King Country Chronicle Wednesday, Feb. 21, 1912. LOANS AND SUBSIDIES.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VI, Issue 441, 21 February 1912, Page 4

King Country Chronicle Wednesday, Feb. 21, 1912. LOANS AND SUBSIDIES.

*. The situation which ha 9 been created in the Hangatiki-Waitomo district by the refusal of the Government Advances Department to grant the £2OOO loan for metalling from the Hangatiki station to the Caves serves to show the deplorable weakness of departmentalism. Occasion might be taken to deliver a scathing condemnation of a Government which perpetuated such a sytsem, but it has to be seen if a change of Government will bring about a change of method. If Mr Massey and his followers establish a commonsense system of dealing with matters of the kind he will have justified his claims in the eyes of many country electors. In the interests of our district, which has an enormous amount of development work in view, it is to be sincerely hoped politicians in general will study the problem. Further, it is hoped they will be moved to strong ell'm's to devise a radical improvement, in carrying out what is meant to be a system of reasonable and sound assistance to settlers in new districts. The settlers in the Hangatiki-Wailomo district, being desirous of metalling their road, for a distance of twelw miles from the railway, projected loans for that purpose. The first six miles, which leads to the Wailomo Caves, carries a great amount ol tourist traffic, and the settlers naturally looked for considerable assistance in metalling the road. The position was placed before the Ministers, and the settlers were promised a X .lor A subsidy over the whole distance. In promoting the hems the applications were divided into three. The settlers on the furthest out section of six miles raised a sum of A'.:>(Hl0 r and obtained a subsidy thereon, a special ratio;; are;; covering that Fiction being defined for the nurposc. Subsequently the seithrs on the section nearer the railway promoted :» loan for AAdt't;, and a further loan of AliMi) was at; the same lime applied for by the outback settlers in order to make an equitable, adjustment of the burden. The subsidies on the projected loans were granted by Parliament, but the loans were refused by the Advances Department. The settlers arc now wondering where they are. The subsidy is available and the loan is unobtainable. Comment on such an occurrence is superfluous. Still, there is just one point that; may be referred to: It is stated that the delay in applying for the loan, after the subsidy had been promised by the- department, was due io the attitude of some of the settlors, who held that the work should be done by tin' Government in view of the great amount of tourist traflic to (he Caves. If this be so. it is an amazing example of the leluetanoe of people to iakr advantage ef -,m opportunity to benefit themselves because other people are going to be benefitted at. the same time. As has frequently been pointed out; in these columns the subsidy system is one of the best methods vM devised of giving assistance to settlers and helping these who are willing to help themselves m mad making. Combined with the fact that provision was made for obtaining money through the Advances Depart, menf, and that Am work was carried out by the local body (he system if properly administered promised i.o be of immense beuetit in reading the district, therein' guiding it to prosperity. A loan of AhOiui at :'!■ per cent, subsidised A for A meant that the settlers were receiving A'l :buoo. and were paving interest on only AoU'in. The interest over the whole amoam thus amounted C> 1 V per ceo!., and only AliOOll had to lie paid back by a sinking' fund. As a business piege.siMon it seems a remarkably heiienc i:i' one to the settlers. That the system has Peon hnremlv adopted o l ' late in the bis I tried, is not ',o ho wondered at. The wonder is that, any section of tie community should hesitate to take advantage o\' it.