LATEST AUCKLAND NEWS.

Waikato Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 2344, 19 July 1887, Page 2

LATEST AUCKLAND NEWS.

[BY TKr.KGIUPH.— OWN’ OOIUUai’ONDKST.] Uttering and Forging. Auckland, Monday Night. On MU.l'.s Aiokkn", formerly a ledger keeper in the Bank of New Zealand, was again arrested to day on a charge of uttering a forged cheque. Mr Brookfield explained that fresh information had been laid m consequence of the breakdown of the case under the previous information. The case was remanded. Sir Wm. FoxSir. William Pox addresses a meeting at Ponaonby to-night, with the object of determining thequestion of his candidature for that electorate. The Native Department. The Hon. Mr Tole has furnished the Star with copies of the telegrams addressed to him by the Hon. Mr Ballance in reply to allegations by a former officer of the Native Department that the alleged retrenchments are bogus. The Hon. Mr Ballance says Yicker’s letter is a tissue of misrepresentation. TheMcLean period,with which comparison is made shows the suppression of number of salaries, and excludes enormous sub-departments, scattered over the North Island doing the work now centred in Wellington. Since the present Ministry came into office £2OOO for medical assistance and charitable aid—formerly an annual appropriation—was now charged to tiic civil list. Pour clerks and interpreters in the head office, are being trained and about to be attached to the commissioners under the vote taken for the Native Lands Administration Act, thus leaving the office witli loss assistance than for a long time, though at present there is a rush of Native Land Court business. The total expenditure of the civil list and appropriations combined are much less than in previous years. The financial statement showed, without taking into account Pox’s vote of appropriations £3OOO less than previous years. Shall send you last quarter’s expenditure, showing we have kept well within the vote. In fact we have ascertained that the expenditure of the civil districts and Native Land Court appropriations will be actually £20,000 less than the expenditure last year, (in some purposes, though, the changes made in getting rid of useless and highly-paid officers and reducing travelling expenses, &c., I have always compared favourably with native expenditure, inclu ling the civil list, with that of my predecessors. All this is capable of verification, and you can make the fullest use of it. J, BalI.ASCB."