EVENING SITTING.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 4414, 17 June 1882, Page 3

EVENING SITTING.

Tho Houbo resumed at 7.30 p.m. ■pIK-J-rcrAr. BTATEiIEST, The Estimates were received by message from the Governor, and the House having gone into Committeo, tho Colonial Treasurer delivered the Financial Statement. Aftor this, Mr Mohtgo-IBB? pointed out that it was difficult, if hot impossible, to consider the financial policy until thoy had the Publio Works Statement bofore them, giving them particulars of the expenditure and mode of expenditure proposed for the ensuing year. He thought that the latter end of the Statement might woll have been loft out, as calculated to provoke party contention. Tho balance was nothing more than might have been expected. In tho neighbouring Colonies matters were equally dopressed a few years ago, and yet they, too, had a balance. In these Colonies, however, tho Government did not take credit for having produced that balance, but admitted that it was attributable to tho wave of prosperity whioh has been going all round. Otherwise ho looked upon the Statement as clear and satisfactory. It was satisfactory to know that at last they were able to moet ordinary expenditure out of ordinary revenue. Mr J. W. Thomson congratulated the Treasurer on his recovery. He was not prepared to criticise tho Mtatomont just mado, but the closing remarks woro uncalled for. Upon the wholo it hud been a clear speech, especially as respectod the finance of the Colony. He was, however, inclined to think tho incidence of taxation was not so very satisfactory. About tho closing remarks — tho Treasurer had made them so often that ho was boginniDg to think they were true. If the Colony was in the desperate state the Treasurer alleged three years ago, where, he would like to know, had all tho money they had been spending on public worka como from ? Thoy wero to havo two Bills in connection with tho local self go vornmont, one relating to finance, and tho other to the constitution of the lcc-d bodies. Ho reminded them that thoy were told years ago that enlargements would be made for these bodieß, so as to obviate tho necessity of the words "Bonds and Bridges" boing mentioned in that House. Thit hope had been disappointed and ho was muoh afraid that this was only another of thoao promises. Mr TußNitJii pointod out that doepito the reflections cast on tho lato Native Minister for entering into engagements in Native land purchase, yet it appsarcd that the present Government intended to go into similar engagements to at least double tho amount of tho othor. Sir J. Hall said that it had b?en asserted i by tho Treasurer that when tho Government i took office there was a deficiency of £900,000, ■ with an annual expenditure of nearly ; £G00,003 in excess of tho income. That . Btatoment had beon takon exception to, hut i up to tho prosent timo no effort had ever [ b«en made to show that it wao not correct. - A million added to tho debt showed how true it wa? that the improved state of things was '■ due to the careful lissbanding of tho Governr ment. Ho denied that tbo Treasurer had - ever taken credit for having brought about the improved commercial poeition. What he - claimod was credit for tho improved financial . Blate of tho Colony, although at tho same I timo tho f;?ri_er had been stimulated by the t latter. He challenged tbo Opposition to . dispul o tho assertion about the stato of affairs b in 1879. Sir G. Gbbt eaid ho had never heard so • weak a Financial Statement made. Any i littlo boy in the town could havo mado a better one. It gave no informal-ion at c.il ; i it pimply told them of tmv.a oi addition and 1 subtraction, and nothing more. If that was a Financial Statemout thoy oueht to have - had a school teacher and a black board de- • raonstrating tho faci that two and two make 0 four. What thoy wanted w.-o a Statement 1 worthy of tho great statesman tho Treasurer s profost'ed to bo. The local self government i question was one of old standing, nnd yet r thoy only had the old story wilhout any f broad comprehensive Statement as to how a thooo bodies w«re to bo dealt with in the » futuro. Why was it that tho now Parliament o 1 had not been called earlier together to pro* ' vent tho largo despoliation of tho public

estate in Ctago? When they got their proper strength, whioh they were now fa6t obtaining, Government would have to answer to Parliament for this and other derilections of duty. Had a Land and Income tax been imposed the Colony would have been in a sounder condition than it was. Their policy had driven away many of those who would never otherwise have gone. The tstatemont did not deal with any of theso important points. Thoy had the power Jn their hands, and he asked them to uee it by foroing 1 Government to do the duty it had so long neglected. Had the Grey Government remained in office they would have had the 1 same moans for meeting the commercial crisis that this Government had, and had the administration been left in the hands of the former the difficulty would have been more 1 efficiently mot ond grappled with. Mr Shkkhait thought the Opposition ehould delay debating the Financial Statement until they had the full statements before thorn. He defended tho land purchase Byßtom of tho lato Government, and showed that large amounts of money which would havo got into tho publio purse had gone into that of pri--1 vate individuals, the latter having gone in and completed the purchase begun by the Grey 1 Government, but repudiated by their sue--1 cesaors. At the present time they had locked ' up over 600,000 acros of theso lands under ' one proclamation ; that was tho Hot Springs country. That land ought to have been opened to all for purchase. At present it was only the favoured fow who had the means of obtaining these lands. Alluding to the debts attributed to the Grey 1 Government, ho askod who incurred these 1 debts? It was tho Government of which the present Government waß tho outcome. The fact was the Grey Government took over a bankrupt estate, and that estate was bequeathed to them by the Treasurer and his colleagues. It was tho Government that borrowed largely in 1870 for publio works and who brought down tho schedule of these works blank to be scrambled for on the floor. The Grey Government came into office with all their difficulties ready made. When the whole system of finance was brought down they on that side of the House would bo prepared to have a stand-up fight on the subject. He would support tho Native policy, but on the policy as a wholo ho would stand i by his party. - Mr Maoandbbw oommented on the bad example shown by Sir J. Hall in opening up a debate when they were not ready to go on with it. Three months after the Grey i Government left office tho journals of the House showed there were £3,770,000 in the ■ Treasury. Eighteen months later the balance i was £1,6*6,000, and now they were told that the balance amounted to £900,000. Did these faots bear oub tho statement that the Government left office in a bankrupt state ? He would deny it emphatically. So much, then, for the story of Government having extracted tho Colony from its perilous position. Mr Moss denied that the Government had . roduced the expenditures of the Colony aB claimed by them. It had simply been produced as au apparent saving by a syetem of jugglery of accounts. In 1879 they were told that the Grey Government had committed the Colony to the expenditure of four ' millions out of the fivo million loan, and then Bir J. Hall told his Leeston constituents last yoar that tho present Government had 1 spent threo millions more out of that loan ; that was a system of finance beyond his comprehension. Four and threo wero sevon ' millions, all spent out of one five million ' loan. How was it that tho local government Billa wero not before them? As usual they would be brought down at the end of the session, and then shelved, as had been the case in past years. Major Atkinson contended that the Statement did give a clear insight into the finance of the Colony. He took credit to himself for having got the finances of the Colony into such a state that any boy might have understood and expounded them. What was stated in 1879 was that engagements had been entered upon without the authority of the House, and before tho loan was obtained. That was what had been complained of. As a matter of fact the Treasury was empty when they took office, despite the faot that when ho left offico he loft half a million besides other balances belonging to other accounts. All the speakers to-night had mixed up the Public Works with tho Consolidated Fund. He produced and quoted from the public accounts of the period, and challenged contradiction thereof. He denied that he had taken credit to himself as had been alleged ; it was tho settlers and the colonists to whom he had given the oredit. It had been said that his Statement did not take a broad view. The fust waa that the Statement!- took as TbroacL a view as could be taken. His business was to view matters from year to year, and tbat was the breadth of viow ho expected to take. He had beon told that the Grey Government would havo done better had they remained in office. If thot waß tho feeling, thon it would bo for tho Colony to Bay so, and place them again in power. He, however, would not liko to be the Treasurer who would come after them. It bad boen said that Governmont ought to havo made provision for that wave which was approaching when thoy loft offioe ; and they loft sufficient in the Treasury to liquidate all thoir existing engagements. He had taken tho troublo to find out tho incomes of 148 of tho largest land owners in the Colony. The result was, he found, that a Land tax of Id per £ would produce £16,000 • an Income tax of 7d per £ would produce £17,000 ; wher*as tho Property tax yielded £42,000. Progress waa reported, and at 1120 p.m. the House adjourned.