STAMP DUTIES.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1556, 27 September 1912, Page 6

STAMP DUTIES.

7 AND THE PUBLIC TRUSTEE. SPIRITED DISCUSSION IN TED JIOUFE. A spirited if brief discission occurredin tho 3lousq of Representatives yesterday afternoon, the subject being the duties of the Public Trustee in making proper scrutiny of donmnds for stamp iluty uguiu»t estates committed to hia care, | Mr. 'J'. M, Wilford (llutt) sounded % warning note to the Government regarding the charges for stamp duties iii csuttes administered by the Public Trustee. In estates for which private fcolicitors acted there were continual disputes with tin) ijlalnp Department as to the amount of duty assessed, Ikd anyone ever heard of i anything Of the sort in connection v,'it'll I estates administered by the Public Trustee? Ho urged that tlio Public Trust Oflice (lid Hot always see that the dutie3 payable were shorn down to the minimum. Mr. Herdinan: Do you think there is collusion between tlio Public Trustee and tlio Stamp Department? Mr. Wilford said ho did not think thnt, but lie did think there was not the sauio lighting spirit slioisn by the Public Trustee in the administration of estates as was shown by private trustees. Mr. liordman: Do you say the Publio Trustee is negligent? Jlr. Wilford said lie did not even suggest that, but rather that lie did not always fight as hard as he could. Mr. Herdinan: Do you say he doesn't do itP Mr. Wilford Bald ho would not be nut into that nobition either, But lie suggested that the interests of beneficiaries were not always sufficiently guarded. Ho had never heard of disputes between tile Public Trustee and the Stamp Department i tlicro might lravo been cases, but if so ho had never heard of them. It certainly behoved the Ministry of tlie day to Watcn carefully the transactions between the Trusteo and the Taxing. Departinent. If tlio Minister could assure tli# House that the Stamp Office accounts were as carefully. Bcrutini6td as all other accounts connected with the administration of estates, lie (Mr. Wilford) Would 1 be bettor satisfied. Ho approved of tlio Public Trust Office, but tlio Department had becomo so popular that tlie had outgrown the staff, and the men administering the estates were overworked. He did not say the Stamp Office collected too nntcli from the Public Trustee, but ho was not sure that the stnlnp charges wer» strutiniscd always with fiulhcioiit eafe. The Hon. A, L. Hci'dmail (AttorneyGeneral)'' said that the honourable gentleman had accused the Public Trusteo Of sweating his! stnft. But. he bod never heard iii the two months lie hnd liecn in charge of the office tlmt the Publio Trustee found it difficult to carry on his work' with his present staff, livery application liinde for extra assistance bad been willingly and ungrudgingly granted. In addU tion to tho charge of sweating — Mr. Wilford here objected to the terra "sweating," saying that ho had nover said or implied anything of the sort, Mr. Herdman withdrew tlio tena "sweating," but he maintained that Mr. Wilford had said that the office was understaffed and tho men overworked. Ha bad led tho House to believe that if there was not collusion between tho collector of revenuo and the Public Trustee, ut any rate that tho officers were so negligent in the discharge of tlieir duty, that they collected cither too much or too little revenue. ' Mr. M'Chllum: Ohly suspicion, Mr. Herdmans_ Very well; I dm very glad to hear it is only a suspicion. He could assure the honourable gentleman that so far as ho could see tlie bead of tho Stamp Department was very zealoua in tlie discharge of his duty. Ho was a very zealous officer—a rapacious collector of public taxes. (Hear, hear.) It was his duty to bo So, aud he (Mr. Herdman) did not propose to check him in the collection of as much revenuo as ho was entitled to collect under the acts passed by Parliament. Ho added that ho had been informed by tlio Deputv Publio Trustee that' tho PubliC'Trust'Office was ahvaysM Sighting.'!,tho Stftilip", Dfp'dttmont; mid that action had been taken in tho Courts to determine questions. at issue, Mr. .T. A. Hannn and Mr. 1?. M'Callum both defended tlio Public Trustee from tho impeacllhient .that ho was not sufficiently zealous in the semtinv of charges made against estates by the Stamp Office.