The Waikato Time AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. TUESDAY, AUG. 21, 1888.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 2514, 21 August 1888, Page 2

The Waikato Time AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

TUESDAY, AUG. 21, 1888.

Equal and exact justice Co all men, Of whatsoever state or persuasion, religious or political.

The first sensation produced after a perusal of the Public Works Statement is one of surprise that the delivery of such a spiritless document, should have been so long delayed. There can be no other reason but that its tamcness gave it a somewhat non-important character in the eyes of the Ministry, who considered the end of the session time enough for its production, there being nothing in it to create that excitation which formerly followed previous Statements. It would, however, have been better for the country to have been much earlier put in possession of the facts now published by the Minister for Public Works. The Statement is on the whole clear enough, it is plainly seen that the colony has at last come to the end of its tether, and that waste and extravagance will now cense from sheer necessity mul not from actual virtue. We can imagine what fearful prodigality has distinguished the past administration when we observe that out of ♦he total accumulated debtof borrowed money, over & 35,000,000, something less than £15,000,000 only has been expended on the construction aad purchase of railways,

our only visible reproductive asset worthy the name for our enormous indebtedness. One shudders to think of what h;<s bccoii.e of the greater moiety of the money. The Statement, shows the expenditure for additions to opened lines is gradually decreasing, and that it is not intended to make further additions of the kind unless there is a promise of an immediate return on invested capital. Mr Mitchelson praises the management of the railways during the past eight ypars as having been characterised by creditable economy, and he is so satisfied with the results that he thinks he should now draw the line at the present stage. He does not believe in extending economy beyond present limits. He is also of the opinion that the average rates on the lines are highly satisfactory, and favourable to both producers and consumers ; and also that tin , ) , have a direct tendency to foster local industries. It is true that Mr Mitchelson is by no means clear in his deductions, and we doubt whether he fully understands his own reasoning on that point. We are sure, however, that fevr in the Waikato will endorse his views. The Minister, nevertheless, appears to realise the fact that the railway policy has not promoted the settlement of the country, and declares that until the colony receives a large increase to its population and encourages the occupation of the land, (he railways will not be an unmixed blessing. The Statement shows the past work done as regards roads and bridges. The loan allocations, however, are j now at an end, and in future the expenditure under this head will be charged to the Consolidated Fund. Provision is made for the OxfordRotorua and Tauranga-Taupo roads. As subsidies to local bodies will now be taken from the Consolidated Fund, they are not provided for in the Public Works estimates. It is intended to ask authority for, £10,000 for the "unemployed," and £50,000 for village settlements, the latter to extend for a period of years. There is an unexpended balance from last year's vote under the latter head of £60,000. After meeting liabilities clue, the sum of £15,000 will be available for the current year to be devoted to new settlements. We agree with our contemporary the Herald that the special relief for the unemployed should be performed in the shape of allocating such men and their families on village settlements, as has already been so successfully accomplished, and that the votes under the separate heads should be merged and expended together in that manner. There is a sum of £40,000 allotted for roads, tracks, ifcc, on the goldfidds during the next two years. During the past year £108,000 was expended on all roads, leaving a balance out of the loan allocation, of i>131.000 for succeeding years. No new purchases of native lands are to be made, except along the North Island Trunk Railway, should the conditions be favourable. During the year 700,000 acres have been purchased at an average cost of two shillings and tenpence per acre. It is expected that during the next year the work of subdivision by the Native Land Court now sitting at Otorohanga will be sufficiently advanced to enable further purchases to be made in the King Country. It is surprising to learn that the enormous sum of £532,000 has been expended up to date for telephone extension. Almost every village in the colony has been connected, certainly a costly luxury for so small a community to indulge in. There is only a sum of £70,000 remaining 'out of loan money for public buildings; and the Government are, therefore, fortunately, under compulsion to charge the expenditure for school buildings in future to the Consolidated Revenue. The balance of the Public Works Fund that will be available for succeeding years is £1,297,0G4, after spending during the present yeur the sum of £802,000. The Government express their intention to abolish the Public Works Depart, ruent, and to set up the Railway Commission as soon as final arrangements have been made with the Agent-General with reference to the appointment of the Chief Commissioner.