WAR LOAN FLOTATIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 16674, 19 October 1917, Page 4

WAR LOAN FLOTATIONS.

The Minister for Finance made an interesting statement to the House of Representatives on Wednesday night when the Bill authorising a supplementary loan was being passed. The information he gavo is welcome, but it is rather singular that the facts with reference to tho flotation of a loan on September 3 should be communicated for the first time on October 17. On September 4 it was officially announced that £15,800,000 had been subscribed. Now we L are assured that, only £12,700,000 has been accepted,. and that of this sum £700,000 has been subscribed since the date fixed for the closing of the loan. The loan was ; underwritten by the ; banks to the extent Col; £5,000,000, but the Minister for Finance; did not consider it'necessary;to call; up that money; at present. ; It may be noted that i Sir .;= Joseph - Ward does not trouble ■ even now . to make -• it clear whether the public did 'actually sub-

scribe the £12,700,000 without the aid of the banks or ..whether, the guarantee of the banks was drawn' upon to a limited extent to complete the £12,000,000 at September 3. It is difficult to see how this studied ambiguity can assist the country to raise the loans required. The Minister would do well to take the country more fully into his confidence. He might with advantage give details of the main sources of the loan, particularly as( to the, subscriptions of province • and! province, city and city. This course is followed ,in other countries with the object of stimulating ,a; healthy rivalry, and its adoption here would have the same effect. In the United States there was an allocation for. each city, giving local committees a goal to keep in view, and giving cities that were backward on the first appeal an incentive to do better on the second. It would bo a material help to his March flotation if Sir Joseph Ward would now state what response ho got in September last from every district in the Dominion.