WEDNESDAY, JULY 28, 1909. FARMERS AND POLITICS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 571, 28 July 1909, Page 6

WEDNESDAY, JULY 28, 1909. FARMERS AND POLITICS.

Me. J. G. Wilson's address . to the Farmers' Union, Conference yesterday was very plain-spoken and unusually interesting. We welcome it ai a reassuring proof that the farming community is waking lip in earnest to the necessity for political alertness and to the folly of remaining passive under the assaults of the anti-agrarian forces which have captured,the Government. During the-past year or two the farmers of the Dominion] ihaye' been- gradually,.realising that, their interests are involved in nearly every. political proposal that/can come before Parliament,, but ; they will find further instruction• on this point in 7 the .wide range of subjects dealt withVfrom the agrarian standpoint ; in Me. .Wilson's address. The growth of State Socialism, and of. Socialistic legislation generally, is a greater menace to nobody than to the farmer, and the President did; well to say boldly that thc ; Union has been "fighting Socialism at every turn." The last general election was in one '-highly important respect a real.victory, for the Union,' which can legitimately claim most of the credit for the triumph of the freehold principle. But, as Mk.'. Wilson points out, it is one thing to secure .a majority in Parliament, and quite an-, other to secure legislation through that majority. There has been a; Parliamentary majority in favour of the freehold for some years, but the readiness of some of the freeholders to abandon their principles in order to curry favour with the Government'not only prevented hold principle from becoming'the guiding principle' of our land legislation, but has actually allowed the land ' nationalises -to. .force the leasehold policy .upon an unwilling country/ 1 . It is' satisfactory to note that the Union docs not intend to allow the farming, community to be betrayed a second'.time. "If Parliament again refuses, togrant the power, to. the jbja lßasehflld,'

into.freehold, "says the President,' "there will be a good many political graves to be dug." But we think that the lesson of tho general election will prove to have had a wonderfully enlightening influence on members of Parliament.

On the subject of taxation the President had some very useful observations., In the ten years 1897-fi to 1907-8 tho amount taken by the Government in land taxation rose fr0m.£267,286 to. £537,8-10— an increase of over 100 per cent. The general taxation increased during that time from £3 13s. 3d. to £5 Os. 4d. per head. It is quite obvious, therefore,-that tho farmer has been harder hit by tho increased. taxation than anybody , c.lse/ Quito apart, however, from the actual burden borne by the farmer, tho rise in taxation per head i,is a very serious matter. As.Mr. Wilson points out, wise Governments always seek to reduco taxation in good times, in order that thoro .may be a reservoir to draw upon when the lean year's come. If tho Government had made such remissions during tho past ten years as would have kept tho taxation por head at the figuro at whichit stood in 1897-B—a figure, by tho way, which is one-third greater than tho present rato in Britain, which is a high war rato—thero would have been no depression to-day, and there would be,a reserve in tho public's pockets for emergencies. As matters'stand, however, the. Government has>.to .choose between further borrowing or a 1 further addition'to'the al-i ready monstrous burden on tho taxpayers' shoulders. Tho position is fraught with special danger to tho farmer, since land isa standing'temptation to the tax-' ing> proclivities of a Government. That'j is what makes necessary . Mr. Wilson's plea' for economy in tho handling of tho public purse. He asks whether inquiry should not be mado as to whether the distribution of the Public Works Fund 'is conducted on : proper lines, and he suggests 'that'the public works expenditure' should be administered'through the local bodies, and partly provided for by local rates. -This is. a thoroughly ■ sound 'sug-' gestion, ; and 'wo,. hope that, the ■ country• members of Parliament wilLgive" some 1 ! attentib'n'to the idea. 'One' thing 'is certain; that'the present'' syst6ni Ji: must*'be' thoroughly overhauled. ' It -'makes' for* waste,' and for'the'penalties''of waste,' .which": by no tnd with' a' higher burden of taxation. ;-What is,true of the waste of borrowed money is true of the waste that goes'on''under the political management of., the railways arid the Civil Sorvice. ' The:'farmer must-realise! that these are question's that affect; him quite- as seriously as 'bearing diroctly on his occupation. ;'.'.•■ .•

It is no delusion,'but the plainest'of facts,',', that the farming community is re?' g'arded ■ by. the forces • that sustain ■ the ■ Government as the natural-prey of Lab-: our and; the city Kadicals. To some: of: the State 1 . Socialists the .freeholder ;is■■-■ av criminal; but behind most, of .the ; antv?i agrarian l ''activity, that has •affected 'the legislation of .recent .years ■there is;',no-' thing:'worse- than a, foolish misunderstanding of the economic position of the agriculturist... Our. State. Socialists aro. no .wiser than the foolish people to wjiom Menenius Agiuppa hadvtol.addre.ss'rthis fable "the stomach and the members", in Kome two thousand years ago.' Tho "members," so the'fable ran, conceived theidea that they we're" working without reward.'for the fat arid .lazy stomach.. They accordingly, decided, to cease work,: with,,the.-.natural,result.that,, no.ipnger,| nourished by the stomach, they wasted! away. It,is.a very plausible argument j that, the farmer, is, battening on the "city, toiler."., But it, requires little imagination to. see what would . happen if. the. anti-agrarian. party,; were allowed ... to : •work, their, will freely.. As -Mr. -Wilson. puts it+-4-' With security '• of , v ; tenure: and i as'little restriction ■ as p.ossible n ,you. | .will have farmers .working like...a. hive,-,of bees. threaten, and:,tax, and, they will.be like drones." ..We/refer, our "readers to^.Mn v Wilson's address for par- : , ticulars of the threats, the penalties,! and) thef ombarrassments, which' have pressed, upon the farmer. But the outlook is much. more, hopeful thanj it was.■■». .■ :Not only is the time "not, far distant" when an Agrarian party, fully armed and well organised, must be formed; that time'is here-already. The Union : must -not relax its vigilance; it must be specially vigi-j last during ,the coming session. Some 'of the speakers'at yesterday's sitting of the Conference were unnecessarily courteous' in giving a reply'to the'-'foolish suggestion that the Union does-not represent the interests of the small'farmer. ' That manifest absurdity is not worth noticing, for it has no currency amongst thinking people and little currency anywhere.''