NO BORROWING.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1056, 26 May 1892, Page 31

NO BORROWING.

The Premier ha 3 recently supplied one of the reasons why we should not this year go hat iii hand to the London moneylender. “The Colony,” says Mr Ballance, “should be weaned from servile dependence upon the London money market.” Nevertheless, we are told that this mild and altogether rational remark has incensed some of the London city financiers. We can only say that such irritable gentlemen must be very easily incensed indeed. Why ! Mr Ballance s injunction is the very thing that these same financiers and their organs have any time these last 10 years been admonishing New Zealanders to lay to heart. Again and again they have preached to us that the lesson for colonial financiers to learn was to keep in such a position as to be able to carry on the ordinary work of government without being driven to present almost annual petitions to the London money-lenders. We have been told, till we are tired of hearing it, that ordinary expenditure ought not to be met out of loan, or the consolidated revenue bolstered up in any part by grants of borrowed money. In other words, we have been exhorted to show a manly and independent spirit, and to keep ourselves so unembarrased as to be able to treat with the money-lenders on tqual terms. I'hat has been the gist of the lesson read to us from England for many years past. There is much truth in it. As a nation we have, we hope, thoroughly learned it. Though, judging from the remarks of Dr Newman and other members of the Conservative Party, there are a few politicians who are prepared to bid for office. with a “ big progressive policy,” we think that a vast majority of the electors are just at present utterly opposed to anything of the kind. We have got to show the London money-lenders that we are not driven to go down on our knees to them. When they understand that they, will think much more of us, and there will be a chance of borrowing any money we want on fairly easy terms.