The Waikato Argus GEORGE EDGECUMBE, Proprietor. THURSDAY, SEPT. 17, 1896.

Waikato Argus, Volume I, Issue 30, 17 September 1896, Page 2

The Waikato Argus GEORGE EDGECUMBE, Proprietor. THURSDAY, SEPT. 17, 1896.

It will be seen from out - Parliamentary report that the Council has virtually agreed to the committal of the Loan .Bill, not, however, without entering a grave protest against the proceedings of the Government in the business. If the system adopted in this matter is to be taken as a precedent, Parliament has abrogated one of its principal functions —to watch cavefully over the public revenue and secure that no portion of it shall be applied to any purpose withont the representatives of the people approving of the object. The Council recognised, however, that the finances of the colony had drifted into such an unsatisfactory state that great inconvenience and loss would result if they refused to deal with the Pill, a state of affairs for which, of course, Ministers arc responsible. The only course now open is to criticise most closely the Public Works Statement when it does appear, and see that the money as far as practicable is allocated to the various works for which it has been avowedly borrowed. Unfortunately, however, there is no guarantee that works included in the statement will be prosecuted. It is in this fact that the evil lies. There is nothing whatever to prevent Ministers diverting the money from the work sanctioned. Practically, therefore, in the absence of a proper schedule to the Loan Bill, there is no check upon Ministers to prevent their using the loan money for the purpose of bribery and corruption. If they succeed in securing a majority at the elections they have nothing to fear on this account. Experience during the last few years has proved that a majority will condone the most monstrous acts of Ministers. Party now ra.iks before decency, honesty, and political principle. If Ministers are defeated at the polls they go out of power, if they are not, an obedient following white - washes them. As we have previously pointful out, a Ministry can only have one object in preventing loan money from being strictly earmarked, and that is that they shall

retain the power to corrupt constituencies and purchase support both iu and out of Parliament. Surely the constituencies have had sufficient experience of tin's sort of thing to make them chary of voting for any man pledged to support Ministers who have by the assistance of an obedient majority.secured to themselves a power which it is absolutely injurious to the country that they should possess.