a thing, and posterity a hundred years hence will be better able to pay the debt than we are at present. With regard to the inscription of stock, by which a saving of £300,000 a year will be effected, this has been going on for a couple years, so there is nothing new in that either. But if “ there is nothing new under the sun ” Sir Julius Yogel may bo excused. If there is nothing original in hist statement it must be admitted he has worked out the hackneyed ideas of other people ably, and placed them forcibly and comprehensively before the public. He has certainly given us a more readable financial statement than we have been accustomed to, but as for its accuracy no one who has not a thorough knowledge of what is behind the scenes can vouch. Sir Julius Vogel claims to be the author of the Insciiption of Stock Act, by which he will save the colony £300,000, but that has-been in existence since 1875. Wo give bimall the credit for that Act; but that is not the point. The Atkinson Ministry were working under it for the last couple of years, and Sir Julius Yogel can do only exactly what they were doing. What then there is in the-statement to make so much noise about we fail to see. We notice some of our exchanges going into ecstacies over • it, and gushing about the genius, and the almost heavenly attributes of its author. Now, to put it in a common sense, sort of way the position is this : This Colony was putting a little money by every year in order to wipe out her debt ; Sir Julius Vogel has come along and said “ Make use of this money just now, and never mind paying your debts till gome other time.” That is the sum and substance of it, and the man who said that is worshipped as the saviour of the colony. Thera is something in a name after al'. If an obscure nmu made the same statement no one would take any notice of it further than, to laugh at it. But Sir Julius Yogel said so, and that makes all the difference. We have no desire to under-rate what, he has done ; all we say is that there is nothing to “ blow” about in it, and that he must give us greater evidence of ability before we join in the fulsome gush ” that several of our contemporaries are expending on him. We may be pardoned, too, for doubting whether the progression of the colony will realise the hopes expreised by Sir Julius Yogel. He says the colony will go ahead by leaps and bounds when the people are relieved of the Property Tax, We shall be very glad to bear witness to the correctness of his prophecy, but in the meantime we cannot help having doubts on the subject. It appears to us he does not understand the cause of the depression when he attributes it to the property tax. It is the very height of nonsense to do so. We are told it crushes the towns and prevents improvements : that it keeps people from building. Now what is the fact? Simply that rents have fallen so low that it does not pay to build now. Houses that were let a few years ago for 25s per week, can be bad for 10s or 12s a week. Thai is what is preventing building being earned on, and will prevent it until more prosperous tirm s come. Themanwhohas £looounder the property tax pays 81s 3d per annum at last years rate. Will that prevent him from building or improving ? Most undoubtedly it will not, and to say that it will, or that he ever takes it into his calculations, is disgustingly absurd. What is ruining the Colony is that the landowners are mortgaged to the uttermost extent at too high a rate of in terest ; every penny they can make goes to the mortgagee, and they hare no money left to spend. Anything which doesnot relieve them will have very little effect on the prosperity of the Colony. Now it may be said that they got into this mess, and that it is no business of the State to get them out of it. The answer to this is, that it is expedient. The people have got into this position and it is their business to get out of it the best way they can, and anything which suits the majority of the people must be the business of the State, because the State is not the hills, plains and rivers, but the people who inhabit them. There is no way in which substantial relief can be given to the farmers except by reducing the rate of interest, and the most effectual way of doing this is by establishing a State Bank. Unless this is done, there is not much room to hope that we shall have better times for the next five years at least, and in the meantime a great many of our landowners will be ruined. This is the true position of affairs, and the sooner we insist upon this matter being attended to the better for us.

THE REV. DAVID GORDON. It is with very deep regret we learn, that notwithstanding the efforts made by the Presbyterian body of Temuka, to induce the Rev. D. Gordon to remain in charge of their church, he has decided to so to Invercargill. The rev. gentleman leaves the district under very pleasant circumstances. During the time he has been in Temuka he has

endeared himself to his congregation to a degree that prompted them to use every means in their power to induce him to stay, It is pleasant for him to leave feeling assured that he carries with him the affectionate esteem and regard of those amongst whom he labored, and that he will always be remembered as one who discharged the duties of his sacred calling in a manner that did honor to himself and the Church to which he was attached. The members of his own congregation are heartily sorry at losing so able and earnest a preacher as the Rev. Mr Gordon, but the feeling is not confined to that body alone. His earnest advocacy of temperance and every movement calculated to promote morality, and the social well-being of the people at large has secured for him the goodwill of the whole community, and his departure will leave a gap in our social system which cannot easily be filled. At our social gatherings, his witty and humorous speeches have always been the most entertaining items in the programme. He always said the right thing in the best way it could be, said, and no one came away without feeling that Mr Gordon was the only man who could fill Mr Gordon’s place. As an orator he has few equals, and fewer superiors ; and as a lecturer he ip unquestionably able. His lectures on “ How to get on in the World,” “ Ireland Past and Present,” and other other subjects would entertain any audience in the world. The former was comparatively easy to handle, but the latter was just as easy to him. He gave it no religious coloring ; he looked upon matters from au impartial standpoint, and placed the truth before his audience in that forcible style so peculiarly his own. It was a treat we hoped to enjoy again on some future occasion, but as he is going away now it is probable we never shall. Personally we lose in him a kind friend, who ever had for us an encouraging word. He will, we believe, leave lemuka some day next week, and we wish him the blessings of health and happiness in ins new home.