MR GOSCHEN ON THE DISTRIBUTION OP WEALTH.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1760, 7 February 1888, Page 3

MR GOSCHEN ON T HE DISTRIBUTION OP WEALTH.

The Inaugural address for the ensuing session of the Boy a) Statistical Society PRI delivered thp other evening by the Obve pallor of the Exohcqoer, before a large asiejpb'y of members, at Willis's ftdems. |o the coarse of his remarks he •Haded to the growing force In our •epaomlp, ooojal, and, he might s»y, politipst system of £be middle class ' s : and U wat, he maintained, always to the advantage of a State that the great central body of the community ahould be reinforced both from above and below. Ihe Report of the Royal Commission on the Depr«ttlon of Trade showed that the Intreate of persons with Incomes of les? than £'20C0 a year had been more rapid than that of the population, while insotaes abore £3000 had Increased at a lest rapid fate, endr the ootabcr of those with In. ootaes above £5000 bal dlmiolsbed. Of Incomes voder Hohnrini« D rarglng betvtta £160 and £1000. ths number In the year 1886 was 317 639, whereas In 1886 there were 379,64, or an iuoreaee of 1686 per cent, Of lnooraes between £600 and £1000 there was no increase. Owoen of Incomes below £600 bad not yet had time to accumulate money or time to die, and therefore they had not yet Contributed largely to the probate duty. The business of insuranoe companies had Increased frou"£363,ooo,rpp at the valuation before last to £420,000,1 00 at the last valuation, that Increase being chit fly m small ainoantf. On the test of dwelling- houses there was between 1880 and 1886 an Increase of 19 per cent m the number of boaiui of between £20 and £30 rent, yblle m the pase of jihopg the tendency Bad been for larpe shops with large c'i'pltatto Oust the sroa^ller ones. Statistics as to th« inprease In friendly societies, aa?!ngs bank*, and building societies were veil known to rxpert*, the deposits m savings banks In 1886 having topped £100,000,000. White some people were palling out for reconstruction ot society on a socialistic basis, a silent prooesc was taking place of the distribution of wealth •▼er larger areas, whlob, from whatever point of view it was looked at, was matter for congratulation. He hrpsd and trusted that the diffaslon of wealth would be a tooree of greater comfort to inoraae'ng Btmberi of the community, and also of Increasing power m the • tabllity of society fed of oar loitUatlanp,