INTERNAL LOANS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 1592, 29 July 1916, Page 4

INTERNAL LOANS.

FARMERS AGAINST THEM. The subject of internal loans was before I lie Dominion Conference of the Farmers' Union on AA'ednesday, when Mr -I. Begg, (Otago) moved the following remit-: —“That funds to pay for New Zealand's war expenses should be raised locally by loan taxation.” Mr Begg stated that the remit was not of such great importance now as it was at the time Otago considered the matter. However, he desired to add: “And the income from such loans be subject to income lax.” It might be said that the matter did not concern farmers. That w:\s a wrong impression. If loans wore issued free front income Inx it made the price of money uncertain.

Mr .James objected to the addition, and consequently it was no] made. Mr M’Queen asked what would happen to the poor farmer who wanted to raise a mort - gage, if all the money required by the Government was raised locally.

Mr A. A. Ross (Auckland) :It would mean absolute stagnation. (Heal’, hear.) Air 11. D. Vavasour spoke against the remit.

Mr J. Boddie (Auckland) said that, although money was plentiful now, later on Kiev would find it extremely difficult to raise funds for the improvement of the land. Air R. Dunn (Taranaki) asserted that the proposal would make money very scarce.

Mr Begg -declined to withdraw the remit as suggested, and slated that if they declined to find the money for the war they were adopting a selfish altitude. Why should they drain on Great Britain who had her own internal works to carry out. They were helping to cripple Britain’s finance—an unpatriotic act.

The motion was lost, only three delegates voting for it.