§ MR. HERBERT SAMUEL (Yorkshire, Cleveland)I beg to ask the Secretary of 46 State for the Colonies if he will state whether it is a usual course for the Government of the Transvaal to lend money on mortgage to private individuals; and if so, whether the practice has his sanction; or, if the loan to Mr. Van Rensberg was exceptional, why the priviledge was granted in his case.
§ THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE COLONIES (Mr. LYTTELTON, Warwick and Leamington)I understand that no difference was made between the treatment accorded to Mr. Van Rensberg and that accorded to any other borrower. It has, I understand, always been the practice for the Transvaal Government to lend funds at its disposal on mortgage on land. The question of the investment of these funds has not been submitted for my sanction, nor, having regard to the principle frequently stated in this House, do I think it necessary that the investment of funds temporarily at the disposal of the Transvaal Government should be controlled from here.