THE MINISTERIAL INDICTMENT.

Evening Star, Issue 8268, 14 July 1890, Page 4

THE MINISTERIAL INDICTMENT.

MR HUTCHISON'S CHARGE-!. Our Parliamentary reporter supplies the following extract from the speech delivered by Mr Hutchison, member for Waitotars, on Wednesday week, as containing tho charges referred to the Special Committee to inquire into the allegations made : I will ask hon. members to bear with me While I touch on the occurrences of the last three years with reference to the Public Works Fund—that fund which is made up of borrowed money. In ISSS, just before tho second session of this Parliament, it will be remembered that there was a hitch in respect to the proposed two million loan. Tho loan, which was to have been authorised tho previous year, bad been bungled—it could not bn raised. It was a period of great anxinty. It wan a crisis in tho history of the colony in more ways than one. I" tho usual course, early in that year a certain monetary institution bad to present its half-yearly report and hal.incc-3hp«t. / refer to the Hank of New Zealand. I mean to icter often to that bank, but never except in so far as the bank is concerned with the finances of this colony ; outside of that I have no concern with it at all, but inside of that I have, and every member of this House has, n deep concernln its transactions. It ivas necessary, then, for the bank directors to present their report and bahuice■heet. Do not hon. members remember the meeting in Auckland when the chairman of directors presented his report '.' There were ugly rumors current as to the stability of the bank. The chairman of director.-, lieu wis tb« lion. Sir I''. Whitalcer, and be w-i ■•. a! <o then, anil us he i.-: still, Attorney I Jeneral in t'lo present Administration. I .-.m nol going to indulge in any phant.i.'iiev. I will dial with fact::. We are lieie to ig.eal the truth, impugn it wlmso listeth : and I say that that'linn, gentleman was at that date deeply indebted to the Bank of New Zealand. I will not say that the amount of his overdraft was L-10,000 or any other sum, because soinc Minister may get up and aay it was not so, because the amount was a little larger or a little smaller, as the ease might be : but I will say it was a very, very heavy amount, and an amcunt which has never to this day been discharged, -uul, if the Government will appoint a ci.mmittco—for which I hope to give some further reai-ons later on —to inquire into the of tho Government wish the Bank of Now Zealand (luring the past thveo years, I take upon myself too onus c; proving that what I now say is absolutely correct. Here, then, we have at this double crisis—a crisis with the colony and a crisis with tho bank—the chairman of directors tho Attorney-General of tho present Ministry, a power in politics, one who had been the Premier oi the colouy before, and one who, from his great ability and Ion;; experience, exercised, no doubt, a great_ deal of weight in the counsels of the Ministry. What was done? As I have said, the loan could not be raised : no assistance could be looked for from that source : but a, perfectly abnormal state of finance was created for the emergency. Authority was obiauicd uy the Colonial Treasurer to float upwards of 1.540.000 of deficiency bills. This was (juito a.a abnormal state of things, the nor:.iU amount being L 700.000 ; mid, although the maximum of LS 10,000 was reduced before tho balance-sheet of the colony was made up on the .'list March for presentation to the House in the session of IS-SS, even at tiiat daw there were three-quarters of a, million of delicieaey bills in circulation, The reason why these lulls were lloatcd v.v.n t-.) buy minted gold. To bo accumulated in the ccd''-rj of tho colony? .Yo In ,'// the

~,.,;;,-,,/./• the Biml:- (■/ A".- : »- ■/.■a'.inui. Isk ti'.u I rovemmenc to me- o lll.i .marge, if they can, before u. t.'o:ninitVJ>>, ' r beloio any other tribunal ti'.ey to t reet. The loan w u lluated in June, R;tv.. A.) I took occasion to ;::'.y hi'it sessi'in. it '.ras lloated at a sacrifice of LIOO.OOO, )>y w-c.'.-on of the more favor.iblo circumstances having been lost in the e-M-liei' part of the year, when, it thee had been tvo bungle, it might have been ni'-n: successfully una ted. It was floated ab'o, I regret to say, under circumstances of such grow misrepresentation of i'a.;ts a-i would, by the rules nt any Court of Lw—iiad the C:i-e been that of a private CTiniciV-hivo entitled tin: to \wu had their allotment:! of scrip sot aside. Too loan was (bated,";;-' I iiave said, at an '.ndir'-c5 loss or LIOO.OOO, and at u, direct oxpeme, beside',-, of Over LI 10,000 in discounts a-:.d expenses, Xiiat loan must have /cost tho colony 10 per cent, the The "to"s prouvds, amounting to L 1,055,000, vj •Jilt/into the J-adc of New Zealand. The •crisis 5-fi far as tue over.' Rut tiie erhiH im the affairs of tlte bml; continued, though for - time somevvhat by t!:e rp.sintanc-.-. ,"f _ our loan. Then a euiir.a.) tiling occurred. I have, referred to tiu". .meeting in March, n\wl to the <ii. , '.b.;:;ic.H which the t,irt.i tors must have I'nowi: »\,s inevitable. (t w.;-< e.-i;i-i:.-::'i\\> i.oee:s.,ary to fitreni-ti.-en the j...;:;.";!on of tha haiilv .:i \.ti-;..u:-i way.!, .me of ■whieii svu.-i i.-/ i ;•)■..■...■ e:i : .;.-..', til". eunU'./ry ot whan nill:.t I;:'- Uki'ii i." >■■■"><?. been known by ~( , „ii! t> be em,.leg. J •:■ ■ir< J < '>.■■■ Hn.-.-r*- „,.-„■ <>:>,<' A /■.'/.-/ ;.."■■;/'"■'■■'. ■'•'•'•'"'■";;/. ■>«■ .\,., ..'.<;.,.,,■<:■' ,n i.'-i. •<<<-.', '"/ ■.,!■!■ itr,.i-:ii'i l>> ",,„•'.,.',. .;,., //.■ wm/,7 ,</ ;!>■• /,-,■,.' ~.:■■'> <l.;a>; .il,, r ,•!.;,. . If th ■ i .'ovrrini.nt.l/ ""•ill not give ■j'lio ('.ii.imiilA i .-u::.'•■•;;, 1 avl: f.heii). to let uv l-'-n tiie".'-'';..".'>■ . • i.:uee, l.oi rnnneote.l wi-.ii'.•:", mr.-;'..-.;- ..;..•;•■'.:!. ...ember for |.t„-

coin ft:- She h.m. nv •■<>■■' ':' for 'vV.iipa to go , IV ,. . t i,, >-.! . .„'• f : ■■r:n::-i to Hi'' Agent«:<:iw.l in ;.'■'• lit-r yxfj .-.f ,'HSS and the .beginning n." I ■:'.-!>, and .;,y w)i/-C!:c,r or not the <-overr.m< ::i; of ti-.!! colony did not emp'ov the .vgent-t ..•■uerul to assure the T»i!'iiicr" o'" l,:>i.<io;i that the position of the 15 u:!r of New '/'■ .!•■' 'riiiil v.-i a uoiind. Thar- the position of" 1-h,' I irk then v,T3 sound is -,vh;>t •.'.<> all v.c.v knovv was not tri-.o ; the diirinsure:: .''hice ,;>'k' l-how that v/ithva; ■.:;'/ do::i;v. Those who make represcnta-•;:-,:i:j ;'m.. n_,,;.ousible for the facts thny al:f r 'o, or f.ra equally liable for representing sviij't tli'.-y do not kiiov/ to be true. Now, let 113 s-.-J h<nv the iUim'i.lry were aiding the bar.!: with ;r.c,:ey. .fi.cr..' was in ISSiI, aeoiding to U;c i'ublic Works Account of .that year', ;;i round .-lumbers, oae and a-half -nidion:', t.H- pr-jccciM of this two million if-.. JoilgC'. in she baiia. To anticipate rioir.ewraf. I have in.re o, little tiblc, which .1. tt.kik would he- rather inttresting to the -,n;i.!ic woj.' ib added to thoH3 accompanying ■tiic .-'caieiiie.it, or those which may yet be i.-'..i'i'--d v>>th the Public Works Statement, iv. i; a. cable 01 four lines oniy. It in>iie i'.'.; fi.o peiventag.: of money in the i-'ubko \"iirkn Kund whick '.vas uninvested, i>r thv "' free i.ioney," as cha Colonial Treasurer .in iiio J'itwucial Statement would cv.ll it -.

In ISS7 i"« •' '. ' thm bo Keen that there was ou;y a pe/eeiic.:i'e The iflov. r::::.jnt or th.it day ir.id iivented the v/ho:.; <>i the nvaiiw'-'.o funds, less 11 pf-r -•ei '• :<• reuiioniihlu :..'.:.. i.j hold at call. Jlut'in S:; per cent. ; i,. <>JS!), 1)1 per ceuc. : arid ir. JSOO IS per cent, regained aaiuV'-'.'J.'d. The iariS three amounts iirihr■!■ will be obatiii-d to have been unioui't-j. X!:.:fii-?t waacver LU2.000, the :v.\« over L.IL'.O.OUO, aud the laat_wa3 ovr LO-.7,C0O —maaw-; kn- which the colony •wa..: ■;, .ybr; iukrett, 1.-it v/hieli the. Oovern•iiieijt K'i iminvcl.t', .-.:.Liiining no profit or .return ir.-.>in the iianii oi Zealand.

' "" " I Mcircn. C ' •"'•"-"-"' not ;:;veHtud.