A WARNING FROM THE CAPE.

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 12351, 15 November 1905, Page 6

A WARNING FROM THE CAPE.

Wo frequently hear from Ministers and their fuglemen that Now Zealand in an object of admiring wonder to tire rest of the- world. The wander wo grant, ibut we are lets euro about tho admiration. A good many people m different parts of the World look upon tho methods of the New Zealand Government much as the patrons of a circus regard the performance of 'looping the loop," or «c the average person feole about motor-car racing—as something extremely interesting to see or road atbout, but not a perfarmamce in which ono would wieih personally to, tako a part. Wo may amuse, even interest, other countries, but wo do not eeom to inspire them with any burning wish to follow our example. They prefer to wait and sco iwhore tho expcfrimemfcal legislation in which we aro supposed to lead tho world leads us to. The "Cape Times," for instance, while admitting that outwardly at least everything has been prospering with NeyT Zealand of late years, in epito of our daring experiments, does not urge that the Cape shall embark on a similar course. On the contrary it finds no Ettle satisfaction in tho thought that even the "old colony," which is sometimes accused, of being slow and unprogressive, is managed on sounder financial lines than New Zealand. Of recent years, for instance, the Capo has initiated a policy of meeting c considerable amount of railway requirements out of current revenue, and it ocaigratulatee the colonists that there is not likely to be any reversion "to the bad ■ <Sld S3-stem of debiting everything to capital account, which used to rule in the Railway Department," which system, ac ifc points out, has been largely followed in .New Zealand for some timo. A fictitious profit, it aays, has thus teen ehown on the capital invested in New Zealand railways. Our contemporary also reoognisee in. the "rather extravagant optimism" induced by New Zealand's

recent prosperity, the danger that when tho tide begins to turn this colony, ak Cape Colony did under similar circumstances, wfll feel the change'all the mora acutely. That is, of course, what will happen. Wo have been adding to our debt in tameo of prosperity at a quite unjustifiable rate, careless of the fact that the interest must be paid, be the times good or bad. AnQ if bad times come the two millions we have to send away in interest every year will prove an almost into-co-blo burden. Mr Seddon estimates that rather more than half our debt is reproductive, but more than 80 per cent, of the Cape's indebtedness reprasants reproductive works, aud iifc must not bo forgotten that a good deal of Mr Seddon's lavish loan expenditure may cease to bo reproductive if the prices for our produce fall. Wo are working on. too small a margin, and there is too much ground for fear that the occurreince of a period of low prices would seriously embarrass us.