The Waikato Times. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1879.

Waikato Times, Volume XIII, Issue 1141, 18 October 1879, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1879.

Equal and exact j ustice to all men, Of whatever "state or persuasion, religious or political. Here shall the Press the People's right maintain, -Qnawed by- influence and onbribed ;hy gain.

Looked at -impartially, without bringing into question who is to blame ipr such a state of things, the Financial Statement of Major Atkinson calls for grave and anxious consideration. The public cannot feel otherwise thanthankfal -that the circumstance under which this state;, nient was cjeliyer.ed id . the present ; .session, was. pua : which ensured the true financial ' posi tion of the col ony being put befpre the country, nothing extenuatiug -nor ''setting down aught in malice. It is far better, that we 'should know the worst, than that a iinpre ;.pleasing, but less, truthful statement -of affairs should have been put forward. : The day of reckoning would have been all the. more hard to bear when it did come, as sooner or later come it must. The Opposi-;, tion patty^ of course, say that Major Atkinson has made the worst of ihe case,. but, even: the late Treasurer, Mr Ballance, admits a deficiency of £600,000 (for : which a misprint of £60,000 appeared^ in the telegraphic message) and the most thac Major i Atkinson's fullest Gcjtimate of t^e deficiency of £91 1,000 can be reduced by, would seem to be the profits on the, Land Tax, a very dubious item at the best. But with their financial condition in such a position, we can only allthe more strongly wonder that in the opening speech of the Governor nothing was said- in reference to a change in the incidence of taxation, of' the! necessity of an 'Income and Proporty Tax, of an extended Land Tax or any other fiscal change which .^uoh a .Jarge deficiency <: between revenue and expenditure must have clearly necessitated;- • The r> 'matter now will have to be resolutely grappled'With, ands even if the Hall Government cannot retain their seals it has v become utterly impossible that the late GoTernment cau occupy them.--' Whatever faith* the colony may hay6/had,iiu itheir measures it oan have none in their administration. But what is quite as great a matter of concern, nay greater, than the discrepancy between, revenue and 'is the 1 disclosure that pf, the .five ; , million. Ipan about to be raised, four millions are already, hypothecated. One Ota^o man has been top many for -the whole Auckland phalanx, and while this Provincial district has been regaled on potatoes and point— has had two small rail,, ways provided for, and, the Great Waikato and, Tarariaki line, in futurp, held dangling before it — the South, has been, getting the solid tne'a't for its sha'rq.'" Here and there a number of lines in the South have been ' commenced, & couple of thousand ppunds, spent r here,* five thousand pounds spent' there, arid so pn>aiicl the colony has been thus commit ted to undertakings . which '.l'^ilJ. absorb ..the, greater portion of the .loan available for public works^ \')-->\'\ .o ,-.'. ;. ; The division^ on''the^want'of-cpiifi-dencemotion 19^,, fixed; , f Tbe prooatble ßesult „wilj : ,be . a bare majority for Govern'tttentj and then, the country and the. House, utterly wearied of the senseless war of party strife,; ,wUI accep,t^ooalitioii ministry "winch ; ca^ryr it a strong working majority, and able to give what ouly, a.strong niiniatry can- do, an/ independent! '.attention tbf the cutting down of public expenditure; For years past, 'the; leaders of Oopposition have, while in opposition, seen their, way clear to effect i saving of from .£150,000 to per annum in the adaiiriistiation of : the"col6ny;Vbat they/' failed ; to. .effect, this reform when they came, into power. It was the same with Mr Stafford, it was the same with Sir Gfeorge Grey, it has been , the sauie with otliers. , : Webianie .none, for, as wehavesaidj it requires a stronger government than any we. have had in New, Zealand, of late years, 1 to carry due such a work. But the uecessities of. the colony, and the position ®f affairs, are now such'- as to demand and make possible a reform of this kind,',. and- we should not feel surprised if, . out of the two forces now ■• engaged on the floor of the'Housei 'leaders'^ mtiy "be .cH'osjbu, : in- 'c^ajnipn,,' with, .^jth'BK, „ will fuse' a, Veiy 'large majoiHy 01 what

{ are now nothing more than two \^jak aud disintegrated parties, into a .powerful legislative body, pledged to course of liberal and financial ief>rm.