The Westport Times AND CHARLESTON ARGUS. In the cause of Truth and Justice we strive. TUESDAY, JUNE 27, 1871.

Westport Times, Volume V, Issue 830, 27 June 1871, Page 2

The Westport Times AND CHARLESTON ARGUS. In the cause of Truth and Justice we strive. TUESDAY, JUNE 27, 1871.

The returns published recently of the exports from the colony for theqnarter ended March 31st, is7l, exhibit a considerable decrease when compared with the corresponding period of 1870 The figures are respectively £1,758,791 and £1,989,102, or a decline of nearly a qviarter of a million sterling. With the exception of Auckland, where the ex )orts show an increase of £113,000 ijeirly every section of the Colony exhibits a material decrease in its produttiveness. The decline is notably apparent in Canterbury, Westland, Otago and Nelson. In the first named province it reaches £110,000; in Westland, £30,000 ; in Otago, £OO,OOO and in Nelson, £77,000. It will be thus seen that during the short period of twelve months the condition of the Colony has changed materially for the worse. "While in the revenue there is a corresponding decline, the expenditure is increasing, and the only means of supplying the deficiency is by borrowing or increasing the taxation. The former plan has been adopted, but, sooner or later, unless greater care is used in the expenditure of our newly acquired millions than has been exercised with previous loans, the Government must have recourse to a greatly increased taxation to meet deficiencies and interest. For the past fifteen years debt and taxation have advanced hand in hand. As we have previously pointed out the extraordinary productiveness of the Goldfields and the large influx of population for several years averted the. financial embarrassments which otherwise would have overtaken the Colony. Unfortunately prosperity furnished too ready a pretext to incur vastly increased expenditure in the administration of the colony until the cost of government has become entirely diaproportioned to our means anil population. With such prospects a 8 the future of JS T ew Zealand presents it will be indeed surprising if we succeed in inducing immigration ou a large scale. Many colonists have been influenced to seek a home in a new country in order to escape the grinding taxation which is the curse of all old States, but here we have already a taxation four times greater per head of population than that of Great Britain, with every likelihood of additional burdens being imposed. The only remedy that can be applied is to insist upon an immediate aud stringent reduction in the expenditure of the Colony; to abolish all unnecessary offices and to do away with the absurdly expensive system of double government under existing provincial institutions.