AUSTRALIAN WAR LOAN.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 April 1918, Page 7

AUSTRALIAN WAR LOAN.

BANKER'S REMARKABLE FIGURES. FIRST SHLLLING~ONLY LENT. When Avar broke but Mr. Andrew Fisher, then Labor Prime Minister of Australia, pledged the Commonwealth to the last man and tho la3t shilling. Howent the limit in loyalty to the Empire. Mr. W. H. Watt bluntly stated last Wednesday (says the Sydney Herald) that Australia had muddled her man-power. He was determined, however, that we should not do the same thing 'with our money. Three and a half years have 2'assed and we have still a long way to go before reaching the last shilling. Mr. Dcnison Miller, governor of the Commonwealth Bank, stated last week that we had only just passed our first shilling. To be exact, what Australia had contributed of her wealth amounted to Is 2d in the £l. "The people of Australia," said the financial authority, "have so far lent the Commonwealth for war purposes about £105,000,000. This sum, compared with the wealth of the people as given in Mr. Knibbs' statistics for June, 1915, at £l,043,403,376 —and financial writers point out tbaT "the increase since brings the figures to £l,Boo,ooo,ooo—represents only about Is 2d la the £l," i There is stm, therefore, another 18s lOd to go before Mr. Fisher's historic pledgo is fulfilled. The governor of the Commonwealth Bank added that the sum of £105,000,000 advanced by Australians was really an insurance for the. safety of tho whole £1,800,000. "But, v he continued, "it really goes further. To the wealth of the people must be added the wealth of the nation, which is represented by land untransferred, railways, works of harbors and rivers, water and sewerage, public werks, and buildings of all kinds for the construtcion of which about £357,0G0-,oOO-has been borrowed.

< '"'The land of fne Commonwealth is given at 1,903,731,840 acres, and of thi> 105)422,053 acres have been alienated and 56,096,476 acres are in process of alienation, leaving still in the name of the Crown 1,742,213,311 acres, the value of which is unknown.

"I wantTo impress upon all the fact that the boys at the front are fighting for Australia and all it means to us, apart from its material wealth. In terms of pounds, shillings, and pence it is almost impossible- to estimate our heritage, for Sere are the untold millions which for all time will be produced from our native soil. We can best express our lot by the statement that w& are heirs to the most magnificent and richest country in the world.

, "This is our position today. The total debt of our country is as follows: — State debts to June 30, 1917 £378,000,r COO Commonwealth (excluding value of transferred properties, deferred pay, A.1.F., but including the fifth war loan and War Savings Certificates) to date .... ... 176,500,000 £554,500,000 "It is therefore ■ apparent TTTat tna security for any loans that may be raised by the Commonwealth Government for way purposes is absolutely safe. "With an expenditure, therefore, of I £80,000,000 on the war, an amount that there is no likelihood of our exceeding in the future Australia could go on for a number of years without 'feeling the pinch.' Australia is a producing country and we win more wealth from the soil than is necessary for our own requirements."