546
together with a report by the Auditor General on the Revenue and Expenditure of last year and the State of the Colony's Accounts with the Crown Agents.
2.
The ordinary Revenue of the Colony for 1866 shows a slight increase over the preceding year and the Expenditure, under my control, a small decrease, but this result satisfactory in itself is of no advantage while the requirements of Her Majesty's Government force upon us expenditure in excess of our means, for our Liabilities in excess of Assets was on the 1st January 1864 $445,000 and in the return here enclosed it is only $45,000, showing that in 3 years our income has been exceeded by $400,000. But even this sum, large as it is, does not adequately represent the amount by which the Colony is exceeding its resources for, during the above period, the ordinary revenue of the Government was recruited by nearly $100,000 from Land Sales and the expenditure of 1864 did not include any payments for Military contribution. The harbour being finished,
3.
it may be said that a larger...