REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE OF THE COLONY.

Tuapeka Times, Volume IV, Issue 220, 18 April 1872, Page 6

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE OF THE COLONY.

(From tlve, Eveniug Star.) The New Zealand Gazette of Thursday last contains a statement of revenue and expenditure of the Colony for the quarter ending December 31st, 1871. The amount for the quarter from all sources was £240,480 5s 2d, and of this amount £192,807 9s was received for duties on imports j the one-half of the stamp duties amounted to £8,763, the postal rates to £10,722 17s Id, and telegraphic messages to £6,894 9s lOd. The other items are from a variety of sources, that form no index to the social condition of the population. In fact, in our opinion, the Customs duties have long ceased to suggest any idea of the purchasing power of our colonists. So many disturbing circumstances have occurred of late years, that we are quite prepared to believe the population may advance rapidly in numbers, wealth, and comfort, and consequently in purchasing ability, and that our Customs ■ revenue may decline. This must be a I necessary consequence of the extension of Colonial manufactures. We are brewing our own beer instead of importing it : we make our own malt, are making our o»vn whisky, soap, and other articles of large consumption. We are beginring to manufacture our own woollens, and Colonial shoes and clothing are extensively used amongst us. It follows, as a matter of course, that in proportion as we do our own work we need not buy the work of others ; and as, excepting in the case of spirits, which pay only half the duty on those imported, there is no inland revenue duty on the rest, instead of reduced Customs revenue indicating poverty, it really may point to increased employment of our operative classes, and their gradually falling into settled remunerative pursuits. But while the Customs revenue affords no accurate clue to our industrial position, it affords the means of forming a pretty accurate estimate of the relative posi tion of the two Islands and the several Provinces. This is of no small importance to us in Otago, for we have, for many years, had the annoyance of finding, by reference to the public accounts, that revenue which ought to have helped us in our Provincial progress was wasted in useless and, in all probability, avoidable Maori wars. Now, apparently, the tide has turned, and amongst the fruits of peace is a gradual approximation in the revenue of the two Islands. Of course the expenditure on the North for defence purposes is still in excess of the amount spent in the Middle Island ; and we trust that no rest will be given to the Legislature until the North is made to pay its own expenses. The expenditure should be localised, as a matter of justice. Out of the whole Customs revenue of £192,807 9s, the North Island only contributes £70,483, while Otago alone contributes £57,873, or within about 12,000 of the whole North Island. Of the £70,483, Auckland conti'ibutes £45,098 15s 3d; Taranaki, £1,305 8s; Wellington, £18,414 10s 2d ; and Hawkes Bay, £5,665 2s 7d. Of the Middle Island Provinces, the Customs revenue of Nelson amounted to £18,033 13s 9d; Marlborough, £1,839 4s 7d; Canterbury, £25,941 2s 9d;Westland, £18,636 0s lid; Otago, £57,873 11s. Perhaps, in this transition state of affairs, the stamp duties mjght be expected to form a more correct index to industinal activity than the Customs i'evenuc. But on examination they are useless for that purpose. Of these the moiety appropriated to the consolidated fund amounts to £8,763 6s. The proportion they bear to the Customs revenue, does not vary much in the two islands. In fact it seems somewhat greater in the North than in the South, contrary to what might have been expected — the North Island being as 39 to 86, and the Middle Island BS--75 to £6. Of the total Auckland pays towards the (consolidated fund for stamps £2,057 9s 8d; Tajunaki, £47 19s 9d: Wellington, £887 Us 4d : Hawke's Bay, £228 13s Bd. Total, £3,221 17s sd. In the Middle Island, Nelson pays in stamps £502 11 6d : Marlborough, £69 8s sd ; Canterbury, £1,826 13s; Westland, £410 17s 4d ; and Otago, £2,729 15s 3d. tal £5.529 5 6d C

4-P. f ,-- s . ompanng the Pi-OFinces one with the other, the smallest proportion of the stamp duties is paid by Westland, and the largest by Canterbury. The stamp duties of Canterbury are about 2-29 of the Customs duties : of Auckland, about 1-22, and Otago 1-21. The postal and telegraphic revenues shew some singular

anomalies, The North Island paid for

postage during the quarter £3,994 2s j lid ; and for telegraphy, £2,535 7s 4d. The Middle Island, for postage, £6,920 9s 6d ; for telegraphy, £4,359 2s 6d. In Auckland, telegraphy cost about half the money spent in postage, In Wellington it was nearly 10-llths ; in Hawke's Bay, as 31 to 33 : in Nek son, as 55 to 56: in Marlborough more money was. spent in telegraphy than in postage, the sums being, telegraphy, £216 6s 3d : postage, £176 6s. In Canterbury about one-half. Westland 5-7ths ; while in Otago letter writing seems in she ascencUut, the proportions being, telegraphy 21.6 ; postage, 35.5.