Mr Langstone's Economics

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20653, 29 June 1935, Page 10

Mr Langstone's Economics

*Dear Sir, —Mr Langstone’s economics are wonderful. At Papanui on Thursday he delivered himself of some amazing dicta, which may’, I suppose, be accepted as indicating the economic policy of the party. He is going to assure the dairy farmer Is 2d a pound for his butter. How is he going to do it? He may assure that price, but it will have to be paid largely by the unemployed, and he does not indicate how he would correspondingly raise the wages of the unemployed. He would, I take it, rob the unemploy’ed Peter to pay the farmer Paul. He has not indicated how he would bring it about that the unemployed and the poorer people could pay the higher price, and be still as well off as they* are. Mr Langstone’s little arithmetical proposition as to the value received by a New Zealand farmer for his produce, and the unfortunate position in which he subsequently finds himself, is about as intelligible as a Chinese puzzle. His stabilised national price might help the farmer perhaps. But there are others than farmers. How would it affect them? I would like to hear a full exposition of his wonderful solution of our economic difficulties. At present I am puzzled and amused. With the twentv or thereabouts who attended the meeting I am in the deepest sympathy. They must have come away with the same feeling as I had when I read the speech I amf etc., BEWILDERED.