OUT OF HIS DEPTH.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XV, Issue 4088, 14 November 1911, Page 4

OUT OF HIS DEPTH.

FLOUNDERING IN A LOAN. MR MASSEY AND MR HAWKINS. In the course of his speech at Pahiatua recently Mr W. H. Hawkins, an Independent candidate for the seat, made the following statement : j "He (the leader of the Opposition) I said: It. is impossible for u» to ob- ! tain any information as to the cost jof raising loans last year. Now ! while he was speaking T had the rei turn which gives the information the j honourable gentleman said he could ; Jl °t get. 1 could have told him that | the cost of raising loans last year was | £93,416, according to that return, Bo Jit called, and the year before it I "as £70,462. Now if the Leader of j the Opposition knew that return was in existence, then he told the pie | what was not true. If he didn't know he ought to have known. He has i been in public life long enough." i The loan in question was the five million loan, and the Herald pointed out last week that dir Hawkiu- had got out of Ills depth, because even tlic Prime Minister admitted t exact cost of the loan was n known and gave an approximate figure that differed from Mr Hawkins's. The candidate’s plight was noted by Mr Massey while speaking at Ek.tahuna last night, and the Leader of the Opposition held out a helping hand to assist dir Hawkins to -dry land once more. deferring to the five million loan, dir dlassey said the details had not yet been tarnished. Last sees tails of loans for two years were laid before Parliament, but even now details were two years in arrears on I, V last. Ho noticed from the 1 aluatua Herald (a. verv useful paper) that one of the candidate- for the Pahiatua seat fdl r Hawkins) told I’is meeting that if he (dir Ma-ev, duln t know the cost of raising the ti'o million loan lie ought to have known. Ho did not know where Mr Hawkins got his figures, because the details had not boon laid before Parliament. dir Hawkins said the cost oi tlie loan was £93,416. hut tho I nine dlmister stated at Winton tint tlie cost so far had been £llO.lOB. I here was a slight discrepancy between Mr Hawkins and the Prime Minister. (Laughter!. Now the cost ol the loan could not bo stated nocuratelv, but there was £60,000 to the underwriters, and 30s di-oount or on the whole loan £76,000. Those two items made £125,000. Them were other items such as insi . fee, brokerage, advertising. These items would probably run into 15s per cent. There wore some very extraordinary concessions in connection with the loan. One of these that if the money was handed over to our representatives in lamdon by December 1 last, then on January 1 the investor was entitled to ' six months’ interest. Then there was another. The loan was a loan on the option of the investor for four years or thirty years, and if lie took it f ir 30 years be became entitled in addition to a bonus of £2 worth of stock <>n every £IOO, 3J per cent, stock. That was as nearly as possible. Ho did not know bow many people had taken advantage of tins concession. He estimated, however, that, the loan bad cost 1*300,000. For anyone to say lie knew the cost of the loan was litter nonsense.