The Waikatu Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. Equal and exart justice to all men, Of whatsoever state or persuasion, religious or political. THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 1891.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 2947, 4 June 1891, Page 2

The Waikatu Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. Equal and exart justice to all men, Of whatsoever state or persuasion, religious or political. THURSDAY, JUNE 4, 1891.

Tiik announcement in our cable new* of the cotnpleto failure of tho Queensland loan, coming so soon after the partial failure of tho three million loan rouently placed upon the London market by Victoria, furnishos a lesson to Australian colonists so plain that ho who runs may read. Tho British money lender is impressing upon us that there is a limit to colonial borrowing, howover ample tho security, and also that colonial stocks will rise, only upon the recoipt of good evidence that tho different colonies can carry on, without the constant stimulus of borrowed money. Various reasons are assigned for such an uttor collapse of the Queensland two million loan,tho tendersshowing , that very little more than a quarter of a million had been applied for, and this at the low price of 97 per cent. The most feasible explanation in our opinion is that the time for placing it upon the market was badly chosen and also that the syndicates of speculators, who usually take up large quantities of colonial loans and gradually unload them at a profit to the investing public, had been badly bitten and crippled by the disastrous failure of largo financial firms and by heavy losses in South American stocks. It may be stated that it is manifestly unfair, that the credit of the colonies should suffer for losses incurred in the Argentine Republic and else whore, ovon though they amount to the enormous sum of over forty millions. Nevertheless in the money markot it is so. Large losses engender great distrust and also, as was shown in the case of the Victorian loan, where there was no question raised as to tho security offered, yet only two millions wei'o obtained out of threo millions asked for, and even then at the comparatively low price of £97 1 Is 4d per cent, as compared with the ease that colony obtained four millions only a year previously at over £101 per cent. These large losses to British investors, mean restricted ability to take up our loans with the same readiness, that we have become so accustomed to. Another point to which the colonial Government loan difficulties will direct attention is, that while money continues to be dear at Home and tho bank rato of discount so high, borrowed money for the colonies will only be obtained by the payment of a higher rate of interest. It has been quite ovidont from the steps taken by tho Victorian and Queensland Governments that they were certain of the success of their loan proposals and the lesson received by them should be taken to heart by us all. Fortunately for this colony, there is no need of going to the London money market at least not for the present, but this wo believe is mainly due to the success of our loan conversion operations, which havo set free over half a million of accrued sinking fund, which will bo available for public works. Using this money is not exactly borrowing, but is next door to it, However, anything that will enable tho colony to tide over its difficulties and refrain for some considerable timo from floating another loan, will be sincerely welcomed.