NO, IT WAS NOT DONE THAT WAY.

New Zealander, Volume XIX, Issue 1845, 15 April 1863, Page 3

NO, IT WAS NOT DONE THAT WAY.

To the Editor of the New-Zealander.

Sir,—l observe to-day, a letter in your columns, under the heading " Was it thus dose ?" in winch " A Countrv Subscriber" endeavours to make an opening for the escape of his friend, Mr. Treasurer Daldy, from the very undesirable position in whicii his petty cunning has placed him. The "kindly suggestion" thrown out by Mr. " Country Subscriber," (who, I presume, lives not far from Panmure), is simply an attempt to put one ot his Honor's shins in the stocks, and relieve one of the sinning Treasurer's. To such a proceeding I have a great objection, as the legs that could carry off £5,000 of the public money, for even a temporary concealment, shoul 1 be made to bear alone the just punishment of the misdeed I am told ihe Superintendent pleads total ignorance of the " operation," and, I think, it is too bad to drag him into the slough in which the Treasurer ha« so deeply sunk ; the more so, as the records of his Honor's office would at once show whether or not any authoritative letter had been written by him, which, in event of accident, would have afforded a clue to the whereabouts of the ''missing money." At all events, an examination of the C'erk of Records before the Audit Committee would speedily determine the value of the extenuation of the T surer's misconduct, suggested bv " Country Subscriber. It is usual, certainlv, to have a comrade in the commission of any act of bold illegality ; and it must be also comfortable withal and consolatory, when in tne dock to have a " fellaw pal" to share the burden ot the public gaze; but, in tins case, the culprit must sulfer alone. , , , „ The Treasurer can plead no want of knowledge ot the proper manner of treating pubUc money, nor coirlcUny 0 n« more Wrongly than ho »*v« harangued

a public meeting upon the monstrosity and villainy of such an "operation on an account" as that performed hv himself, had it only been done by another. Yes, trulv. Mr. Daldy under such circumstances would, in by-«one days, liave paraded such an action with all his own "idears" upon the subject, in the courteous. ColurniiS' of '"his own" " Examiner" —a notorious " tilth-pipe of the press." partly his property, and which twice, af mucrt expense, he tried in vain to force in a meek and " limbic" wav, upon the public with a view, as he said, of "educating the people in the principles of political economy!" Mr. Daldy cannot even adduce a bad precedent to palliate such hiding and "omitting" of the public monev as he has committed. In the very first Session of the Provincial Council, a rule was laid down tor the mode to be employed in receiving and paying away the funds of the Province, which rule, or rather recommendation, I have ascertained has, m substance, been since acted upon by the first and subsequent Superintendents. The account at the Union, I have been informed, (and afterwards at the Oriental) Bank, was opened by an official communication to the Manager, written by the Superintendent, containing instructions as to the manner of drawing from the Bank the money of the Province therein deposited. Such communication would ot course be recorded in the Superintendent's Office, and prevent any "omission" or concealment, such as has been acknowledged by the present Treasurer. Something must be done to. for over, prevent a repetition of such a transaction as lately has been brought to light, so disparaging to the office of Treasurer, and so calculated to destroy confidence in any Government. Nevermore must £SOOO of the provincial money ber so endangered, and left for three weeks, snbjeet to all fhe accidents and contingencies of mortal life ; an orphan waif, dissociated Iromits natural protectors and left to the tender mercy of Uncle Daldy! How often has it occurred that almost insurmountable difficulties have been experienced in drawing out others' monies that have been loowly deposited in Bauks, by parties whose account therein had been overdrawn. I remain. Yours, &C, A Town Subscriber. April 13th, 1563. N.B.—The following is a copy of the recommendation alluded to as made by the fust Provincial Council. —" The safe custody ot the public monies of the " Province would, in the opinion of the Committee, be " sufficiently secured, and the business of the receipt " and disbursement thereof he facilitated, by using the " Auckland branch of the Union Bank of Australia as "a Bank of deposit. All Collectors of Revenue being " required at stated periods to pay their collections " into the Bank, and all disbursements being effected " by cheques of the Finance Clerk, under warrant from " His Honor the Superintendent:'' —See Votes and Proceedings of the Auckland Provincial Council, Scss. I, 1854.

EXCLUSIVENESS. To the Editor of the New-Zealaxder. Me. Editor, —I was well pleased to see that letter from William McG in jour paper this morning.: The sooner that sort of favoritism which lie exposes is stopped, the better. 1 have myself witnessed a case of the kind, and can therefore vouch for symptoms of the existence of the system which your correspondent complains of. The other day, on coming along the South Road, where a party were engaged in spreading stones, I heard a working man enquiring in a Hibernian accent, if there was any chance of a job for him. The overseer, or apparently head man of the party, looked hard at him and replied, " Na mon ! Ther's nae wark for ye-e-s!" Fat shook his head and went on his way. I knew the applicant as a hard working respectable laborer, and I saw by the expression of his face as he trudged along, that like me, he had understood more in the intonation of the last word " ye-e-s," than the mere four letters simply indicate. I am, Yours, kc, Ax Englishman*. Otahuhu, April 14th, 18G2.