, 1891-02-14

Win b very SILldlI crop, Iu6 LApOrL DUTY
must naturally be very mail too. This
state of things has not come upon the Island
unexpectedly, at least it ought not that the
whole season was one most unfavourable to
the crop, and that the crop must necessarily
be one of almost unparalleled insigniticalIce.
must have been known to all yet, the
Government has made no reductions of ex-
penses, although it is and must be we'll
known to all that the Administration could
be bad cheaper or for less than is estimated.
Therefore the chief thing which the Council
now has to consider is, where such retrench.
ments can be made at the same time we
know that under the Colonial Law no such
retrenchments can be made without the as
~sistance of the Government; but from
Government We cannot and must not expect
anything in that direction; moreover, we
hear to-day that it is to be expected that the
Bill now before the Diet, and which the
Council disrecommended, is likely to be
passed in q form still more unfavourable to
the colony than was the original intent;
and yet it was as uLfavOurabie as possibly
could be, in as much AS the only taxes we
could reckon with any degree Of certainty or
stability had been taken for the Statetreasury
to meet the expenses, which ought not to
concern this colony. Some years ago the
Government considered it necessary to have
Pollceforce along with a large military force,
to be used only in cases Of emergency, but
otherwise for common every day duty to
think now that after circumstances have
forced the Government to abandon that idea,
they would have been willing to do anything
under the present circumstances in the first
named direction to reduce and Curtall military
expenses, was not to be expected and yet
these very items are among the most consider
able items Of our expenditure. Then again,
tUo pnuSf Dnt fArraf that IN tha yoCaor;rs with
which His Excellency the Governor intro
duced that Bill in this Council, he expressly
said, that under the new organisation we
must not expect assistance from the Mother
country.
His Excellency's words were: 1.-The Com
munal Treasury Will have to make both
ends meet for, after The new state Of things
has been established, there can be no ques-
ton any more of help from the Statetreasury
to cover the communal expenditure"
Had that Law emanated, we would have
had even without a view to our present
troubles, to consider how to find means to
support the administration placed on our
account and to cover the deficit in the pub
lie expenditure. This was an utter impossi-
bility to achieve for we have clearly shown
that the sources Of taxation are decreasing
and must decrease. and therefore it is a per-
feet imposSibility to increase the revenue BY
increased taxation. Already from thiss point
of view the Bill proposed would have been
to the greatest injury Of the Island and its
ruin and if, as His Excellency. anticipates,
tie state is to be even more unfavourable.
what is to become Of the colony? And is
it not then necessary, rather than have such
an unfavourable and ruinous organisation. to
retrench our expenditure within the revenue?
But what will the Minister do, if the Law be
posted in such state ? He the Minister proposed
the Law, as it must be supposed, to the benefit
of the Island how will it be, if, after bring
ing about an untenable position, against or
at least not in accordance with his will or
intention, he. has perhaps the very next year
to make a new application for another adj
justment? Our institutions should not be
played with in that manner. But he would
now return to this present Draft Of Budget,
and ask what is to be done ? Are we to pass
the Budget at all, or pass it as it ID? AS
long as we were told that the Minister
caused the deficiency to be met, there were
few Members of the Council willing or in
clined to oppose the Budgets; we ought not,
it was argued, to- do that and thus expose our
whole financial position now it is otherwise
the Bill now before the Diet had proposed,
when it was in this Council, to transfer GER.
tain items of revenue and expenditure to the
Statetreasury but even that is not likely to
pass and if we now pass this Budget as
& il Ua roS@G< -