THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 1892. MR RHODES'S DEBENTURE TAX.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2340, 7 April 1892, Page 2

THE Temuka Leader. THURSDAY, APRIL 7, 1892. MR RHODES'S DEBENTURE TAX.

In another column we publish an extract from a speech delivered in London in February last by Mr Grenfell, chairman of the directors of the National Mortgage and Agency Company of New Zealand. From that anyone can see that the cry about double taxation raised by Mr Rhodes in his Temuka speech in November last would have had a mischievous effect only for the fact that the matter was taken in hand at once and refuted. We take to ourselves credit for having been instrumental in counteracting the evil effects of Mr Rhodes's speech. MiRhodes spoke with great contempt of a " certain country newspaper," but the "certain country newspaper" reached London, and there helped to allay the uneasines« caused by Mr Rhodes's speech. In the extract we quote elsewhere "there is evidence that a conspiracy existed between the money-lenders to frighten capital out of the country. In New Zealand Mr Ritchie was backing up Mr Rhodes's view, while privately he was writing to the directors of his company that what was said about the taxation was exaggerated. Thus Mr Ritchie had two opinions on the subject: one public and the other private. As regards his public opinion he tried to create a panic and make the people of this colony believe that the Government were ruining the country; while his private opinion, as honestly expressed to his directors, was that " the effect of the Bill was rather exaggerated." One can also easily see in the extract referred to the difference between a person honestly trying to understand and a person dishonestly pretending that he does not understand. Mr Grenfell was satisfied when he read Mr Ballance's telegram published in this paper, to the effect that it was never intended to double tax debentures, and that it would not be done. The New Zealand conspirators professed not to understand this, and Mr Rhodes brought forward his Northern Investment Company document to prove that Mr Ballance did not understand or mean what he said. This was published in the Otago Daily Times, and this again upset Mr Grenfell's calculations, and he was driven to seek an explanation from the AgentGeneral. Fortunately we had the right man in the right place in the AgentGeneral, and he once more set Mr Grenfell's mind at rest by telling him the cry was a foolish one. It was worse than foolish ; it was a deep-laid diabolical attempt to work on the ignorance of the people, and thus frighten capital out of the country. There were, no doubt, hundreds like Mr Grenfell misled by this scandalous misrepresentation, and the wonder is that more harm has not been done. It did, we believe, frighten a few, but the result was that in many instances where mortgages were foreclosed the borrowers obtained money cheaper than they previously had it. The truth is this : the money-lenders have heaps of money, and do not kaow what to do with it, and if they could frighten some capital out of the country they would regard it as a godsend, so that they might find investment for their own. This is what Mr Rhodes and his fellow money-lenders wanted, and this was the object they had in view in raising the " shriek of panic." Perhaps the farmers who idolise MiRhodes will think this matter out, and ask themselves: Is it advisable for them to continue to support the leader of a conspiracy to destroy confidence in the country '! Let them read the extract from Mr Grenfell's speech, and think the matter over, and ask themselves—"ls this the wno nas * ne interest of borrowers of money at heart?" The " frightened-capital " cry is now dead ; The conspirators failed in their attempt to frighten it away. So what they may say in the future will not have much weight.