"GOOD FOR YEARS YET."

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 268, 12 November 1928, Page 11

"GOOD FOR YEARS YET."

SIR JOSEPH WARD'S RETURN.

GREAT MEETING IK DUNEDIN.

VIGOROUS REPLY TO CRITICS,

MR. COATES CANNOT UNDERSTAND

(By Telegraph.—Press Association.)

DUN ED IN, Sunday.

Greeted by wildly enthusiastic cheering Sir Joseph Ward, Leader of the "L nitcd party, addressed the electors of Dunedin in. His Majesty's Theatre last evening. The theatre was packed and the doors were locked, but loud speakers had been installed in the street, where 3000 people stood throughout the evening in spite, of the bitterly cold * wind. The meeting was singularly free from interjections, and the speaker did not have to pause once.

Sir Joseph said he was striving to educate the people of New Zealand into taking a different course in the method of obtaining money, so that the country would not lose money, and that no extra taxation would be imposed. He quoted from his last budget and again referred to the fact that he had left'£l7,soo,ooo, etating he wag doing so because of the utter want of recognition of his party by its opponents.

"This country its going to be engaged in big finance soon," said Sir Joseph, "and the Government may try to delude the public. But if it is in power it will not be able to shirk and shift as it is doing now. If the Minister of Finance will tell the people what he .has given instructions about in Wellington I will be glad," the speaker added mysteriously.

Increase In Public Debt. Since the war the Government had increased the public debt by £50,000,000, and the Government Statistician stated that this represented an increase of £89 for every breadwinner. The speaker had said that the Government had borrowed £30,000,000 in three years. Mr. Downie Stewart had replied, quite correctly, that Sir Joseph was wrong. The amount was £29,650,000. (Laughter.) Mr. Downie Stewart had stated that in reality the Government had borrowed only £23,000,000, as Itlhad paid £8,070,000 for war debts and other items, but .the Government had borrowed money to pay off that £6,000,000, therefore it was still included in the amount and the interest was still going on as before; In 1011 the speaker had had the Public Debt Extinction Bill put through the House. -It provided for a sinking fund for the repayment of all loans out of revenue. ' The £6,000,000 to which Mr. Downie Stewart had referred had been paid for oat of loan money.. As Minister of Finance Sir Joseph eaad' he would not do that.

Ht -"I Cm Ito-toVegimr *1 believe oar tariff is- unsatisfactory and that important alterations are required," said Sir Joseph. "We must help some industries by subsidy, and the duties should be taken off the necessities of life which cannot be produced in our own country. They sajr e I-cannot •why, I did it and I can do it again with* oat injuridg the courftiy/' .«v ■■■? • Mr. Coates had said the speaker's abatements in regard to thp possibilities of unemployment next winter were most extraordinary and most outrageous. Sir Joseph's reply was that the information had been furnished to him by men who knew labour conditions,-and he believed them. He expressed appreciation'of the brotherly interest Mr. Coates was taking, fill his state. of health. y The trouble «ith Mr. Coatoft criticism of the sneaker's borrowing 'scheme was that the Jmm« Minister could not nnder- : stand it. Mr. Coates haAmade a. statement in bonediir and 'elsewhere' that Sir Joseph proposed to borrow £70,000,000 in one year. The speaker had made the position perfectly clear. He proposed to borrow from £8,000,000 to £10,00,000 a year, over a period of from eight to ten years.

How the Money can Be Baited. Now the Prime Minister described his borrowing scheme as e "borrow, boom wad burst" policy, yet the Government had borrowed £50,000,000 since the war, ss well as taking the £17,000,000 which lis had left. He had experienced the same criticism when the State Advances had been proposed, yet that department, •iter fulfilling its function, now showed • profit of £1,900,000.

Sir Joseph spoke at length in explanation of his borrowing policy. He said he did not propose to float the loan on the London market. He proposed to have New Zealand bonds sold there. It was a different method of borrowing, and his speeches in the House criticising the Government's borrowing had been speeches of warning against the method by which money was raised and used. He referred to a recent cable dealing with .German scheme ;to borrow 500,000/ND® dollars iji, the United States. The methpd/to be adopted vras exactly the same as the one he proposed. American financiers said the money eould not be raised by loan, but it could be done by bonds.

Money Without Risk. Hundreds of farmers in New Zealand were bleeding to death financially because they could not get money. He could get it without risk. He went on to describe his scheme to borrow £10,000,000 for railway extension. It would not cost the taxpayer a "brass farthing." There should be no fear of embarking on a building scheme which would-make the railways payable. He gave his audience his assurance that if h© were put into power he would undertake to get the money and put the scheme into execution.

What had made New Zealand go ahea4 was its land settlement policy, but 13,000 people had walked off the land in the past three yeans. He proposed to make it possible for 50,000 to 100,000 people to get at least 25 acres of and money to build their homes. .%"> At the conclusion of his address, Sir Joseph refuted the allegations that he was broken down in health, and said he was good for yeans yet- The cheering' when he sat down lasted for. so ope minutes and it w/m when » rote of thanks and confidence in |£hn» tt Leader of thorUnit« J party w*a earnef The audience rose to its "For He's a Jolly aOood Fellow,' and he was loudly cheered again when he addressed the large crowd outside from . the balcony.