POLITICAL.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCIII, Issue 10566, 28 January 1895, Page 5

POLITICAL.

THE COLONIAL TREASURER AT DUNEDIN. [Peb-Pems Association.! ; DWEDIN, Jan. 87., ; • The Colonial Treasurer was entertained,, at, a social gathering iast evening. Mr C., S. Reeves presided* and nearly all:, thelocal members of the Legislature, among, others, were • present; Mr Ward, in the course of a lengthy speech, said it was remarkable .with what sudden. unanimity the. most., determined onponenta ofthe Govepimenb had dßcided* that it wan desirable that the Treasurer should remain in the colony; but he declared that .parsonsc giving-utterance to,such if not Judas : Iscariots, were. hypocrites 0® the . ■ deepest dye. A CABLE MESSAGE recently published in England to the effect that there was a probability of - a quarter of a million deficit in the colony’s finances had not, as ho had 'ascertained, gone through the ordinary Press channels,, or been sent by the Press- Association, and. had not emanated from Reuter’s, Agency::;; but that statement had been dissenypated : : by enemies of the country who professed,; anxiety to beep the Treasurer in thq. colony, 1 and with the knowledge that thb statement was untrue. During; the, p&st;few days he had had a careful. of the position made, and . the ■ figures,.' which wore on the safe side.by a consider-: able amount, disclosed the vary important fact that tho estimato ; of revenu.e.in the Financial Statement would, not bnly T be realised but exceeded., True, there, wai a__ deficit in railways and pustqros, but ha had forecasted a deficit in both those; departments a? compared with the previous year. Every other depaftmenti Ro'wever, except beer duty, showed a con^d^rahlo, eirtplus, and the surpluses of those departments, after- providing' for deficits- in'the other departments, ’ and after discounting the remaining quarter., would leave an excess of .£20,709. That meant that instead of a gross surplus of £34I,SiQ, as he,, bad estimated, there would be, after a gross- surplus of over . £350,000.-,- He challenged the originators of; the ; cable message to England to openly admit if, as they' ougjht to: have faith in their own stateffienL; • -Ha hfapded them as traitors'; to • the mtejpefts,: of, the colony,. because ■ they, were:' sending - .out what was untrue. • Referring to the--

CHEAP MONEY SCHEME,. ho said the Government did not want to lend so long as it caused a reduction in the rate? of interest ,to producers, ?o; : hs (> to place the latter on an equal footing with producers in the other colonies situated nearer the markets of the : worlds ■ He alluded, at soma length, to ; tljei .■ inpjnuation respecting the, between companies with which he financial institutions,.end .in the course of a statement as to the position of the Otago Central Eailway vote; said 1 the Government had, decided to acquire all freehold land i» the vicinity' of that railway, which it intended to settle men engaged at work on the line. It proposed also to adopt the Victorian system, "by which men worked three days oh the railway and devoted the remaining thifee days pet week to the improvement of: theip own Gecfciqna. Respecting the ■ statement mads sorpe fipio ago that ■ ; :■ - ■ ’■ .£150,000 HAD BEEN DBPOeWED in f •; COLONIAL BANS, he said the Government; being bound t<? see that the second million of guaranteed efocfc in the Bank of New Zealand ’wftSt invested in liquid securities, 7 was,placed ip ; a jnOat difficult A It had not nsedv sixpence; of the money in carrying oh the business of the Government, but it did not consider it right, in the. interest? of the colony, that the money should he invested in If per cent Government consol?,. . per cent British consols, and they suggested to the Bank olf New Zealand that security , should be got in the colony. ■ Ministers said that : in "the opinion of the Gpvern--ment it was desirable, lo a. reasonable amount, to get local institutions to take a portion of the money, 1 and fcbc.t Wk® what was done. ■ : Because they; did this, they found people who professed anxiety to promote the interests of the colony endeavouring to discredit the' Ministry for. having carried out what in hia opinion-waa not only a good thing, but also a right thing. Ha quoted instances of Ministers holding responsible offices in New Zealand and the neighbouring colonies visiting England in. the past. ; • ■ , , WHILE AT HOME . it would be’ hi? duty to frustrate the devices of the enemies of the Government. He had in his ’ possession; information which rendered it adyhabie .that either himself or another responsible iMiniater should be in England for the’purpose of doing something calculated tp fio a great deal of! good! to the country. The opponents of the Government might say, why not tell us what it, is ? But he had never till the time' was ripe told anybody what he proposed to do, and. if he were foolish enough to publish from the housetops what arrangements he was gofng to make, the failure of them might enaue. Alluding to the postal conference, •Mr Ward said he hoped to oppose the parrying out ,of any mail contracts towards which New! Zealand money was, given unless white seamen ’ wefa engaged on board the steamships, and,he would’also probably find it necessary to try and connect ope further link in the proposed Pa°ifi c cable. Ever since tho Government. was formed he had tried to induce the neighbouring colonics to enter into irreciprocal'thrift, and'hq would arrange, if possible, for such reciprocity. Witn tho other colonies. In conclusion, Mr Ward paid he hoped, next time he waa in Dun- , edin, to give succinctly the whole financial, position of New Zealand. A vote of thanks for the address was carried by declamation; Mr Ward left for the Blufi at midnight.