THE LOAD OF DEBT.

Gisborne Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1526, 7 August 1905, Page 3

THE LOAD OF DEBT.

The Bulletin has 3>he following characteiistic hut interesting criticism of New Zealand finances) Premier Beddon fias been telling the Employers’- Assomation .that, “ despite, increased .wages the workers ioujnil' themselvesi ne better off than, formerly, on account of, the increased fcpst .of living. : People not employers or workers scooped the money s '- A few days before Sedtlon said this, the chairman ofjthp Bank of New Zealand had remarked that “ the great prosperity of ; farmers, pastoraliats, and dairymen la .prompting thorn to, pay excessive, prices

ion land.'-’ .'Also—hut the chairman didn't mention, that—somebody seem* to be paying excessive prices, for money anyway,, the Bank of New Zealand shows a return of about .40 per cent, on its shareholders,’ funds, While in Australia it’s a'good bank that shows 7 or 8 per cent. The other Maoriland Bank, the National, which is mainly an absentee concern, ' makes a profit of about 14 per cent, on its. shareholders funds. The JVestralian Bank, working .under conditions which involve great risks, might ,be, expected to show great profits ; yet the National Bank of Maoriland, ’ .working under settled, £op,dition«, makes profits nearly 50 per cpn't. greater than tne Westralian Bank’s,. Then there 'is Scdfion’s own share in the business of suck-' ing the country,:- Mapriland’s public debt was .£57,622,215 twelve months ago ; and while 201 pea: cent, of the New South Wales debt locally raised, all but 161 per cenfe of the Maoriland debt was foreign. Further,’ of the total of £57,522,215 Secidon in the past five years. ft as scent £11,429,685. Of course, . the old yarn is told that all this has (been sunk in permanent and. reproductive undertakings. E|ven if this (were true, it would not alter the hard fact that it is a foreignl debt, and ,tjia,t fhe interest has to be sent out of the country. Interest has to be paid wliere .Bull-Coben lives ; that is to say, Buii-C;ohen’s debtor has not only to pay interest, but to cart his to Europe ;and pay all charges until the proceeds are put into ,C;oh-en’s hands. And. anywhere,, the yarn that Cohen’s money has bean Sunk in permanent and reproductive works is just about the same v lie in Maoriland as it is elsewhere. Maoriland has to pay

interest and charges '£1,911,804 a year; L and the undertakings in which Cohen’s money, has been sunk' earned net in , 1904 only

<£1.053,284.. Cohen’s money. ‘ thus earr.Cfi only £55 10s of every ■ £IOO

Manafilajid had to pay,’ for it. Also Maorilasnd has built up a local goverinnent debit of nearly £10,003,000 which is far ahead of even the AJus-

Jtrali-an average. In IPO2-3 CogjhJan ((in his great statistical work, *' Australia and New Zealand ”■) made a calculation that, of '£50,377,000 supposed ito have been sent out by. Cohen tc> Maoriland, a miserable little £383,000 -had actually, been received, hgainst £49„994,000. retained in London ho. meet interest ebarges and 1 pay fori goods,- Hlow ithe matter works .out with regardsl -tof the priypjte 3C?s> :■

Kon can’ t bo said with iniirch fleflpitoness regarding M,aorilan'd alono ; but for all Australasian Coghlan! showed tnat for 30 years,, from 1871 onward £145,422,000' was brought into 'the country (mjostly in the shape [of inimufactures which Australasia should liavo nia'do for itself), "while XI 53,152,000 was'sent out of the .country. In other words, Australasia, in 30 years, paid the whole £145,422.000 it Had borrowed, and i£37,730,000, besides, and still owed ■the original £145,422,000. Anil iSo'ddon is surprised to lin'd ' that i Maoiilan'd, prosperous as it is, isn't as really, .prosperous as it augliG to bo, and bo lvas wakened utp to the fact that something is gnawing at its vitals. It apparently, occurred to him before that even Maoriland can’t carry half-a-dozen Cohens on its bade (without feeling tired ;■ and oven now it is none top clear that lie recognises who thb Cohens really are.. At least, there is no word yet frem Seddon that Jie joined *ho no-m!orc-borrowing party, and ( thus stopped adding to the one .vast blot pn his ajdministnafcipn