BANKS AND THE EMPIRE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19761, 12 April 1926, Page 12

BANKS AND THE EMPIRE.

VAST POTENTIALITIES. ASSISTANCE BY DOMINIONS. (Fbom Gun Own Cobkespon ' LONDON, February 26. Sir John Ferguson, president of the Institute ot Bankers, presiding at a house dinner of the Knights of the Round Table Club, referred to the increasing part that the great English banks are taking in the development of the British Empire. Of late years,- he said, the great banks had sought to broaden the basis ot the operations by activity in foreign fields, to which, however, there were very distinct limitations. But there was no limit to what they could do in our own Empire.— (Cheers.) Already some of the banks had formed affiliations or associations with banks working in our dominions, and if the right direction was given to those newly-formed relationships he had no doubt whatever that they would contribute largely to the building up of Imperial trade and towards the closer linking up of the bonds of Empire. As a productive factor the British Empire might be said scarcely to have begun. In its 13J millon square miles were stored up reserves of wealth that could give to every man, woman, aftd-child in this country a higher standard of living than any other country could afford. Us proper development was the problem of this nation’s future life, and there was far greater danger of our falling by the way through not being too energetic than there was by our taking a little risk.—(Cheers.) MEN OP VISION. In the big banks were men of vision who saw in the proper development of Empire trade our only salvation. The Government would bo wise to encourage such men—from the banks and great industrial and commercial institutions—to bring forward a scheme for Empire development, because this country's hope did not rest upon any reorganisation or misconstruction of Continental countries. One was almost forced to the view that the men in control of our destinies to-day did not appreciate their responsibility to the Empire; but it should not be an insuperable task to find someone capable of securing the internal economic reconstruction of our own country to take the place of our great loss of exports—someone who understood the mind of the colonial and sought the single object of the Empire’s solidarity For within the next few years Great Britain would require the assistance of the dominions much more than the dominions required the assistance of Great Britain to-day.— (Cheers.) Mr Stanley Machin (president of the Association of British Chambers cf Commerce) acknowledged the toast of the guest, which had been proposed by Sir John.