The Otago Witness,

Otago Witness, Issue 1395, 24 August 1878, Page 13

The Otago Witness,

WITH WHICH IS INOOKPORATED THE 'SOUTHERN MERCURY. '

DUNEDIN, SATURDAY, AUGUST 24.

The Estimates for the financial year 1878-9 provide for a total expenditure of £4,124,574 8s; they occupy 110 foolscap pages, and provide among other things for salaries of from £40' to £1200 each to rather over six thousand persons. This is in addition to the school teachers, who are provided for by a lump vote, and is also exclusive of 571 persons described as " country postmasters," who receive the magnificent sum of £5 to £10 a-piece v The public is thus brought face to faco with the total cost of governing the Colony, and of administering the various departments which perform services for the community at large, such as the railways, the post office, and the telegraph department. Close on £2,000,000 of this total sum consists of permanent charges — interest on loans, civil list, &c. The 'total charge for interest and sinking fund is £1,225,129, or almost exactly the estimated receipts of the land fund for the current year. The public departments and eleven other heads, which embrace all the services heretofore under Provincial control, mount up in round numbers to eighteen hundred thousand pounds, and miscellaneous items — inclusive of £44,000 for the purchase of heavy guns — the balance of Provincial overdrafts, and the repayment of £85.000, loan on account of Wellington Harbour reclamation, make up the rest. The railways alone will employ 2355 persons, besides supernumeraries, and the police and constabulary 823 officers and men of all grades. Altogether we have a grand army of officials, but we cannot say on looking 1 down the list that they are overpaid. Many of them perform several sets of duties, as for instance the Customs officer at Kaikoura, who receives £130 for his duties under that head, and is set down for the following additional duties : "also licensing officer

under Arms Act ; also clerk to Petty Sessions Court, £30 ; Registration and Returning Officer, £25 ; Postmaster, £30 ; Telegraphist, £25 ; and Registrar of Births (fees)." Here are a variety of offices centered in one man, and all for £240 a year, and a few fees ; we hope this officer is not seriously overworked. The details are, however, becoming so numerous that to exercise any effective control we need two or three Josrph Humes in the House, who will make themselves masters of the several items a1?a 1 ? well as the totals. A little extra liberality soon tells, even a £10 note a piece all round now means £60,000 a year ;' and on the other hand a little too much pinching in certain directions and a number of persons, as has been the case with the Otago police, are reduced to considerable straits to meet their

family expenditure. Of course tho head of each department is primarily responsible, and the dread of censure from head quarters if expenditure mounts up too much, acts as a considerable check, and also causes tho screw to bear very hardly at times. On the whole, if there is wasto at all, ib is not in the rate of pay but in tho number of officials, and the vast amount of departmental work entailed by " returns" on all sorts of subjects to satisfy the cravings of gentlemen who "want to know." It in satisfactory lo iind that our " means" keep paco with our " ways," and tho revenue derived from work done in every department is always increasing. The receipts of the railways are expected to gross this year £710,000; of the postal and telegraphic services, £197,500; and judicial aud miscellaneous, £204,645 ; or together. £1,112,145; while taxation proper — tho Customs and stamps — are to produce £1,490,000, or rather would have been expected to produce that amount but for the remissions, which are to be replaced by a land tax and the tax upon beer. The other items of revenue are £200,000, to be collected on behalf of and payable to local bodies, and £230,215 of miscellaneous items, mostly recoveries on account of Provincial liabilities.