To the Electors of the Ashburton District.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1652, 2 September 1887, Page 1 (Supplement)

To the Electors of the Ashburton District.

GujTLntt!?,— ln the year 1874 I published a pamphlet on the Land Question, tntitled " An Agrarian Law for New Zealand," and, at the request of numerous friends I now reprint it. The pamphlet waß intended to be j the first of a series : hence, I did sot m this pamphlet, enter into any details of mj *eb»m» lot »n Agrarian Law, which I reserved for future discussion, but confined myitlf to laying down general principles. In reading the pamphlet the circumstances of the Colony at the time of its fhfet publication must be tome m mind. The Government owned many millions of aorea of land which have since become private property, and it would, consequently, have befn far more easy tooarty the proposed law into effect at that time than it wonld be now. A strong party of land monopolists; supported by powerful fioaniial institutions, were bitterly opposing the extension of settlement, and «t up rights of private ownership inland, which would logically result m ♦he i "eoneltfsion that if one man were rich enongh to purchase the whole of New Zealand he would bo entitled to exclude everybody else from Betting tool there. To meet these extravagant claims, I wrote and published a pamphlet entitled "Our Lead Laws," m whioh I analysed the English taad tenures from the earliest times, and also the Continental tenures, and proved that fee rights In land olaimed by the New Zealand land monopolists were «oi recognised by the laws of any civilized nation. The Fox-Yogel Ministry was m office, and the Colony was m the first flush of a heavy load expenditure. Speculators were panting with the expectation of making. speedy fortunes: the cry was raised on all aides that the more money we borrowed the rioher we should be, and everybody who counselled ordinary prudence m the management of the eoloniai finances was railed at as "a j troaker." The Colony has since tasted a little of. the bitter fruit of repentance, aad now that it is threatened with enormous additional taxation, it is wisely beginning to consider whetner,tsfter|all, it oan afford to depart from the principles of sober finance, and whether exoeaeive borrowing and reckless spending os the part of a community, as well as on the part of a private iniividual, must not m the long run, lead to disaster. X have the honor to be, gentlemen, Your obedient servant, CHAS. W. PUBNELL.