BUOYANT AUSTRALIA

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2721, 16 March 1916, Page 5

BUOYANT AUSTRALIA

• HER WONDERFUL WAR CHESI

FEDERAL BANK GOVERNOR INTERVIEWED

Mr._ Denison Miller, Governor of the (tommonwealth. Bank of Australia, arrived from Sydney by the Manuka last evening on a short bnsinoss and pleasure trip to the Dominion. When interviewed 1 by a Dominion reporter last evening Mr. Miller gave nmplo testimony to tho wonderful financial buoyancy of Australia at the present tinio —figures which two years ago would probably have staggered financiers if liuggested. The troops the Commonwealth had in the field and in camp ivero costing the country somewhere between £40,000,000 and £50,000, per annum, and so far they had experienced no difficulty in meeting their obligations. So far two loans had been raised, one of £13,000,000, which was used up Inst vear, and a second loan which prould tide-them over to the end of ■''Wa.v next... Thoy were all very pleased with tho easy manner in which the money had been raised, and rather proud of it, as it was probably tho cheapest loan fver raised in the world. The loan was issued at par with a ten years' currency, and bore interest at 'the rate of 4£ per cent. free, of income tax. Those terms must be considered satisfactory when it was known that 5 nor,.cent, was being paid on British Treasury bills. New precedents had been established. If a proposition had been made to raise £5,000,000 in the Commonwealth prior to tho war, some people would nave expressed a doubt as to whether is'could;be done, but there had been absolutely 110 difficulty in raising tho big loans mentioned. ' "We have; only to put it iefore' She people that the money is required f'.r war, purposes— comforts for the men, money for Red Cross work, or equipment, and the public respond rsa-'.hlv," said' Mr. Miller. "Numbers r;f people have come to me and asked whether any more would be required, because they had it if we wanted it. It is gratifying, too, to note that nearly the iviiole of • the money bo far has been collected within the Commonwealth. '

Hugo Deal. "It has been an eye-opener to many of us, for it must bo remembered that the war follo'/ed closely on a drought— a severe drought—during which' time we had to import wheat to the value of £3,000,000 fiom Canada,' South Africa, and n li'tle from New Ze;.land; This year our crop amounts to between 160,000,000 and 170,000,000 bushels, of which 120,000,000 - bushels are available for .export abroad. This is an enormous 1 quantity, and thers mny be - sorno difficulty yet in getting the bottoms to carry it away. The farmer was assisted by the Government to handle his crops by advancing: him 2s. Gd. per bushel free of freight charges,. V This was . a big help to him, for had he been left to handle and sell his wheat, in the ordinary way, buyers would only have bought sufficient to fill the bottoms available, and as the yielcl was such a groat one, the price would have been low. But the board appointed by the Commonwealth Government took over the whole oi the crop at ss. 6d. per Bushel, out of which amount the farmer had' to pay handling charges, freight, etc.,; the net Tesult being that he would realise over 4s. per bushel for a record crop,'whereas with a normal, crop in ordinary times he might get from 3s. 3d. to 3s. 6d. for his wheat, so there is no doubt that the farmer is doing <very well indeed. It would thus be seen that from £20,000,000 to £25,000,U'UO: sterling had been paid' out for wheat alone, a fact which doubtless had helped the war loan, and would provide more money for loans when if was needed.

"Three-fourths of the money; for the V> troops was being spent in Australia, so .' r that there was plenty, of money in Australia. Evidence of, that, too, was fur nished by "the continuous growth of tho deposits in the Commonwealth Savings Bant. In Sydney or. Melbourne, indeed, right throughobt the country it was difficult to imagine that a. war was on, and but for seeing tho soldiers , about, and occasionally some of the wounded arriving, the , position • could not be realised. It might be that they would to raise anothor loan shortly, but they were quite confident that it would bo floated as easily as the others. Australia ' has plenty of money for war purposes, and is determined to see the thing right through," said the speaker. Mr. Miller will leave for Auckland on Saturday, and return south again, leaving Wellington for Sydney by the Biverina on Thursday next.