Nelson Evening Mail. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, 1891.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXV, Issue 246, 16 October 1891, Page 2

Nelson Evening Mail. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 16, 1891.

In his late speech at Wanganui Mr Ballance said that keeping within what he described as safe lines tho colony must borrow more money. What he considers to be the conditions of safety are that the money instead ot being borrowed in London, should bo raised in New Zealand, and that it should be expendod only upon reproductive works and aide to settlement, which are absolutely essential to the progress of the Oolony.. Tho latter condition is one which every Minister who has over served in New Zealand haa professed to recognise. The most extravagant and recklesß of them has always maintained tbat each work undertaken under his authority has been easential to the progress of the Colony. This rule is an excellent one to lay down, but it has not much novelty, No one preached the doctrine more vehemently than Sir Julius Vogel, and how little the practice came up to the profession everyone knows. Each district maintains that its own scheme of public works is specially necessary for the welfare of the Oolony, and has its representative in Pai'liament to make himself disagreeable unless the demands of his const' tuents are granted. If borrowing begins again wo shall have a repetition of tho old state of affaire, when every part of the Oolony was scrambling for the plunder. The scramble was frequently not so much for the sake of the good which the railways and other works would do when finished as for the artificial temporary prosperity caused by the expenditure during construction. We havo now no such artificial prosperity. The Colony has got down to solid ground, and it is steadily building up a real prosperity, whieh even a vicious form of taxation can hardly destroy. The one thing to destroy it would be to begin again to borrow large Bums of money. The immediate effect would be great briskness, but tho inevitable day would come when the money was done, when tho bill had to bo paid, and whon the extra workmen were thrown out of employment. All this New Zealand has passed through already, and though the resources of tho Colony enabled it to fight its way through, the experience was not a pleasant one, and the Minister who proposes a renewal of the old policy incurs a vast responsibility. Tho first of Mr Ballauco's conditions, that tho money should be borrowed in JSTew Zealand, is a Btrange one to be laid down by a man who has had a good deal of experience in finance. If the people of tho Colony have the money surely it will be tho height of folly to induce them to withdraw it from their own business. If they have not, then the result of borrowing in the Colony is that a middleman will step in, and the Government will have to pay more for the use of English money than if the loans were directly raised in London.