“DEMOCRATIC DEDUCTIONS”

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22716, 31 October 1935, Page 10

“DEMOCRATIC DEDUCTIONS”

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, —"Ally the Owl ” must wake up from liis long day and night sleep and compare figures correctly. As stated in a footnote to his letter, the full borrowing policy of the Democrat Party is £20,1100,000 over four years. Unlike Mr Hislop, I always admire the fairness of the Otago Daily Times, but in this case the editor omitted to say that the Democrats will borrow only for “ productive ” purposes. How does this borrowing of £20,000,000 over four years ( £5,000,000 per year) for productive purposes only compare with the borrowing over a 10years period between March 31, 1924, and March 31, 1934 (see 1935 Year Book) ? In this period £91,000.000 (£9,000,000 per year) was borrowed by the Governments in power. If “Ally the Owl ” will further study the Year Book he may find that during this 10 years’ period members of the present National Party were in turn Liberals, Reformers, Coalitionists, and Nationalists. Has not Mr Coates been all of these? When will he be a Socialist? This time or next time!—l am, etc., Year Book. Oamaru, October 30. [While the public debt at March 31, 1934, was £302,791,990, it had been reduced at March 31, 1935, to £280.581,217. —Ed. O.D.T.]