CURRENCY.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20472, 16 February 1932, Page 13

CURRENCY.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE mEoS. Sir, —Culture having reached South Carolina thc darkies formed a class for the study of English literature. When tiny got to Junius, Julius Crosar Cathoun was deeply interested. Ho read up thc period, just as our Mr Lawn might have done, and, again like Mr Lawn (in this morning's Press), when he had finished he could come to no conclusion whatever. That night be tossed and turned in his bunk, and at every toss and every turn ie cried out: "Who writ dem letters to Junius? Who writ dem letters to Junius?" Good-natured Sambo in thc bunk above him stood the nuisance a l«mg time; but at last he put his head over the side of his bunk and said: "Look here, nigger, I writ dem letters to Junius. Now you go to sleep." In two columns of this morning's Press- Mr Lawn propounds questions and asks questions, and refines on questions —but not a question does he answer or even try to answer. (My wife saya it's his humorous way of telling us to expect nothing from the conference of his fellow-economists.) I feel therefore that anybody who can ought to reply quickly, before" some secret Communist Party here grabs the reins of power and begins upon "the great task of this generation," which, says Mr Lawn,'is "to build up effective machinery that will make possible conscious economic planning. . . I cut him off at that point to enquire: "What do you want more than The I'ress?" At the trifling cost of tuppence each our planners get together every day and, without any preliminary butchery of our present rulers, or institution of a secret police to murder opponents at midnight, they plan away at a great rate and in full possession of-' their consciousness. • Mr Lawn asks for ■what is?

One of the questions that your planam have tackled Mr Lawn considers most important—"the adjustment of 'money supplies to maintain production at its maximum and to shift the goods to those who need them." But does he tell us how to do it? I believe he knows but won't say. Instead he fires off a fresh set of questions: "(1) Who w to exercise this monetary control? (2) who is to decide how much credit is to be supplied; (3) by whom and to whom it is to be supplied; and (4) by wheat measures it-shall be regulated? Well now, Professor, I'll answer dose questions. (1) The King, acting through his Ministers, principally the Finance Minister.

(2) Tie Finance Minister. (3) By the Finance Minister to the 'tanks, who will distribute, it as at present according to their judgment or want of judgment. , (4) By tlTe action of the Finance Minister in expanding the currency in response to every legitimate demand and contracting it the moment he sees it at a greater discount with foreign currencies thaii it began life with. Mr Lawn says that the creation of .eieait would be a palliative for the ills we now suffer. It would be more than that: it would be a cure for everything but the low prices of our exports. Why do we hesitate to take this step? We couldn't borrow, but managed to sell Treasury bills, and are now sweating to meet them—Mr Forbes us to pay income tax as early as we can. The next time a loan falls aae we shan't be able to pay it,, and wall have to accept usurious terms for 'enewal. That way ruin lies. Next year our production will fall—that is, unless wc create credit very quickly, farmers can't get money for matean<l labour. Money! Money is at we want. Mr Downie Stewart, would borrow millions in London to-' < n lf he could and pay 7 per cent, tw could .trust him to do _ on our behalf; can't we trust liim o«™ BSUe our ou ' n money against our credit?— Yours, etc., ■pv BAM.BO. February lotli, l<m.