CHEAP MONEY.

Evening Post, Volume XLVII, Issue 88, 14 April 1894, Page 2

CHEAP MONEY.

If people would take the trouble to reflect a little they wonld readily perceive the humbug and insincerity of the Ministerial professions of a desiro to bupply the people with cheap money. It is the Govtrnmont itself which is ono of tho chiof factors in making money dear. It swallows up for Government expenditure almost every penny of trust money it can lay its hands on. It pays as interest on this money a much higher rate than that it could borrow at in the open market, and the money it absorbs is diverted from general use If the Government did not use these trust funds tho money would be available to lend to private borrowors at a comparatively low rate of interest, which would yet yield a profit to tho State. This money being so available would tend materially to keep down the rates of iuterest on private loans. Tho Government now not only ente s into competition with private borrowers, and by so doing makes monoy scarcer than it would othorwisc bo, and thus keeps up the interest, but it borrowß the money itself at a much higher rate of interest than that at which it could procure money in the open via kot. If tbe Government would givo np this extravagant system of borrowing on the bly, and openly raiso money for its own requirements, it could procure all it wants at 3t per cent , whereas it now pays 4 or 4-i por cent., or even more, for money which if the Government did not absorb it conld be lout at b} or 6 per cent, to private borrowers, to tho great advantage of all parties. The Government manipulation and absorption of trust funds not only helps to make money scarce and dear to private toriowera, but it inflicts n. great wrong on the taxpayers by oharging the revenue with a much highor rate of interest than that at whioh the money required by the necessities of the colony could be ob L tamed in the London market*