GOODWILL TO BRITAIN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 76, 30 March 1935, Page 8

GOODWILL TO BRITAIN.

Your correspondent Alexander S. Tetzr.or puts forward a per capita argument respecting trade between New Zealand and Great Britain. His argument may be illustrated by the case of a family of two buying nearly all thev need from a family of eigli±. This amounts to the value of £5 a week, or £2 10/ per head. The family of eight buy the greater part of their wants from the family of two, to the value of, say, £12 a week, or £1 10/ a head. The balance in favour of the two is £7 a week. "But," says Mr. Tetzner, in effect, "because these buy at the rate of only £1 10/ a head, the family of two is having considerably the worse of the interchange of custom." As the population of Britain to that of New Zealand is not eight to two but 40 'to two, the fallacy of llr. Tetzner's argument becomes still more glaring. What is wrong with New Zealanders? They seem quite unable to comprehend realities, though they, may stare them in the face "as plain as a pikestaff." They appear to suffer from a mental inflation, of which the inflation of land values is only one of the symptoms. We hear a great deal about the "standard of living" in this country. As a matter of fact New Zealanders, particularly wealthy New Zealanders, have not the first idea of how to live according to their means. Their standard of living is solely a money standard. As to spending it so as to £et value for it. in the art of personal entertainment or public benefactions they are hopelessly ignorant or primitive. And if New Zealand farmers only farmed with even half the "intensity" of the British fanner there would not. as there ought not to be. any unemployment problem in this country, if we had political thinkers instead of political tinkei» ; controlling public policy in Now Zealand we would have to establish yet another board— a board of selection for those who wished to settle here, As it is, we find those who can afford to do so flying as fast as ever they can from a tyranny of vanity and incompetence, often.in local r.s well as in national affairs. AGEICOLA.