WHAT WILL THE NORTH ISLAND GAIN BY SEPARATION?

Auckland Star, Volume VI, Issue 1734, 4 September 1875, Page 2

WHAT WILL THE NORTH ISLAND GAIN BY SEPARATION?

[To the Editor of the Star.] g; r The above question has been raised by Mr. Dargaville, in a letter which appeared in the columns of your journal last week. He asserts that the cry for separation, more or less complete, will be the Opposition cry at the next general election, and he proceeds to discuss the question how far the policy of separation is likely to benefit this Island. There are many points in the letter published by Mr. Pargaville which call for little or no remark, beinjj merely reiterations in various farms of the parrot-cry, that all who oppose himself and bis friends, the present Government, are Provincialists, or have some private and sinister ends to serve by their opposition. The main question raised, however, is one of the greatest public interest; and in case Mr. Dargaville should be right in supposing that separation in some form will be proposed as a substitute for the Centralism shadowed forth in the Abolition of Provinces Bill, it is certainly worthy of consideration whether that separation would be financially possible, and if so, whether it would be desirable. In the consideration of so grave a question it is manifestly desirable to exercise the greatest care in dealing with statistics and accountg, which must be my excuse for the length of time which I have allowed to elapse before replying to Mr. Dargaville's specious arguments. I will first deal with THE BURDENS OF THE NORTH ISLAND. These arise from three classes of loans. The war loan of 1863 amounting to three milions, the provincial loans or those provincially charged, amounting to £1,154,455, and the share of this island in the Public Works and Immigration loans, which has to be arrived at by ascertaining what proportion of these loans has been expended for the benefit of the North Island. Our liability in respect of the war loan may perhaps be taken at onethird of the whole, as although the war was undertaken at the instance of the Southern majority in the Assembly, it was a national matter, and may fairly be held to have created a colonial liability to be met by the people in proportion to their numbers. On the old loan the liability, therefore, of the North Island may be taken to be f CO, 000 a-year for interest and sinking fund. In respect of loanß either raised by the provinces, or provincially charged by the Colonial Assembly, the North Island is liable for a sum of £67,879 a year as interest and sinking fund. Apart, therefore, from the expenditure under the Immigration and Public Works Loan in this island, we are liable for an annual charge of £127,879 a-year. Under the various Loan Acts from IS7O to this date the colony at large has become liable for £10,007.545, involving an annual charge of £491,823. £50,000, however, of this amount was raised for the province of Westland, and is not therefore in any way connected with the North Island. The liability, therefore, with which this part of the colony is coneernad is £10,017,545, involving a charge of £489,313, 14s Id per annum. Of this large sum almost the whole has either been spent or is now contracted to be spenb upon railroads, immigration, works on Goldfields, roads, or the purchase of native lands in this islard. The share of this liability properly belonging to the North Island may be easily arrived at by dealing with these items separately. The railroad expenditure, including all that is contracted for, in this island is £2,134,266, to this may be added £245.,000, being our full share of the immigration expenditure up to this time; £460,000 for roads in the North I sland j and £60,000 lor works on the Thames goldfields. These items together make up a total of £2,654,266, representing an annual charge of about £119,500 a year. The part of the loan Bet apart for the purchase of native lands in this island was granted on the understanding that the Sourthern Island was thus to some extent redeeming its own land fund, on which the North Island had a claim, and there can be no doubt that the South Island would gladly accept so much liability, or, indeed, a good deal more, as the price of setting free their land fund for ever from all claims on our part. Finally there is the Defence and Other Purposes Loan of 1870, and the General Purposes Loan of 1873 ; and if this island accepts the liability of one-third of these, it will,, certainly have accepted its full share. This will add £314,633 to our 1 liability, with an annual charge of £16,64S upon our revenue." Thus it is manifest that the total liability of the North Island in respect of loans is £5,023,354, and the annual charge upon "our revenue is £264,027. I have gone into these many particulars at the risk of wearying your readers, because 1 found that Mr. Dargaville had systematically ignored details, and was invariably incorrect in the figures adduced In his letter. It is true that general averages and lump sums are very easily arrived at, but on so grave a question as that under discussion, it. is surely worth while to refer to the accounts and papers, which were as much within reach of Mr. Dargaville as of myself, and would certainly have prevented his falling into several serious mistakes which appear in his letter.

THE COST OF GOVEENMENT. This may be regarded as the second part of the burdens naturally falling upon this island which in the- event of any kind of separation' must be provided for out of our revenue. The amount of this burden at present may be easily arrived at by a reference to the accounts of the Colonial Government for last year. From these it appears that the cost of the various departments of Government, exclusive of the Defence Force, was £579,000, including £23,000 spent without appropriation. An examination of the details shews that excepting in the two items—Native Department and Militia and Volunteers^—more than two-thirds of the amount is chargeable to the South Island. Taking out these two items, which amount to £53,256, only about £130,000 can be charged against the. North Island. Fully £12,000 for Militia and Volunteers in this island must be added, and, while there can belittle doubt that the colony would gain much and lose little by the abolition of the Native Department, it is probable that a sum of about £15,000 a-year might fairly be regarded as necessary for purposes now included in the vote for some years to come. Thus £157,000 may be regarded as the burden imposed on this island., by the necessary cost of Government. There is still the defence force to be dealt with, and this force costs, according to the Colonial Treasurer, £91,000 a-year. That this charge could safely be reduced to much more reasonable proportions very few will be disposed to deny, bat even if this colonial army were regarded as a necessary incubus upon this

I sland, it would only bring Tipon^? burden, owing to these cost ß of t> ment to a sum of £248,000 a-year AsVetlU then, the cost of these burdens ti S vernment now borne by the C1 - Treasury to the burdens chargeablp^fcl^ island upon loans, the whole cl /^t.'» accruing against us amounts toy W^, a year. This, it is to be observedg'l'lv' we now get from the colony in rS ' what we pay in taxes, with the excel |v the capitation gram, which amounts t| If £50,000 a year. Ihese at present we I P in one f^rm or other out of the ta' • which we pay, £572,000 a year ; and: w. this island separated from the South Island either wholly or as a matter of finan^i arrangement, a revenue of £572,000 a v would suffice to place us in as good aposiT as we are now with regard to finan Having arrived at, a conclusion as to ft necessary burdens of the people in 4 island, it remains for me to shew, that th contributions to the revenue at present such as ■fcfould, if devoted to their ownta poses, meet these demands. I shall'be r»' pared to shew not only thatthis is the east but that a very large balance wxmld remain available, which, under existing, arrange! ment3 and under those proposed'by th Government, goes to the relief aia'd'aggrsn! disement of our Southern neighbors, who pay for their immigration and public voA with the money paid by us.—l am, & c .' Hugh H. Ltok.