The Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR P.M. Resurrexi. SATURDAY, APRIL 26, 1884.

Thames Star, Volume XV, Issue 4773, 26 April 1884, Page 2

The Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR P.M. Resurrexi. SATURDAY, APRIL 26, 1884.

" Alit the world's a stage " is a recognised truism, and for the acquisition of versatility in " the play" Parliament is perhaps the best school. That experience in politics has a salutary effect on man's mind there can hardly be a doubt—at least that is so judging by the recently delivered utterances of the Colonial Treasurer at Dunedin. We must confess to some feeling of satisfaction regarding the rather sudden and—as yet—unaccountable conversion of Major Atkinson, but, acting on the principle of " more joy " over the redemption of one sinner, than the saving of the " ninety-nine just," we are inclined to " raise our voice " after reading the telegraphed account of the Premier's Dunedin speech. [Recognising the necessity of acting according to the public will, and seeing that there is every possibility, if not the greatest probability, of the people putting a veto on the " sweet will" of the party now in power. Major Atkinson has, after almost exhausting the means of further borrowing, suddenly become alive to the fact that we should have no further borrowing. He sees that the colony's indebtedness in loans is over £17,000,000, and seeing that the people are opposed to increasing it, he has with some wisdom resolved to advise them to do that which they had already resolved upon. The man who said a few days ago that we were spending too lavishly and borrowing too freely is a nice specimen of a conscientious statesman. The lavish expenditure and borrowing have been] principally [committed txy the various Ministries, or varied Ministry, to which the speaker bas, during his Parlia* mentary career, belonged. It must have somewhat tickled his hearers when he told them that the Government which had the honor to possess him were not, as had been asserted, a wasteful and extravagant Government ; that, on the contrary, they were very economical. Why ! the utmost recklessness has been evidenced in the term which has seen the Hon. Major Atkinson and bis colleagues in office. Two members of the Ministry have attempted at various times to guardedly use the pruning knife, but only one, fiz., the Public Works chiefs appears to have succeeded in having his mandates attended to. Whether he has been made a cat's paw of, in order to save other Ministers from the remonstrances of officials and their wives, sisters, cousins, and aunts, it is, of course, impossible to say, but he bas " shewn up " very boldly that Major Atkieson's Ministry bas for years been wasteful and extravagant, in their Civil Service expenditure at any rate. It is perhaps only an accident that the worthy Colonial Treasurer's mind was suddenly awakened to economy when he found his estimates failing him and ascertained that no more borrowing could be done at present, but our want of sufficient faith in human nature and our lack of gullibleness, per. haps lead us to tbe belief that had more funds been obtainable, this suddenly economical fit would not have come over him. It was necessary to account for depression, and the Premier has very generously put it down partially to overspeculation, particularly in mining. Doubtless money has been expended in producing the riches of the land, but doubtless also some of the colony's life's blood has been drained by the cormorantlike appetites of colonial politicians. Past successes have made the man audacious or he would not insult the understanding of bis hearers by treating them as children, "re-hashing" his old stories, and indulging in such romancing as he has done in his efforts to woo Otagan sympathy.