King Country Chronicle Saturday, August 30th, 1913 SUBSIDIES ON LOANS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 598, 30 August 1913, Page 4

King Country Chronicle Saturday, August 30th, 1913 SUBSIDIES ON LOANS.

It is matter for congratulation that: the applications for special loans from the Government Advances Depart meni, have reecived provisional approval, which means that when the necessary procedure lias been carried out the money will be available for ihc specified purposes. An important feature in connection with the loans, however. is the fact that in Ihe majority of cases the settlers are anticipating the granting by the Government of a x for £ subsidy, and the subsidy will be necessary m order to carry out the work for which the lean is- intended. In the case of the subsidy being r«.fused it is quite probable the loans will not be accepted. The amount of special rate necessary to meet interest and jinking fund on the greater number of loans recently projected is about twopence in the A.'. Withou; a subsidy this amount would be doubled, and it requires little imagination to realise that the providing of such a heayv rate is beyond the. powers of the majority of the settlers interested. Moreover, it has to be remembered that the loans now being raised are to be expended to a large extent on original work in the way of culverting, widening and for-

mation. In the case of Crown lands provision was made for roading in t.heprice originally placed on the land by the Government. Presumably this loading was intended to provide a reasonably formed road which only required metal to make it a good permanent highway. In no case in this locality has a well formed road been •provided, and it is a common experience that :?. substantial portion of loan money has to be devoted to preparing the road to receive metal. Again, in the majority of special rating aivas exist sections of native owned land and as no method of loading these lands has been provided they are rated only in the same manner a; the Crown sections. It is not necessary to reiterate the arguments which have been used so often to demonstrate the necessity of securing subsidies for our special loans. It is of the utmost importance, however, that ihc. Government should realise the position of this district in reference to the master, and that upon the granting of the subsidies applied for the progress and prosperity of the district denonds. The Prime Minister on the. occasion of his visit to the King Country aiiirmed the principle of subsidies, and it is to be hoped the forthcoming Public Works Estimates will provide material evidence of a similar faith

on the part of the Minister for Public Works.