The New-Zealander. AUCKLAND, WEDNESDAY, FEB. 12, 1862. PROVINCIAL COUNCIL—THE FINANCE COMMITTEE.

New Zealander, Volume XVIII, Issue 1651, 12 February 1862, Page 3

The New-Zealander.

AUCKLAND, WEDNESDAY, FEB. 12, 1862. PROVINCIAL COUNCIL—THE FINANCE COMMITTEE.

Be just and fear not; Let all the ends thou aim’st at, be thy Country’s, Thy God’s, and Truth’s.

The periti of Finance, the gentlemen who can see so much farther into the “ empty chest” than their neighbours, after a satisfactory incubation, have produced another “ Interim report”; the first was simply ridiculous, “ No. 2” is sublime : Your Committee Report that on examination of Returns of Revenue and Expenditure Returns of Expenditure in excess of votes, B 2 and 3 “ Assets and Liabilities, B 8. First.—Find that the Return of Revenue and Expenditure, as compared with the Appropriation Act and Estimates of Expenditure for 186 shews the income for 12 months was estimated at £45,800 Expenditure at... 46,540 And also that the income derivable from all sources was, for 14 months £89,977 And the Expenditure ... ... ... 89,966 proving that the Estimates were no reliable guide to the Council. Second. —They consider by the items in Returns of excess in expenditure over votes for 1860-61, amounting to £17,927, and £4,886 without any vote (principally on trust account), that the Government must have been aware of several of these demands when asking supplies for 1861, for instance the interest on Land Purchase Loan £3272; Third.—That on the first ilay of January, 1862, the Return of Assets and Liabilities show a balance in favour of the Province of £16,736 Of which tve only consider available at present 4,816 Balance £11,920 This amount consists of balance due from Harbour or realization of Debentures about ... £10,474 Probable loss on assisted passengers ... 1,446 £11,920 It will be necessary to make provision by vote for the payment of a large amount of the outstanding liabilities at 31st December, 1861, amounting to £26,787, the total amount of the Revenue of 1861 having been expended. William C. Daldy, Chairman Finance Committee. —Now, we will ask any person of ordinary intelligence whether, after the most careful and diligent study of this state-paper, he can say that he understands it. We might not care to criticize the language or the grammatical construction, although both are execrable, if there were any clear moaning to be extracted from the document; wo know that plain men who have sense can always express themselves intelligibly, even though Priscian may be a little scratched in the operation. We might not, indeed, care to pillory such absurdity at all, did not the author, or at least the putative parent of the “ Report,” set himself up with solemn conceit as a shining light in financial affairs, and, erstwhile, in flaming hustiugs-haraugues pronounce boldly upon subjects, the simplest detail of which he has now proved himself to be wholly unable to master. Mr. Daldy’s report, in its first clause, lays it down as “proved,” that the Estimates "were ‘*no reliable guide to the Council,” because the estimate of” Revenue for twelve months was less than the actual receipts for fourteen months, —a contingency which might have seemed possible enough to any ordinary observer.

Clause 2 of the report is extremely brilliant in its bungling maliciousness. If it have any purpose, it is simply to cast some mysterious blame upon the Superintendent. In the two years, 1860 and 1861, there was, as the Finance Committee try to say, an unauthorized expenditure of more than £21,000, and they do say, whatever may be the meaning of the words, “that the Government must have been aware of several of these demands when asking supplies for 1861.” Of course the Government was aware of the amount of expenditure in excess of votes in 1860, and so Avas the Council, for the Audit Committee reported the items, and the Council pledged itself to legalize that expenditure. Reference to the item of interest on the Land Purchase Loan is most unlucky. Surely the Finance Committee kuoAV, or someone of their number knoAVS or ought to kuoAV, that payment of the interest on that Loan is provided for by Act of the Assembly, and that the Provincial Council has as much to do Avith it as Avith the interest on the National Debt. The votiug.it, after its having been paid, is simply a farce which we hope Avill not be repeated. Last year the Government Avas at length enabled to discharge the debts Avhich it owed; its largest creditor was the General Government, and all the expenditure shoAvn in that account Avas not unauthorized.

But the gem of the report remains. The other clauses are merely a kind of muddy setting to No, 3. Mr. Daldy is great at balances ; Ave remember to have heard him upon the hustings at the last election —on the same occasion Avhen he Avas able to state Avith so much untruth that the interest on Provincial Debentures had not been regularly paid, —declare that ho did not understand accounts “ Avith balances on both sides.” Noav let us see lioav Mr. Daldy manages his “balances” as chairman of the Finance Committee. A return Avas made to the Council of the assets and liabilities of the Province at the close of the past year, Avhich shoAved that, over and above the liabilities, there Avas a balance of assets equal to £16,736. Mr. Daldy deals Avith this balance more suo; he deliberately divides the assets into tAvo portions, one immediately available, the other not available at present. We are left in the dark as to Avhat items are included in the first category : but in justice to himself, and in order to illustrate the depth of his vieAvs on “ finance,” the Chairman sets down particulars of the larger amount ; these “ assets,” are the balance due from the Harbour trust, and “ probable loss on assisted passages, £1446.” As a financial novelty, perhaps, it may be Avorth Avhile to preserve the fact that the Finance Committee of the Auckland Provincial Council regard a “probable loss” as an available asset. The concluding passage in this valuable interim report is Avorthy of the others. The liabilities of the Province A\'ere shown, by the statement transmitted to Council, to haA T e been £26,787 15s. 6d. The Finance Committee, disdaining the shillings and pence, declare that it will be necessary to make provision by “ A'ote” for the payment of these outstanding liabilities. We hope that Mr. Daldy and his friends Avill pardon us for informing him that it Avill be necessary to do nothing of the kind ; if they had, in the smallest degree, been able to understand the subject before them, they might have discovered that the “ liabilities” Avere, for the most part, either covered by votes of the yeWf oV Mf'Atiis of* th'e Gen&ral Assembly

of Provincial Council, and that the liabilities affecting thd Trusts can be adjusted, and will, no doubt, be adjusted without a “vote.” For the credit of the Provincial Council we think, the sooner the Finance Committee ceases to “ report” the better. It has been our lot to con over some very queer “state papers” in the records of our local legislature but, for smug couceitedness and curious ignorance, the reports of the Finance Committee of the Provincial Council in the year of grace 1862 have not been equalled.