THE New Zealand Herald. AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. MONDAY, JUNE 18, 1888.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9083, 18 June 1888, Page 4

THE New Zealand Herald. AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. MONDAY, JUNE 18, 1888.

The incidents of political interest which have transpired since the last departure of the San Francisco mail have been of a character to afford an answer to the detractors of New Zealand. From whatever cause or causes arising, it appears to have become the habit with a class of people who assume the right to enlighten public opinion in England on the finances of the colonies, to represent Now Zealand as one that, under the forco of financial pressure, would show the weakness in colonial credit; indeed the idea that seems to have been the central one in all moralising on the subject was that the colony required but a twinge of financial difficulty, and

the people would forthwith proceed to 1 relieve themselves by the simple process of repudiation. The events which have taken place in our Parliament, and the echo that has been elicited from the country, show what really would be the results of the colony being brought face to face with financial difficulty; and we think the conviction forced on any unprejudiced mind would be that the greater the difficulty the more firm would be the resolve of colonists, at any cost or sacrifice, to be true to the engagements of the State. No one in the colony having any fair knowledge of its affairs, really believes that there has ever bee n the least danger of the colony being unable to cope with the difficulties entailed by the heavy borrowings and spendings of the past; but the perfect readiness with which the Government and the Legislature have undertaken, and the country has acquiesced in, the imposition of very heavy burthens of taxationat a time of considerable commercial depression, when such an effort was found to be requisite to sustain the finances of the Statehas, we maintain, been as creditable to the public spirit of the country as it must be reassuring to everyone concerned in the stability and the future prosperity of the colony.

The imposition of nearly a quarter of a million of additional Customs taxation is not a very cheerful duty, but while everyone regrets that such a sacrifice is necessary, there is no one who would raise his voice against it on being assured that such a necessity exists. The tariff now before the House, and the Bill for which has passed its second reading by an overwhelming majority, has been very keenly debated ; but any opposition to it has not arisen from a desire on the part of any member to shirk responsibility, but only from the belief either that so large an amount of revenue is unnecessary, or that it could be better raised in some other way, or that the expenses of administrationalready reduced by nearly a quarter of a million could still be further decreased so as to bring expenditure down to income, rather than raise income up to expenditure. There is no doubt that the anticipated effect of increasing the tariff on imports, in protecting and fostering home industries, and developing local markets for home producers, has done much in reconciling a large numberof Protectionists in the Assembly and throughout the colony to this heavy increase of taxation; but not even that would have brought success to the financial proposals of the Government had it not been believed that this amount of revenue was required to maintain the credit of the colony. What has occurred, therefore, is a strong testimony to the determination in colonists to respond to the call of duty to the country; and that it should be rendered at a time when trade and commerce are comparatively stagnant, and when as a reaction to the extravagance of the past every colonist feels obliged to curtail his personal expenditure, and to proceed with caution in every undertaking, makes the sacrifice all the more significant. More strikingly perhaps is this shown in the general acceptance of the necessity of meeting the deficit in revenue for the last couple of years by a special tax. Time was when such a deficit would have been promptly funded; and excuse might easily have been taken from the dulness of the times, and from the sudden and great increase of general taxation; but though ' commercial men have complained of the primage duty of one per cent, on all imported goods without exception, imposed to meet this deficit, on the indisputable grounds that it must prove inconvenient and embarrassing to the operations of trade, there is a general consensus of opinion in favour of it, because of its special object, and certainly an almost universal feeling that the deficit in question of £128,603 should be met by taxation and from revenue, and not rolled over to increase the public debt.

The indication that this affords of a return to better ways is strengthened by a very strong feeling everywhere manifested throughout the colony that there shall be no more borrowing, at least for many years to come" There is not a sentiment of the past more thoroughly discredited in Now Zealand at the present time, than the idea, that borrowing at intervals must be continuous. Against this we believe the colony is thoroughly in revolt, and so deeply felt is the duty of henceforth making the colony live within its j means, that wo believe the determina- ' tion is not ephemeral. Our loan which has been just floated with success in Londonsubscribed nearly four times over* — shown that the credit of the colony is unimpaired, notwithstanding all the misrepresentation and detraction to which it has been subjected ; so | that it is not doubt of our ability to 1 borrow, any more than doubt of our absolute solvency, that prompts the feeling ; but that feeling is certainly very strong that borrowing should henceforth cease. It would be too much to say that New Zealand will never borrow again ; but so thoroughly convinced are the great body of colonists that the burthens entailed by the public works policy of the past have not been adequately compensated by advantages to the general walfare of the community, that a Government with the daring to propose another loan will be confronted by a traditional feeling of repugnance to borrowing and its consequences so strong as to be very difficult if not impossible to dlsiodge. Happily at this time, when such increase of taxation has been found requisite, the necessaries, and even the comforts, of life are procurable at a lower cost of living in New Zealand than, perhaps, in any other part of the British Empire ; so that, even with the added Customs tariff, the expense of maintenance of the ordinary household in New Zealand will be such as might excite the envy of people in England or in any of the other dependencies of the Empire, even where they boast of far smaller public burthens and taxation per caput of the population. And such is the extraordinary fertility of our country, and such, so many, and so accessible are the resources of the colony, that we have the unabated confidence that, despite the apparent severity of our taxation, the country will shortly show a buoyancy in progress and prosperity that will make us forget our burthens.

The death of the Emperor Frederick a, Germany has produced a profound JJ universal feeling of sorrow n t u community, which extends, we feS assured throughout every portion of tit British Empire. His prolonged ill '" generally expected to prove fatal in 5 termination, has for several month drawn attention to the august sufferer 3 and not only elicited the kindest sym' pathy towards himself, but excited * deep and general interest in th & momentous issues dependent on his life ; and now that the scene of suffering has closed, feeling will be divided between sorrow for the brave good man that has gone, and apprehension for the consequences his removal may brin to Germany, to Europe, and the world His close relation to our own }{ o vai house, and the deep sympathy that £ was known to entertain for everything English, have of course endeared him in no ordinary degree to the whole British people; who would have watched with growing interest the results of his influence, not only on the extension of liberal institutions in the great German Empire itself, but in softening the asperities existing among the nation.? of continental Europe, and in removina that nightmare of impending war which has so long weighed heavily on the minds of the people, ft does seem an inscrutable dispensation of Providence, that just at the time when the labours of such a man seemed essential to the cause of humanity, when all Europe is bristling with bayonets, when nations seem ready on any provocation to fly at eack others' throats, and when the controlling influence of one good man, peace-loving just, and noble in all his instincts! might have kept the demoniacal passions of men in check, and quietly and firmly worked out a way by which international difficulties might have been removed without resort to the terrible arbitrament of the sword — that at that moment a man seemingly so fitted to fulfil the purpose of peace and goodwill among men, should bo taken away by the mysterious hand of death. We are bound to admit the fallibility of our judgment on a matter so pregnant with grave and far-reaching issues ; but, nevertheless, the universal feeling of sorrow at the death of the Emperor will mingle with regret that he has not been spared to the Councils of Europe in such a serious juncture of affairs. Whether rightly or wrongly, it is feared that his successor has not the qualities that are calculated to maintain the peace of Europe, and that under his reign the Prince, known as the " Man of Blood and Iron," will resume Ins sway, confirming the rule of militarism which has for so many years pressed with a leaden weight on the people of Germany. Let us hope that he will belie the reputation that has been fixed on him, perhaps only by his enemies, and that he may prove a worthy suo cessor of a father, whose death is now being so. sincerely mourned among all civilised peoples over the wide world,