SIR JULIUS VOGEL'S ADDRESS.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XII, Issue 4, 16 May 1884, Page 17

SIR JULIUS VOGEL'S ADDRESS.

Ouß daily contemporaries publish the following address from Sir. Julias Vogel to the Bast Coast electors :— In response to an intimation which 1 have received that it would be agreeable to you that I should offer myself aa a candidate for the representation of your district in the House of ttepresentatiyes, I hare pleasure in placing my services at your disposal. I did not come to the Colony with the intention of re-entering political life, nor of paying it more than a short visit ; but since I have been here, what I have observed of the condition of the Colony leads me to think that I may be of some use towards bringing about a more encouraging stale of affairs, and to wish to employ a few months at my disposal for that purpose. I will venture to hope that it is unnecessary that I should vindicate my past career in New Zealand. The power which I exercised I owed solely to the confidence of my fellow-colonists, and it was their support which enabled me, with the assistance of my colleagues, to be the instrument of raising the Colony from the depths of overwhelming depression to a height of prosperity that made it assume the position of one of the most prominent of the Australian Colonies. Once more the Colony, is in the depths of depression, though it appeals to ms, the causes are somewhat different from those which operated in the former case. The primary causes, then, as I remember them, were— lst. The reaction consequent upon the cessation of inordinate expenditure on wars with the Natives. 2nd. Insufficiency of the population. 3rd. Want of convenient means of communication between the producing districts and the markets for the Bale or shipment of the produce. 4th. Generally a want of energy and enterprise, occasioned by the prevailing depression. Some of these causes more or less exist now ; but they seem to me to be the consequence of one overmastering cause, and that I Bhall characterise as a general want of confidence. To make my meaning clear, I must apparently digress. In this Colony, as indeed in all the Colonies, the process of settlement, of opening up tne country, and of establishing the social and commercial fabric, has been carried on by the joint efforts of people within and without its limits. The Colonists have supplied labour, skill, energy, and enterprise and some amount of capital. The balance of the capital has been supplied by persons in Great Britain content with interest from 4 to 10 per cent., according to the risks the various investments seemed to involve. So to speak, the British investors have .been sleeping partners with the Colonists, and they have done well, because generally the Colonists have done well ; and in many cases they have done well where the Colonists have not, because it was in the nature of their investments that they should, have a first grasp of the profits. If the Colonists had possessed the capital themselves it would have been much better for them to have provided it than divert portions of their profits to the sleeping partners thousands of miles distant. But the Colonists wanted railways, and houses, aud machinery, and moneyed institutions— in short, all the appliances common to a developed civilisation, They had not the capital themselves, and they were glad to get it provided for them. As they become wealthier they can enter into many of the undertakings for which hitherto they have had to depend on extraneous aid. The change comes about gradually. In some of the older Colonies, where there is a great deal of realised wealth, the Colonial undertakings depending only on Colonial capital exceed in influence and magnitude their Home rivals. The ordinary iuvestments of foreign capital in a Colony are trifling compared with the enormous amounts invested in and lent on real property. Millions of money are lent on real property, on the faith of its being a realisable asset. So much is this the case that in the course of time the whole basis of the commercial soundness of a Colony depends on the realisable value of its property As bullion is the basis of the security for the issue of bank notes, so is the value of property the basis of the security of probably at least two-thirds in value of the commercial transactions of a Colony. If lam so far correct, the deduction is clear that to impair the value and the ready realisation of property is to vitally injure the general prosperity. Indeed, it is easy to see that, followed out to its extreme limit, the impairment of the value of property might bring to ruin nine-tenths of the Colonists ; all, in fact, who do not carry their means in a stocking or a money-box. It is quite a mistake to suppose that only the wealthy would suffer. The ramifications of civilisation run through every class, and it is utterly impossible for one class to suffer without affecting the O" 1^* 8 * A man owning a few acres suffers in degree from a want of confidence as much as one owning 10,000 acres. . I must now make, plain the reason for this long digression, it appears to me that New Zealand has everything in its favour just now, as I shall pießently relate, except that it is suffering from the want of confidence in the value of property— a want of confidence engendered by the operations of various causes during several years past For obvious reasons Ido not wish to refer to particular Governments and particular Ministers j but am I wrong in saying that one seems to vie with the other, who shall say the harhest thmgs, and inspire the most dread in the minds of holders of property I ,i£ they wish to hold and improve their properties they are stigmatised as monopolists, who must be " busted up," whatever that means. If they wish to sell their lands they are denounced with equal warmtn as speculators. It seems to bequite forgotten that these people bought thew land of the Government, and paid for it what was required of them M the time. As far as I can ascertain, about half the property in the Colony can be purchased on easy terms, so frightened are its owners, it is to be remembered that insidious influences of the kind may go on for years, exerting a corroding effect, without that effect appearing obviously on the surf ace. The frightened land-owner who longs to sell out and get away from the Colony dares not say so. He must wear a cheerful face to his equally nervous but apparently cheery nei^nbour, and so the circle enlarges— smiles without, bitterness witouu As properly becomes less « liquid," to use a well-known phrase, the depression in business and the difficulties of individuals becomemore and more emphasised, - ...

fat i.XSS.^te *"*"%• J* diminishes the value of property %Z££s%£Ji he am<mnt ik wtl »DB. As regards its influence on ffSJiEWS^ ?- * taX on 11 cu . ltare » on refinement, on education, S«« thl ftfiLj rodn A ctlon ' «» •?• in f «ct. having a tendency to im' SH f 2 ©Colony. As regards Us effect on real estate, it is open to SSSShSSS? *ft*i *> not^Pe^ed in the neighbourhood of 23 kJV^: I ' iß » ln # ln y opinion, most essential that money s^&i25 t J? Mllwl€l T I-llpw P« tt 3r3 r Bbonldb * spent by local S^tt £ r 1^ al .^ r P° 8e8 i I«* a? reason to doubt that the property WiSnf IS De CaU be re P laced fe y leM objectionable •iuJL% £«£*** a /I J^T t0 education as anyone can be, as I have SSTnrf fnlL P T f h P l mugt eJt P ress the °P inion that the present S2F nd ' tn r« oneduca tw>noutof the consolidated levenue is excesA 7!; v l^ h { f- ea<lgood^, a a r«clecan be furnished at a less cost. {satassss? the ■»*■»—" »>-»•• ri ft w£ O in^T'V hink ' be J Doreex<raV8 g ant or unwise than to £ ™,S w ,? ?? M Wa / 8 ID Bh ? rt ler « thB ' iD6tead of endeavouring tn^ 5 P OBMbIe > to P»t them to productive uses. I attach £ much importance to the indirect effect which a railway exerts in rS? g X C?UD i7v aild "t h ° s P°P ulat^ *» to its immSaS mone? ™t tw w 3 f f u n l°u m a B P eech he recently ttad e here, pointed Sa^ii^l •"♦ h *?S? ettftmnd to Emulate the use of railways, and tbat the effect of tbat use was tbat during the last year DasBffi? flnES W6 £ CaFried at aD «P«**™ of sometCg fike SS?fS?hf!liw th V ame 7 Ofk would have Coßt ia former days. SMln«lTw? mdl lßtnalartßofl BtnalartBof ever y kind that thiß »^ng KSL^Sk ken ln £° accottnfc . » « a false economy to limit SiSEf £ 1 b f. ra l lwayß tbe of excessive tariffs. I vfewTiStS 6 G?G ?^ 0me Ji t . th i nk the railwa y s Bhoald be »»** to S»S f« F fc? ?' I tbl , nk that for many years to come such a standard is too high, and calculated to do more harm than good. delay SKmJSXV^A*" 1 ? 'i n ? Bhonld * com P let ed without wStcSSTl Bton8 ton and Auckland should be joined, Nelson and the SSL? ISAj miled I*l*s the Eaßtem Trunk line » and the Otago 2S^ Jj^ completccl. Meanwhile settlement ehould be proto^m??lJi?l? 8l JJ k rt. yonr 2WII2 Wll well -*avouredone, fitted as it is to become the home of thousands of happy settlers, should be opened ♦w« l rS?j£ opin i°. n that the time has passed for a separation of the mTv S^o,?;/ ohfcl0 hfclc f all y° r financially. At some distant future it !™L?.i 5- P i? tlcab JL e « bnt at P resent I doabt its b eing either Sfi°? de + Mr £ b £- c P lo^ Bß of eith er Island is, and ought to for* JSSKi^. 1 " 1 *" la^ n e fc "l«tarf. however, that the demand SS P SSS I baßn6cn ' for there are grievances plainly apparent JSnt fw aDt , ly accoant for tbe dissatisfaction existing. But 1 tattSl^JKlilS'™ 1 lemeiy than a »P«tation may be found svsteLif JEu^iF™**?* to think that the local government StK? «L™ 1 borough nor efficient. Ministers and Ministerial «Soy« SL * me^ 81 ?P er8e<J e local government, and the latter SXSy hh o 6r6 r effiJientf "" impOrtaQCe Which W ° Uld m&ke * Z Pfl l^ a nf Pr^ ent infor ™ cd ' J greatly doubt the advantage to New nZS^fJ&JPT™* federat ion with Australia. New Zealand th? P»nffiJ " miy *° ~ cn Py an important position with regard to ™i fie islands. Had the plan of a chartered company which I FnflSpni «f n Q ied ?? nn a fc the Colon y would have had a commanding iEr w^off v he B°ith8 °i th lßland8 ' Later BtiU a brillia nt opportunSh- A^fi,^* n No , Words do justice to the folly of the quarrel with Sw^rf^w*"«. A l? gh Commi^oner, Sir Arthur had the KJff fn O f g* g the wh ole control of the islands to New Zealand, ffi ° B S *<£ quarrelling with him for performing those duties rnmmfJL,, Bl T! D t0 him > there « little do « b t fc ke High 5232T Ion f; 8bl P !! oold have been permanently planted in New rf?H.T2 a p Ti 1( ? n of tbe fleet and ot her advantages. The trade of the islands would, m short, have converged to New Zealand. twrofTSk"* d^ e^ Zealand has every thiug in its favour now, and £ \LiAi «l« l S de PreßP reB8 i°n to the want of confidence engendered the ml™* Uc + ks ° n 4 u he value of Property. I shall briefly refer to SSnSSFL advanta « es . tbe Colony possesses. Its splendid climate i 9i 9 £2?™? strong rehef by the deplorable losses which the droughts Sit w» 7OCCa ™ oned in A ™tralia. If grain and wool are some3SJJJJ, P nc « than formely, the facilities afforded by the SroE ?£ ?t r towards making up the difference. Tbe direct steamers G?SI1 fa^ ? advantage to the Colony. Lastly, there to leXl T S wh ich opens a whole world of occupation Even now ff £« k? C *2 Bu PP l y in & frozen meat to the British markets. trln^^ hh K Bbeen , foundt °PP a y» andaß the costs and charges of auanttlv o? W°" c If 8 e , profits wiU become lar g er - An enormous fZZLI^ 10 ] 11 . 6 C e lon y is ca P able of **W laid down in Sndls opS? ' ' W Bhort) a new industr y of a ™ 08t encouraging New^eaSn^^^ Wanfc of confidence, I am convinced that TKnnZdedfhJ?? ** ?• Prosoerous as it is now depressed. lam Se cfndiSJ f r ! me( S e8 Z have already suggested* will alter the the oroS?tv V»^ 1 the C^ Ion y- Briefl y» these are- the removal of mln P t ff tL a f ' tbe cons Pletionof unfinished railways, the improveaft T«V g °i Ver T eDt Byßtem ' the Promotion of useful StoS;S the development of settlement. It is not for me lam not n^w tbe E**"* I**1 ** of how all these things may be done, Le? found Kg-lK g -l? udget 5 but tbißat leaßt x may say.: ithas never well-defiSedSff ßßl^ 6^ 0 6hape the flnances in accordance with a weu-aennect policy ofadvancing the various interests of the Colony.