THE HON, G. F. RICHARDSON AT MATAURA.

Evening Star, Issue 9153, 7 June 1893, Page 1

THE HON, G. F. RICHARDSON AT MATAURA.

The address recently delivered at Mataura by the member for the district is worthy of notice on account of its intrinsic merits, as well as from the fact that the honorable gentleman held the portfolio of Minister of Lands in the last Aminsok Government. On this occasion, judgingfromthepublished report, he would appear to have devoted himself principally to the financial aspect of the present situation, and said very little on the land question. He expressed, indeed, high approval of Mr M'Keszie's administration, in reference especially to " matters on which that gentleman had ap- " parontly changed his views." There was, " for instance, to be no freehold; but as a matter of fact the revenue from land sales last year amounted to £l 10,355. '•' One of " the grievances against him (Mr Richard- " son) was that he was.sacrifieing the land "for cash ; but during his term the revenue " from this source was £lll,oooa year ; so "that a Government which had de"clarcd it would not part with the "freehold had realised within £7OO of "the amount obtained by the Atkinson "Ministry." With regard to pastoral lauds, Mr Richardson asserts that Mr M'Kenzie has wisely ignored his own Act and taken advantage of the provisions which allow such lands to be dealt with exceptionally. " He had made the exeep- " tion the rule. A number of runs had "been dealt with in a proper and business- " like way." Mr Richardson condemns the 909 years' lease at a peppercorn rent as " a ridiculous thing hi a colony not "fifty years old. . . . The land so held "might be urgently wanted, and might "become of great value ; but there could '• be no increase in the rent." In regard to the colonial finance;, with which, as we have indicated, the main portion of his tspecch was taken up, Mr Richardson shows an intimate knowledge and firm grasp of the subject for which wo should hardly have given him credit. He completely demolishes, by the " stern logic of facts," the pretentious assertions of Ministers as to the wonders which have been achieved during the period the present dominant party have been in power; and demonstrates from official returns, the last Financial Statement, and other authorities that the nonborrowing policy so constantly vaunted is the merest sham ; and that, so far from retrenchment in the ordinary expenditure having been effected, it was several thousand pounds more last year than when Sir Harry Atkinson was Premier. Mr Richardson further comments on the disingenuousuess of the assertion in the Financial Statement of last year that a net reduction in the public debt had been effected. Only a portion of the truth, lie says, was disclosed ; the real position being that, whereas there was a nominal reduction of the gross debt to the amount of £117,000, there was an actual increase of the net debt of the Colony of over £330,000. " It is a source " of wonder to me that repeated diselo- " sitres in respect to Ministers' random " utterances have not before this caused " them to lose the respect and the eonfi- " deuce which the public first reposed in " them. It seems, however, that a much '• lower standard isapplied to them than that '• by which the Atkinson Government " were measured, so that people do not " expect better from them, and are thank- " ful that they are no worse." Speaking of the Public Works Fund, the honorable gentleman points out that out of a total expenditure during the past two financial years of £804,504, £812,170 was borrowed money and £52,39-1 from the Consolidated Fund. The Minister of Education, lie therefore thinks, was hardly justified in asserting, as he did at Lawrence the other day, that " another feature was that Mr Bai.i.anc;; " carried on public works out of revenue, "instead of out of loan, as former Trea'•surers did." Much of the expenditure, Mr Richardson declares, has been extravagant, unnecessary, and in the interests of party. lie instances the Thames-Tc Arolia and the (ireymouthHokitika Railways, and the wholesale expenditure on co-operative works. " The army of the unemployed will "not be disbanded until they have "recorded their votes at the next "elections." Mr Richardson expresses himself distinctly opposed to the system —favored and largely adopted last year, through the issue of Treasury bills—of borrowing in the Colony. He declares this to be extravagant borrowing, involving the paying of "more than "1 per cent, to the middleman who fui - *-inshes us with the English capital wede- " clinc to obtain directly." The honorable gentleman declares himself of opinion that the public works expenditure should be cut down to about £350,000 a year, of which £IOO,OOO should be appropriated from revenue. The Colony should take advantage, lie contends, of the present flourishing condition, and in order to maintain it authority should be obtained to borrow "honestlv and openly in the "London market £1,500.000, with a " pledge not to borrow further until the •' vear 1900." Ho proposes that £500,000 of this loan should be raised early next year, and the same amount every alternate year until the whole is raised. The ! £250,000 a year thus provided should bo expended—except any portion set aside for the purchase of Native lands—"solely " on works scheduled . (cven< the roads "should be scheduled),, so as to ensure " proper expenditure. The first railway "works undertaken should be the Otago '•Central to Eweburn, so as to give the 'best return for the very heavy sum " already expended on the line, and the '• completion of the Ekatahuna-Woodville "line, which would probably give a return '\of G per cent, right off. . . . More "money should be spent on roads than on "railways, but entirely in the direction " of opening up the country." Were some such steps taken, the .honorable gentleman affirms, we should'have a scheme of moderate and assured finance fixed for so long a period ahead as it would be wise to go in a progressive country like this, j Wc are disposed to think that this scheme, in the present state of public opinion, is not practicable, although it has much, from a common-sense view, which is commendable. The impression is very general that any addition to the permanent indebtedness of the Colony should be avoided; and the fact is ovcrlookeo>that under the financial arrangements of last session borrowin;-- to a very considerable extent was resorted to, us will be plainly seen when the transactions of the year 1892-93 arc fully disclosed. Wc do not agree with Mr Richardson as to provision being made for the completion of the Otago Central Railwav only to Eweburn, although "half a loaf" may be "better than no bread." We would not approve any finite arrangement which would only

supply funds of the line so far. We contend that it is absolutely necessary for the opening up of the interior and rendering the railway financially a success that the line should be carried through to the projected terminus at Wanaka. This, it is believed, could be done for about £300,000, which is considerably within the money from time to time authorised for the work, but otherwise expended. Mr Richardson is somewhat severe, as might have been expected, on the Ministry. It remains, ho said, the same Government as before the death of Mr Baixance, but without "the lubricating medium" of his tact and ability. "How far," he continues, " Mr Seddon may be able to fill " the gap time alone can show. His Act- " ing-Leadership last session was not an " unqualified success ; and in his recent "rambles his many rash and random " statements have been quite in keeping "with the character he has earned 'in the " House, so that in both respects there is " undoubted room for improvement."