CANTERBURY FINANCE.

West Coast Times, Issue 96, 8 January 1866, Page 2

CANTERBURY FINANCE.

Wo oxtract tho following very pregnant passago from a recent number of tho Lyttolton Times ! — " Tho provailing dulncßS of tho past few months has rnlhor increased than diminished during tho past wcok. A varioty of causos may bo cited for this. Ifirsfc and foromost, tho publio aro gotting nlannod at tho reokloss waste of nioiioy on unproductive works connected with tho West Coast. On

the day lhat tho escort voturnod to Olmstchurch without any gold, tho Seerotary of Publio Works informed tho Counoil that no leas than J610,000 had already boon expended on this oxporuuont. Mr Hull stated that ho considorod tho Govornmout was not to blame, bcoauso it only yioldod to popular clamor Whou it consented to tho ostablishmont of an oscort. In roply, pooplo naturally ask of what uso is a Ctovoriunout if it is not ablo to voaist popular clamor P Again, the publio aro gotting alarmod at the prospoot of oxpondino £100,000 on a problematically useful dray road at a - time when . the revenues aro rapidly falling off, and the burdoiisof the people aie steadily nweasing from thoiy connootion wjth vhe di«turbanQ«s iv the NoythJ3.la.mll

financial statements recently mado by tho Secretary for Public Works, both lor Kaitera and Western Canterbury, do not tend to reassure tho public mind. Tho anticipated revenue for tho eastern nido is mado up of loans which may nove,r bo raised, while that for the westorn half shows an alarming deficiency for tho paat, . and (loponds for tho future upon sales of land which may v never tikoplaoe, Again, after all that has been promised, and all tbo money that has been expended, it is a melancholy fact that sheep carinot bo driven over to tho West Coast at tho probont time, nor can h dray ho driven through to Hokitika. In fact, we may bay tho immodiate future of Canterbury was never in a more unsatia* factory condition."