THE COUNTRY’S PROSPECTS.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 August 1933, Page 5

THE COUNTRY’S PROSPECTS.

(To the. Editor).

Sir,—Your leading article on the “Dominion’s Meat Trade,” which appears in this morning’s paper, gives some indication of the economic situation facing New Zealand. Of course if an article such as this should make the farmers and tradespeople unduly restive the position can always be altered by judiciously placed headlines in next week’s paper. “Steady Rise in Overseas Prices," “The Worst of the Depression Over,” “Dominion Turning the ?” But the inexorable pressure of coming events will inevitably pull us all up' with a round turn again at no distant date. It does seem as though we. must go through with our present hopeless position to the bitter end and perhaps an occasional cheering note is justified—l do not know.. Personally nothing depresses me so much as the frequent' attempts to buoy people up with an optimism that I feel sure is groundless. We' are facing a “new era,” and of course there must be differences of opinion as to how we should meet the altered situation. The most dangerous propaganda in the country, in my opinion, is the propaganda that exhorts people to further effort on the understanding that there is no “altered situation.” Improvement in swine-husbandry, improved pasture management, improving the quality of our dairy produce and so forth—all these one-time excellent expedients are calculated to lure the producer into thinking that the situation has not altered, and that by improved scientific methods he can recover his position. He cannot, and the only action the farmer can take,, as a farmer, that would be at all likely to improve his position would be to pour all his milk down the drain and so bring about a crisis that would force a little intelligent anticipation from the country’s leaders. The nature of the national crisis that has been emphasised in some quarters is a lack of the “tickets” necessary to transfer production into consumption, and production really has ho value until it goes into consumption. Political party factors arise very largely out of the differences of opinion as to how a wholly inadequate supply of purchasing power should be spent. The political party machine cannot make an economic system work satisfactorily with an inadequate supply of purchasing power. Neither can any other form of Government. No industry in the country makes money in the sense that a brick-making machine makes bricks. On the contrary all new money has. its origin in bank loans, which means that the banks create all the hew. money that comes out and charge it up against the community as a debt. We, cannot collectively pay off a debt contracted in money by producing butter-fat or turnips. Physically there is nothing to stop us creating new money to increase consumption. When the goods go into consumption the producer comes into possession of the newly created money, and uses it to pay off his debt to the bank; and it is cancelled out on repayment It will be some time yet before this obvious comedy, known as Douglas Social Credit, is applied. History is a long record of experts fighting off improvements. • Louis Pasteur was ostracised. Galileo was put in pruwa>

pert shipmasters of former days swore that iron ships would never float, and so on ad infinitum. The bankers, the professional economists and the sound business men will all assure us that‘con-sumer-credits that are given away and not lent will ruin the country. Our only chance, therefore, is to wait until the country is successfully ruined under the bankers’ methods, when an educational campaign now going on will force the desired alteration and every person who gives the banking and monetary affairs serious consideration will help to bring the day of real prosperity appreciably nearer.—l am, etc., D. C. DAVIE. New Plymouth, August 18.

VENUS AND JUPITER. (To the Editor.) Sir, —Many were interested on Thursday evening to observe Jupiter. and Venus in line with the earth.. It is still more interesting when one thinks of the millions of miles that' lie between each of the three planets. This evening (Friday), before sunset, I saw Venus, and using it as a guide I located Jupiter. It is not often that one can see Jupiter in daylight with the naked eye without a guide to its location. To those who would like to see the two planets and do not know just where to look I would suggest that the new moon will be passing the line of the planets in the. coming week. On the evening in which tire moon is near the planets take, a mental note of the position of the trio at, say, 6.50 p.m. Then the following afternoon at, say, 3.50 p.m. find the moon, cast the eye some 10} degrees west from the moon, and you will be looking near where the moon was at 6.50 the previous evening. Being three hours earlier, it will be at a point higher in the sky. There you should find the two planets. Venus, of course, will be a little further from Jupiter than on the previous evening. I am, etc., GEORGE SMITH. New Plymouth, Aug. 18.