13

8.—2

this class, the Committee will perceive that the sum of £65,000 appropriated out of revenue in aid of Defence Services has been paid in full, and that the £25,000 granted to Road Boards out of revenue, instead of out of loan, as in former years, has been paid in like manner. In the vote for Native Services there is also an excess of expenditure over appropriation, the largest item being that for Native Schools. In making these comparisons between the Appropriations and the Expenditure, I have referred, except in one case, only'to the items in excess. Other items there are which show a saving, and, such as they are, I leave them to speak for themselves. Taking the whole sum appropriated for the year in respect of the several classes, £584,418 Bs. Bd., and comparing it with the expenditure made to the 30th June, plus the sum reserved, £20,604 Bs. 7d., and the estimate of further liabilities chargeable to votes yet to be provided for, £20,000, it will be found that the appropriations as a whole will only have been exceeded by. the sum of £31,632 12s. 4d. I have not referred to the expenditure made for unauthorized services, the total of which, less sums already recovered, amounts, as shown in Table D, to £18,169 15s. 2d. The particulars of this expenditure are given in the table I have just referred to. It will be seen that items amounting to £6,969 17s. Id. are classed as recoverable, and I have accordingly included them in my outstanding assets of the year 1874-75. The moiety of Stamp Duties payable to the Immigration and Public Works Loan Account has amounted to £55,319 os. 2d., instead of £50,000 as estimated, and the total sum has been paid over as required by law. The proposal to pay off £100,000 out of the £500,000 Treasury Bills outstanding on the 30th June, 1874, has also been given effect to. The whole of the bills matured on the Ist November, 1874, and on that date £100,000 of these bills were paid off, and the remaining £400,000 renewed at the rate of 3f d. per cent, per diem (= £5 2s. Bd.) for interest, instead of 3|d. per cent. (=£s 10s. 3d.) as before. The total amount of Treasury Bills now current is therefore £400,000, being £310,000 less than the amount outstanding in 1872. The Committee will no doubt remember that, with a view to provide for considerable sums to be advanced to the provinces, under the Provincial Public Works Advances Act of last Session, power was given to raise the sum of £80,000 by Treasury Bills. The Government has, however, found it unnecessary to exercise that power. The revenue of the year has not only enabled the Government to reduce the floating debt by the sum of £100,000, but it has afforded ample means for making the authorized advances to the provinces, and it has moreover advanced, a sum of £20,000 to the Trust Fund, as against Treasury Bills held by that fund. The total actual expenditure of the year, then, is £1,730,429 14s. 10d., and this sum added to the liabilities "outstanding on the 30th June, amounting to £55,984 4s. Id., makes up an aggregate expenditure for the year of £1,786,413 18s. lid. Deducting this sum from the aggregate revenue of £1,906,860 7s. 9d., we have a surplus of £120,446 Bs. lOd. with which to commence the year 1875-76. I will briefly state, for the information of the Committee, the particulars of the assets and liabilities to which I have just referred. They comprise a sum of £12,000 recoverable from the Imperial Government; £20,000 recoverable from the Trust Fund; a sum of £5,000 advanced to the Emigrant and Colonist's Aid Corporation; £7,030 advanced against the Land Fund of Taranaki, to redeem Volunteer scrip; sundry amounts recoverable from the Provinces, £2,141 17s. lOd.; and £50,185 os. 2d. repayable by the Provinces in respect of advances made to them under "The Provincial Public Works Advances Act, 1874." These several items constitute the assets of the year 1874-75 outstanding on the 30th June last, and they amount to £96,356 18s. Adding this sum to the balance of £80,073 14s. lid. arising out of the actual receipts and payments to the 30th June, and made up of cash in the Bank £64,553 17s. 5d., and advances in the hands of public officers £15,519 17s. 6d., we have a total of £176,430 12s. lid. The liabilities on account of Consolidated Fund outstanding on the 30th June

Table B page 7.

Table D, page 22.