THE FOUR MILLION LOAN.

Clutha Leader, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 91, 4 June 1912, Page 6

THE FOUR MILLION LOAN.

STATEMENT BY SIR J. C. WARD. DEFENCE OF HIS ATTITUDE. WELLINGTON, June 1. Sir Joseph Ward, in an interview to3ay, made further and more explicit reference to the four million loan. He said the loan could not be split up and raised in sections except at ruinous cost, so he had adopted the plan of raising only the yearly loan. Had the Liberal Party been returned with a reasonable majority the loan would have been raised in February. It would be ridiculous to assume that any loan would be raised for a sentimental reason. An important point that he had to consider was that the Opposition had vehemently and with great maliciousness attacked the raising of the five million" loan, which had, however, been recognised in financial circles as a most successful operation. When ht saw that there was a possibility of the second ballot going against the Government, he thought it his clear duty to keep the. Opposition free in the event of their being returned to power, so that they could fix whatever amount they thought necessary to raise. He, however, after the second ballot, decided to make proper provision for the requirements of the Dominion to the end of the financial year, and in the meantime not to raise a loan on the Home market. He therefore made arrangements to enable the Government to carry on until October, and he would have done this even had the Opposition been returned, or would at least have given his successor the fullest information to enable him to do so if he wished. Money for roads, bridges, purchase of land for settlement, etc., had been provided from the time of the election until now without going on the money market, and the suggestion that the Opposition would bo embarrassed if it came into power through any want of smoothing in the way was contrary to fact. The point ho had made at the recent reception was that had the party been returned with a fair majority he would have accepted full responsibility i for raising the four million loan, and, I after deducting the amount temporarily obtained for public requirements the balance would have been transferred to the Dominion. The raising of such a loan must have had an influence for good upon the money market of the Dominion. He certainly would not be a party to raising a loan for the purpose of easing the money market. He had never done so, though it had been done by one of his predecessors in the Conservative Government. Immediately after the first ballot, when the success of the Government became doubtful, all financial institutions that had been lending freely pulled in, and this was due to the uncertainty of the political situation. He was not discussing the matter from the aspect of controversial party politics; but he did feel amused at 01 r Massey's recent statement that his (Sir Joseph Ward's) statement upon the matter appeared to him (Mr Massey) an extraordinarily awkward and most unfortunate admission by a former Minister for Finance. "That," said Sir Joseph Ward, "is what 1 call the view of a party leader who is prepared to take on himself an extraordinary and distorted view of a very plain matter." The Opposition seemed to forget (continued Sir Joseph) that when money was recently tight he had instructed the State Advances Department not to raise the rates of interest as money-lenders were doing; this had had a salutary effect, and the money-lenders soon lowered- the rates of interest again. He did not agree with those who thought that money would rule high for long. Anyway, it was due to outside causes; New Zealand's credit was still good; and if a loan were to be raised he thought it could be raised at a satisfactory figure. No worthy public man had in recent years opposed advances to settlers. Few would say that money was not required to open up native lands or that public bodies did not want money to meet legitimate requireI ments, and those who were familiar with the extraordinary expansion that was going on in connection with the railway services of the country and the requirements of the people, would not oppose the provision of a certain amount of money each year for additions to open lines, independent, of course, of the amount that was devoted to them out of revenue for upkeep and repairs. Anyone considering these points would be satisfied that the four million loan was not one pound too much. In conclusion, Sir Joseph Ward said: "I may add that under similar circumstances I would act just as I did before, upon the principle that if full and proper provision is made for carrying on the requirements of the country, in the event of other people coming into power they should have the undoubted right to fix their own policy, decide the amount of loan they desired to raise, and settle time and terms for themselves."