8.—6.

Miscellaneous, £125,000, as against £133,700 received last year, shows a falling-off of some £8,000, occasioned by loss of interest derived from the £500,000 Bank of New Zealand preferred shares, and which the bank repurchased, and upon which interest ceases to be paid. The territorial revenue requires to be reduced by. nearly ,£20,000. I estimate the receipts for the present year at £230,000, as against the revenue of last year amounting to £249,619. This shrinkage arises from the fact that whereas perpetual-lease holders, if they desired to convert their leaseholds into freeholds, were required to do so before the expiration of twelve years, they have now this privilege extended to the full currency of their leases, and in consequence, for some few years hence, these conversions, and the receipts derived from them, will fall off very considerably. Summarising the estimated revenue for the present year, the total of which, as I have before stated, is set down at £6,026,000, I find that it is £27,000 less than the actual revenue received last year, but is £187,000 more than the total estimated revenue for the preceding year, which was stated at £5,839,000. Debentures created for the purpose of restoring the amount paid as sinking fund were in 1901-2 £57,000 ; for this year the Controller and Auditor-General has approved £57,500. I subjoin a table which will show at a glance the several estimates of revenue which 1 have made, and the comparison with last year's actual figures.

ESTIMATED Revenue of the Consolidated Fund (Revenue Account) for 1902-3, compared with the Actual Revenue of 1901-2.

ESTIMATED EESULTS AT CLOSE OF THE CUERBNT FINANCIAL YEAE. Having placed before honourable members the figures relating to our estimated expenditure and revenue for the current year, it only now remains for me to bring the two sides together, and state what I hope will be the results at the close of the year. The expenditure is set down at £5,987,063, and the receipts at £6,083,500; we therefore have excess of receipts over expenditure amounting to £96,437, to which amount has to be added the sum of £270,488 brought forward from last year. These two sums added together amount to £366,925, which will be available to meet transfers to the Public Works Fund, and such further appropriations in the supplementary estimates as honourable members will place at our disposal. NEW LOAN. The Government have very carefully considered the financial position, and also the imperative need to bring our railway works which are in course of construction to a paying-point. We are assailed on all sides by demands that

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Estimate for 1902-3. Actual for 1901-2. Increase. Differences. Decrease. Rkvenub Account. £ £ £ £ Customs Railways Stamps .. .. ■ Land-tax Income-tax Beer Duty Registration and other Pees Marine Miscellaneous Territorial Revenue 2,220,000 1,875,000 898,000 300,000 185,000 92,000 70,000 31,000 125,000 230,000 2,201,116 1,869,489 908,671 312,835 179,397 90,234 76,492 31,456 133,761 249,019 18,884 5,511 1,766 101671 12,835 6,492 456 8,761 19,619 -Debentures for Sinking Fund increases.. 6,026,000 57,500 6,053,070 57,000 31,764 500 58,834 32,264 Total 6,083,500 6,110,070 26,570