The Wairarapa Daily. FRIDAY, JULY 11, 1879.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 2, Issue 209, 11 July 1879, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. FRIDAY, JULY 11, 1879.

"VVe have, through the courtesy of the Secretary of the Wairarapa Pastoral Association, had ail opportunity of seeing the balance sheet presented at the annual meeting held on Tuesday last, The liabilities of the Association are set down at £1407 12s lOd, baton the other hand the property held by it is estimated at £2132, and there is another asset of payments in arrear, which brings the total up to £225 G Is 3d; leaving a balance to the credit of

the Association of £B4B 8s 5(1. So far this is all very well, but unfortunately the Association has outstanding accounts to the amount of £331 4s Bd, which must be met, and a Bank overdraft of £327, which is also demanded. With not a sixpence iu hand it is required to find £650 outside what might be termed its secured liabilities. Should the Association be unsuccessful in raising money, the alternative is the sale of the property held by it at a sacrifice. The land held by the Association cost over £6OO, and a further sum of over £BOO has been spent in improvements an it. It is now valued at over £2OOO, but if forced into the market during the present period of depression, it would probably not fetch two-thirds of the amount at which it is now rated, and the Association, instead of being nominally worth £BSO, would be unable, without a pro rata contribution from members, to pay 20s in the £. We would have been glad to have seen in the balance-sheet the special income and expenditure separated from the ordinary, as it is not very easy to gather from the statement we have referred to whether, apart from the question of land and improvements, the Association has been a success or a failure. As far as we can find out, the ordinary income for the year 187879 appears to have been about £275, and the ordinary expenditure about £450, including in the latter amount a fair sum for interest on the capital invested and borrowed. This result shows that the present Association has been far less successful than the preceding oiiff. Of course, it labored under certain disadvantages, such as bad weather for its show, and also in a certain amount of antagonism which had been generated by breaking up two existing bodies to make room for a third one, but on the other hand it had the advantage of the presence of a popular Governor and the services of a very hard-working and energetic secretary and committee. It is plain that this year the Association, to be successfully carried out, must increase its income and reduce its expenditure. We feel soiry that the Association should be placed in a financial position so extremely unsatisfactory, because its committee really worked very hard and spent both muscle, time, and money to make the Association a success. That they to a certain extent mistook or overlooked several conditions essential to success, is abundantly obvious from the excess of their ordinary expenditure over their ordinary income, and it would not be hard to point out the weak points in their business arrangements.. At a critical time, however, when they are straining every nerve to raise means to carry on, it would be

uuyoiM to dtMsij cite jmst oi 1 l)iwit,ffli3tab(s),. Wo siuciirely ti'iist that Mr ft Phmyii, the President, will succeed in pulling the Association through with the assistance of his colleagues, and that the public will recognise that tlie Committee of the Association has worked hard to establish in the Wairarapa a creditable Pastoral and Agricultural Exhibition. We feel con- • fident ourselves 'that if the existing difficulties can be surmounted • the Association may yet be made ' a financial success, especially if its leaders work ■ with public opinion and try to combine the snaviter in motlo with the fortiter in re. If seven years ago the Wairarapa could support such an institution, it is simply absurd to doubt its capacity for now maintaining one, We would point out to settlers in all parts of the district that it is desirable that they should recognise at the present juncture the claim which the existing Association has on them for assistance.

Mr Mansford has to decide at Wellington, 2205 objections to the land tax act. Mr Frank Pelling, cordial manufactuer, of Greytown has filed a declaration of insolvency. The annual examination of teachers is taking place simultaneously at Wellington and Greytown. In .the latter place Mr G.' Wyett acts as supervisor. The Rev. T, A. Bowden, formerly Inspector of the Wellington Provincial School, has donned the surplice again, and taken charge of the Greymouth Episcopal Church, Some one is lecturing in Wellington on " the progress of life in Geologic periods." Will the lecturer inform us if the present be a Geologic period, and how long it is likely to last! A well-attended meeting of the Union Club was held last evening. Messrs R. G. Williams and F. G, Moore were appointed Trustees and a Committee was elccied, and it was arranged to open, if possiblo, on Saturday evening.' There were fifty-two cases on the list in the R.M. Court, Masterton, yesterday. A considerable proportion of them were settled out of Court. Those that, were

decided appear in another column to-day, and will bo continued in our issue tomorrow,