OVER-SUBSCRIBED

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3181, 4 September 1917, Page 6

OVER-SUBSCRIBED

THE LIBERTY LOAN NEARLY £1.6,000,000 " STATEMENT BY FINANCE MINISTER A MAGNIFICENT RESULT

, )The period fixed originally for subscriptions to the Liberty War Loan closed yesterday, and. the Minister of Finance (Right Hon. Sir Joseph Ward) was able to announce last night that the loan had been heavily over-subscribed. The Government asked for .£12,000,000. an the first instalment of the £22,000,000 estimated to be required for war purposes during the current financial year, xhe amount received uip to last evening' was over .£15,800,000.

Sir Joseph Ward informed a Dominion reporter last night that tho figures wero not final. Some Teturns had still to bo received, and he bad reason to believe that the. final total would exceed , tho very largo sum he 1 had mentioned. . He was awaTO that some peoplt had not been able to complete their subscriptions in the short time allowed, and there were other contributors, including companies, friendly societies and trustees, who had to wait for the powers that were beuis given by the Finance Bill at present before Parliament. He felt entitled- to regard the loan as an -unqualified success. The loan had been on the market about three weeks, added the Minister. Some people had thoueht that the time W 100 short, but the result showed what tho community could accomplish when it set to work in real earnest to meet a. national call. A very fine 6pirit. hud been displayed throughout the Dominion, and he wished to thank warmly, on behalf of the Government, all those who had assisted, publicly and privately, to make the loan a success. _ Tho last loan had closed upon August oo 1916, and that also had been' oversubscribed. Within a period of a little over twelve months the people of New Zealand had provided over _ -£30,000,000 for war purposes, this total including a proportion of the money provided , for public purposes through the mediumi of tho Post Office Savings Bank, and; this effort was simply magnificent. Sir Joseph Ward added that although tho period allowed for subscriptions to the Liberty Loan had expired, tho Treasury would i still accept snms that had been delayed for any Teason. He would make a further announcement op. that pomt lata"- ~ i v The Minister'of Finance said: that ho oould not thank individually all the people and organisations who had assisted- to make the loan a success. The newspapers of the Dominion had given invaluable aid by keeping the facts with regard to the loan prominently before the public.' He wished to thank specially the generous band of volunteers who had made the work of helping along the loan their particular ooncern. ( He had to acknowledge the willing response of 'thoso to whom he had appealed for assistance, including the Mayors and chairmen of local bodies, clergymen of all denominations, school _ teachers, friendly societies, and_ patriotic. Gocieties. Th'e assistance given in connection with the flotation of the loan by the Secretary to the Treasury and his officers and, by the Secretary to the Post Office and his officers had been of the highest importance. The officers of the two Departments had worked hard and -unitedly right through the country to help bring about the Tesult he was able to announce that evening. Sir' Joseph Ward added that hewas not able that evening to givo particulars of the contributions of the various centres. The classification _of returns would occupy 6ome time, and the complete figures would not be availab.e until after to-day. He would place fuller information before the Moplo ot New Zealand as early as possible. In the meantime ho could Gay again that tho result of tho national effort to provide the sinews of war was magnificent.