BRITAIN’S ECONOMICS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIII, Issue 10064, 31 August 1918, Page 11

BRITAIN’S ECONOMICS

August 28th.

i To the Editor "N.fc. Times/-'), Sir, —Captain R'.Pi Kowe in the “Xew Zealand Herald" supplement of August 17th .says, in..reference .to.-ilie . enormous war expenditure "that the expenditure cannot,,be., .rapt..indefinitely sinoe.~money.. provide<Lolucfly by limns isnotAncmue/'. This IsJeucldand economics., -I* -getting at the true position'we. must distinguish between ,the national,.liabilities and individual iineonie.H of the people. The loiins are., .chiefly raised bv individuals, from,,t,heir incomes, .granting.: credit’’.to the nation. The "credit’"’ is created mostly from the rise in "price” of commodities, which gives all the people more

■"purchaslnjj cower.' 1 other, words more "spending power,'-diid-ahou'ld-the "standard" of livintr not' rise in; proportion, more ''surplus ih'eoihe'''-'''irhich as now loaned to the nation^for'^ai?"jmrv pos.es.~ r -~ f ~-'"~~--*- ""■;'"' •—■•'""'"'• —'VApplied to New Zealand;"we ,&i,d"lha.£ the Hon. TV. F. Massev. representing; tjij-a Dominion, -made ■ a bargairT'-HV'Hii the-Bri-tish Government''to oav New Zealand farmers-55-Per cent more for wool than" before the war. Assuming that a far-' mer in a .smaLUway-could save for ii# ■vestment .£loo,a. year, with wool at the sold' for. the whole clip. If we allow 5 per cent, increase in cost df production the-.clip will not. be sold at .£SOO extra. Which will all be "profit" and the farmer will have £&X> instead of to the nation for war purposes. . As. .merchants and dealers have- also put tip the prices of commodities, and tlie.-', -wage-receivers 'have forced wosre-payers to,put up the "price" of labour,, the have bii» sums' of money to spare for savings bank's .tp.piit-.into war -loans—provided that the "standard" of livinir has notr.been raised. Ihis.'-HKows'-'that' tho war loan is provided from incomes of individuals, and corporations, although it may' hot aTI come from individuals of the'.borrowins: nation. ... , ' I agree with the captain tbat : -a""wb'rid which destroys more wealth than it creates miist eventually be unable 'to subsist." but all this depends on what the captain classes ns "wealth." If we destroys-"la tour products-" "faster than we.create, them-.wo must come to starvii-' tion. - On -tlw -other hand if We. spend" our surplus iiicoine.as fast as we set it, we increase prosperitv..all wund. during the war Period. : . .It is very dangerous for all the people.to put too much.-.of theii< incomes'into 'war loans, and too little emplovim; labour to raise the necessaries of life, as wo cannot keep down the cost of living unless we raise enough to feed and clothe all the people. . As the-world sets-short of food we'shall not .be only "competing" with each other, but we shall likely be mur-«ennc'-_each,other to set the necessaries of life.--- ■-Apart from' tEe suffering aiid torture to human, beings, we could carry on the., warier-av.wv.-and-- increase pros-Peritj^ajl^-p,uj!d^< 1 ,, w Sffio l . l vtho war.is.over om- irreatest. wp.Khi. problem--n-ill-.be ti> find work and purchasing:, power, for all' the, people , now indirectly engaged in the wail, If the individuals of the world are cub down, in. purchasing and ■'spend-' ing the-price of commodities will' be affected; • The national debt may yet proTff?u"'bl<;sifihg:''''fis''also""'w'ill' the pension, list,, in that income to indivldmills- ..from ..both sources will - convert hundreds-,.of,..thousands of people- into consumers 'p£ .labour... products which. others' produce,' which will tend to maintain payable-'prices for all commodities. :AII depressions' are caused bv pnemploy- : ;ment.....which-means the loss of both pnr-" cha-KijiiK^audiependinc. power;. . The^vr^ftilll producers do not find any producing all Hint the "idle--rich'' can.waste, and it will"be' no 'bur-' ;den tS' v Keen all the pensioners who" will not need -to 'work. Neither. Will, it be nnv to- nrc-duco'all the -eom-moditics^required-by-the-, people-who-get speiulinar poH-er.iiipm,. interest on-war script. I would sriEtrest that a "mock war ' '*,Ji O *S;U'i r >iSsi:* o . u ,;. ,afj-(?a: > ~peace..„i I ji...de-: clarea. aiiowo have ceased to destroy labour'rfSttrdtlcts. "I will not now enlarge on'tWs t 'ToVTear"of\-bur valuable space— , I amf'isKi^' ."".."";"••■■'*'.■■ '

' A. SANEQK-D. Dcvonport,. Anaust 18th. 1018.