SUKVEY OF THE EAKLY SEVENTIES 173 



his Attorney-General, Mr. Kerferd, assumed the Premiership. Mr. 

 Langton, the Treasurer, was at variance with some of his colleagues 

 on the fiscal question, and on the methods of the colony's official 

 book-keeping. He also elected to retire, and Mr. Service, having 

 accepted the position of Treasurer, was thereupon re-elected by 

 his Maldon constituents without opposition. 



Only one Bill of any importance passed into law in this session 

 the Local Government Act, 1874, a most comprehensive measure, 

 which was actively debated for four months, and finally passed on 

 the last day of sitting. The rapid spread of settlement over the 

 country had caused much confusion and difficulty in defining the 

 jurisdiction of sundry Shires and District Eoad Boards, and the 

 varying estimates of the qualifications in area, population and revenue 

 to constitute a borough. The Act set to work by repealing most 

 of the statutes bearing upon municipal management, and amending 

 others. In profuse detail it set forth, in 532 sections, all that it was 

 necessary to know about the sphere and duties of mayors, presidents, 

 councillors, town clerks and shire secretaries, singly or in combination. 

 It evolved order out of chaos, and remains, with a few slight amend- 

 ments, the basis of local self-government to this day. It gave the 

 power of taxation by rates on local properties up to 2s. 6d. in the . 

 Perhaps the most objectionable feature in the Act was the power of 

 borrowing conferred on municipalities, which led many of them into 

 reckless expenditure, and greatly hampered the proper maintenance 

 of works heedlessly undertaken. This was particularly the case in 

 the suburban towns and boroughs, where a considerable proportion 

 of the rates was soon absorbed in paying interest on loans squandered, 

 during times of inflation, on quite unnecessary town halls and 

 other unproductive works. The operations of the Act have been 

 generally recognised as beneficial, but there is one aspect which pre- 

 sents an object-lesson to the advocates of State socialism. Clauses 

 define very precisely the manner in which money may be borrowed, 

 and it is specially enacted that councillors concerned in borrowing 

 in excess of their powers are to be personally liable. At first a few 

 Councils found themselves, through ignorance or misapprehension, 

 in this illegal position ; then others, seeing that no action was taken, 

 began to ignore the restraint. In a few years it transpired that a 



