The Dominion. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26, 1910. THE COUNTRY'S FINANCES.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 725, 26 January 1910, Page 6

The Dominion. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 26, 1910. THE COUNTRY'S FINANCES.

If he but knew it, tho PeimeHinISTER is never less reassuring to tho public , than when ho - ■ defends ■ his financial, administration in a fiorceand - vulgar . manner. : Let ' him sayi .that'thei;.country, though..,rich ;■ and : ■productive,vis not quite-in tie besthealth, and that there'must be immediate reductions of expenditure, in order that trouble may ba averted, and the public, though it may not feel happy, .will at, anyrate feel more confidence than ■ when, after being told;in strident tones that all is well,'' it suddenly discovers that things are | in a. bad way., The public's memory is.not so, short' that• it |has. forgotten that a. year ago tho Prime Minister I'was dolighted, with tho state of . tho [national finanocs,laud this- although [ he; .knew,; that; the finances- had gone half.; a..million; to;,.tho .-bad. .Nobody -. now places any trust in-Sib Joseph's ecstasies. The most that the public dares is to believe that the natural resources of tho country aro a reservoir of promise and progress that cannot bo, seriously hurt during the ■romaindor of tho Waed Government's tenure of office!. When the financial position on 1 December 31-: last is 'compared •- with;; the. ./position' on that date over, a series of years, 1 it will ibo seen that there has been a most unpleasant falling off. The rovenuo, goeß on increasing/ aB the i grass goes ,on growingand the sun I goes on shining, but the country is j little;- better'off for.it! ' More,, it is worse, off,-; as; the ; following ■; figures : for the first nine months of the variousl fiscal years will show:—

!' EXpeildii: • >;■ ! : >1; ■. v Revenue.. hire 1 19034 ;... ■■ 4,855,526 • 4.783.650 1904-S ; 5,025,626 . ■." . 4,980,620 1905-6 ; 5,233,642' : i: 5,245,991 1006-7 5,826,060 . '' '5,569,62(1 1937-8 6,307,101: !' 5,876,6X3 ,1008-9 • : 6,421,028. 6,451,938 1909-10, v : 6,512,453 .'/: 6,516,700 During the last two years the excess has been on. tiiosidoof. expenditure. In the seven years the revenue on the ■ nine-months period has increased by £1,656,927,. but the expenditure has increased, by ,£1,733,. 020.;' : The'revenue has increased by 34 per oont. and tho expenditure by nearly 36 per cent

The financial year 1908-9 opened with an. initial balance of £767,849, and ended with a balance of £io4,<jia, tne smallest. for .years. During the current year, the initial balance of £184,321 has alreaidy fallen to £180,729, but no doubt there will be a recovery in the current quarter. The year will doubtless end with a balance of about £350,000, but only if- nothing iB transferred to the Public Works Fund.: This may be con-, sidered satisfactory 'and; eyen gratifying: by- the . Prime Minister, ..but he will not, we hope, ask the public to go into raptures when it has been accustomed to surpluses of £700,000 after the transference of £700,000 or so to the Public Works . Fund. In tho.year 1900-7, for example, the "surplus" was £717,826, and £775,000 had beea transferred to the Public Works Fund—if nothing were transferred, to that Fund tho surplus would .havo been £1,492,825. If nothing is transferred to Public Works this year tho "surplus" may reach £350,000. It is plain from this, comparison that since 1907 the public finances have gone one million per annum to the .bad. ! If Sib Joseph thinks that, this; is a feather in his cap, we can only wonder how great would be that ruin and chaos that would mftko hiw in n minor

key., There is not another country in the world in which the > revenue has grown ,bo rapidly aa in' New Zealand. There is not a single 'reason, however, .why the growth of expenditure, should not be normal. Instea,d, therefore, of a steady drift of the Exchequer towards emptiness, there should bo an unexampled growth in the surpluses even if the taxation were not increased. Under ordinarily prudent management the taxpayers would each • year liave received enormous new reductions' of 1 their imposts., Yet not only, is tho taxation not reduced—it is. ■ increased. .In this : connection we must, note that' the Pkime Minjsteu did not attribute the decrease in the Customs returns to "remissions." Wo cannot think how he forgot to. do this. : Perhaps, however, he did not care.to'trust-that the public has forgotten that there have' been no concessions ■on the 'rates that produced last year's returns. . There is one paragraph in. the s'peech which calls for quotation, as follows:— •It must not be forgotten' that tho economies effected by, the Government were now .in force, but: the, full benefits were: not yet being .obtained. - The total reduction- effected amounted,to yE3C3,000, but naturally only a portion; of it had actually taken place .up to tho period j named., . r.-, - -■■.

A more preposterous statement could not be imagined. Where are these economies ?VWhere is the £181,500— we take half .the total figure—that has been saved? The 'expenditure has actually risen by £64,764 in the nine months. It is; quite useless' for the Prime Minister -to talk of saving : money when, on his own showing, he is spending niore than ever. He may as reasonably claim that he has reduced expenses by ten millions because he spent ten millions less, than ho might have spent, The position as be reveals it .is bad. - The country is - manifestly recovering from: the.. depression.' ■ The - country is sound at hea.rt; its 'constitutidn' is, strong.. But "its governors are maltreating /'it;'.- shamefully, and Sir Joseph knows it. A ,word is .wanted in"'conclusion, upon the Pkime-Min-iSTEß's/vulgar';: 'and .petty tirade against his critics. It is not neces--sary for us. to dispose 'again ;of his challenge—which any ordinarily intelligent' person-can successfully take' up—to say where he has not been on the side of safety and caution. As for: his suggestion: that hia • critics: ''call public men names," it may be sufficient to say that it' has as little foundation as most of the ■ Piume Minister's : political; statements, <: but ft may be pointed out that in any case . such s a charge, oven if it had .any, foundation, 1 is not ; one' that can bo made with any forcc by the: politician who-has -tho distinction of being the only Prime Minister in the Empire who has ' elovated : the'; tone , of public lifo by using, such j pretty •words as "traitors" and "crawling, and contcmptiblo creatures."