The Press. SATURDAY, JUNE 12, 1880.

Press, Volume XXXIII, Issue 4638, 12 June 1880, Page 2

The Press. SATURDAY, JUNE 12, 1880.

No statement has been more stoutly, more persistently, denied, than Major Atkinson's announcement, last session, that the five million loan had been' to a great extent anticipated. During the recess more than one member of the Opposition referred to the charge as a pure invention of Ministers. ; Mr. Macandrew, when addressing the 'electors at Fort Chalmers, sought to meet the accusation by reference to a return prepared last session, which showed that contracts to the amount of only £600,000 had been entered into by the department over which he had presided. He carefully omitted to say that the charge was not that contracts had been made to the extent of several millions, but that contracts, and engagements as binding on the colony as contracts, had been entered into which practically absorbed the greater portion of the loan. Another honourable member, who prides himself on his financial ability, told his constituents not long ago that "there were three in—lions of {the loan untouched. Of that he was as certain as he was living." We do not say that such language was used for the purpose of deliberately misleading those who heard it. Bnt we do assert that it was calculated—whatever the intention of the speaker was—to produce a false impression—an impression that three millions of the loan were still available forappropria--on.

! Well, what is the actual position of the Public Works Fund ? Major Atkinson tells us that during the nine months ending March 31st last, there has been actually expended on Public Works, Immigration and other services £1,750,881; and that the total Ways and Means on the same date were £3,262,410, cons—tingof— Cash in the publio account in the Colony and in London £862,410 Balance of five million loan to be received 551,000 Guaranteed debentures unsold ... 800,060 Temporary advances at interest... 57,000 £2,270,410 Temporary advances to consolidated fund ... ... ...992,000 Total... ':',...- ... £3,262,410 _Tow were all this money free from engagements, Mr. Macandrew and his friends would have been right.' But it is not available for appropriation as the

House may direct. Although, it has not been -wtusJiy spent, liabilities to the extent of. £2,455,313 had, on March 21st T)een mcm -dd, made up as follows:— Immigration _. £10,000 Public works department ... 644 Railways ... ... 910,506 Surveys of new lines 1500 Roads 180,696 Land purchases 1,061,486 Waterworks on goldnelds ... 10,704 Telegraph extension 1034 Public bufldings 205,314 Lighthouses ... 120 Miscellaneous public works ... 73,309 £2,455,313 From the above sum, however, must be deducted the advances in the hands of officers of the Government on March 31st last, amounting to £315,763. This will bring the liabilities on that date down to £2,139,515. On the other hand there has to be added fresh engagements entered into since that date stated to be £110,000, and a contribution to the cost of defence on the same scale as last year, £140,000. These figures bring up the liabilities, &c, on the date of the statement, to £2,389,550. The position of the Public Works Fund is, therefore, as follows:— Ways and means, as above ... £3,262,410 Liabilities and engagements ... 2,389,550 Available for new works ... £872,860 We have already stated that the Consolidated Fund had been assisted with temporary advances from loan to the extent of £992,000 on March 31st last. Since then it has been necessary to advance £350,000 additional, so that, as the case now stands, the Public Works Fund has been called on to assist the ordinary revenue to the extent of £1,342,000. If this amount is deducted from the Ways and Means, there is left £1,920,410 for public works, &c, till the Treasury and Deficiency bills are sold. That sum falls short of the liabilities by £469,000. It therefore comes to this—that not only can none of the £872,860 available for new works be spent till the Treasury bills are sold; but even the liabilities already incurred cannot be met till that is done.

This is what we have come to in consequence of the blundering incapacity of the late Government. It is terrible to contemplate what would have happened had they been permitted to remain a few months longer in office. Judging from the speeches of some of them, they would have considered it their duty to go on spending and incurring liabilities in the same wild manner they had been doing. Their chief has on more than one occasion defended the course taken by his Government, on the ground that it was necessary to go on recklessly spending, so as to tide over the commercial crisis into which the colony has been plunged. We can easily imagine what would have been the result had he been allowed his way for a few months longer. Repudiation would have been no mere theory with him then. He would undoubtedly have had the satisfaction of putting it into practice.

We have received the first result of the labors of the Statute Law Revision Commission. It consists of a batch of eleven measures: the Banks and Bankers Act, the Arms Act, the Bills of Exchange Procedure Act, the Chattel Securities Act, the Mercantile Law Act, the Married Women's Property Protection Act, the Juries Act, the Cruelty to Animals Act, the Building Societies Act, the Animnla .Protection . Act, and the Adulteration Act. The scheme was first set on foot by Mr. Steut. It was found necessary, -however, to repeal the-Act of 1878; and the Commission by whom the above Acts have been prepared derive their trathority from the Revision of Statutes Act ef 1879. Their duties appear to be as follows: they are to revise, correct, arrange, and consolidate all the public general Acts of New Zealand which now form part of the living statute law. They are at liberty to make alterations necessary to reconcile contradictions, supply omissions, and amend . imperfections in existing Acts. They are to report upon such contradictions and so forth, and upon the mode in which they have dealt with.them. And they may recommend Acts for repeal, and such new Acts as in their judgment it may be necessary to pass.

It will be seen that the powers thus conferred upon the Commissions are exceedingly large; and the more so because while undoubtedly the Legislature is competent to deal with the results of their labors as it may think fit, it will be highly undesirable that any change whatever should be made in the Acts thus drafted by the Commission during their passage through the two Houses. It may easily happen, certainly, that in the process of consolidation, expressions will be used in a new Act the propriety of whichmay fairly give rise to discussion, and the Committee of the House is of course the proper place in which such discussion should be conducted. But if the result of the debate be that the emendation proposed by the Commissioners is not accepted, the most judicious course will be for the House not to venture upon the necessary alteration itself, but to refer back the Bill to, the Commissioners, and let them make the alteration their own way. This no doubt seems a large surrender of legislative functions. But it has been by. a steady to this plan that so great an improvement has been effected in the language of Acts of Parliament at home. If the House once undertake to criticise

for themselves the mere terminology of the Acts now presented to them by the Commission, and to act upon their criticism, there is an end to all hope of reform in our statute law. There is nothing, of course, of all this that we are recommending in the Revision of Statutes Act. The Legislature cannot constitutionally tie its own hands, and ought not to do so if it could. But none the less, it is all important that the caution we have been insisting on should be rigorously kept in view.

The eleven Bills now before us comprise all that the Commissioners think it desirable to continue in force of fortyeight Acts of Parliament scattered up and down the statute book. We have some right to use this expression, seeing that among the Acts thus disposed of there are? some as early as 1858, and some passed within the last year or two. And this statement is sufficient of itself to justify the appointment of the Commission. For we can hardly call upon our lawyers to give us a cheap opinion upon the state of the law on any given point when their skill, however great, in the interpretation of Acts of Parliament .is materially interfered with by the necessity of a_o_3___ng in the first instance how many Acts there are bearing upon the point, where they are to be found, and what it is that they say. Even if the labor. i . of the Commission did not do more for us than to get rid of

these three preliminary difficulties without attempt—ig anything in the way of amendment, we should still have much to be thankful for. As it is, such glances as we have at present been able to take of the pages which have been forwarded to us leads. us to hope that we shall have for the future a law not merely more easily found, but also considerably improved. An important illustration of our meaning will be seen when we come to notice the Chattel Securities Act, the consideration of which we must leave to a future occasion. But, meanwhile, we may refer to the Bills of Exchange Procedure Act as affording a sufficient indication of what we mean. As far as we can see, this Aot is a remarkably close reproduction of the two existing statutes. But it is shortened by the insertion of an interpretation clause, and in one respect, we must add, it is lengthened by the fact of another Act'of our own Legislature not yet haying come into operation. The Law Amendment Act of 1878, it will be remembered, went the length of abolishing all proceedings in what is called " error." We need not here stop to specify precisely what is meant by error, but when we say that its practical effect is to lengthen out for three years, and possibly longer, what, by means- of an ordinary appeal, can be as satisfactorily accomplished in as many months, our readers will probably agree with us that the abolition is a wise and salutary change. Bnt, unluckily, it is not yet in operation, and the consequence is that the present Consolidation Bill is so far lengthened as is rendered necessary by a reference to these proceedings.