THE CULT OF "TAIHOA."

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1649, 16 January 1913, Page 4

THE CULT OF "TAIHOA."

■ -4 ■ • STARTLING FIGURES. MAORIS & THE COUNTY RATES. ' (By Telegraph.—Special Correspondent.) Wanganui, January 15. Somo remarkablo figures relating to the collection of .rates oh Native lands wcro laid beforo the'Patea County Council yesterday, The council had written to various "counties throughout: the: North Island asking for particulars of the amount of rates levied during the last fivo years, and tho amount colicctcd, together with tho,cost of recovery. All of theso bodies havd.not yet replied, but those who havb done so furnish sufficient proof of tlio need for something being done at once to end the present stato of affairs under which owners of , largo areas of Native lands are evading their obligations. - Tho Whangaroa County Council scnt no figures, its letter merely giving the quite sufficient information.that it "had given it up as a bad job.", Whakatane county stated that, in the last five years, it had levied .£5lO 9s. 9d. in Native, rates, but had only collected something under i!2O. , Waimato West reports, losing .£2OO % year from non-paymeut of' Native rates, and suggests that tho Public Trustee-be authorised to pay out of rents accrued, from a revenue-producing block of land, all-rates "owing on portions of tho block which are occupied by Maoris. Waitotara county has levied J2297 ss. 6d. on Maori lands during the last five years, but'his collected only 3s. 2d. The figures for Waipawa aro ,£147 7e. id. levied and i7i,l7s. collected. Waimarino .is a glaring instance of loss by non-payment of Maori rates. On tho largo area of Native lands in that county, .£4732 has been struck during th<j period under review, and. only; .£212 10s.' collected—a deficit of over -C 4500. ■ Hawera county is also very much on the wrong side of tho ledger, for, out of .£1555 levied, only ' .£4 ss. 2d. has gono into the council's coffers. , ■;.'". In Raglan county Native rates aggregate X3OOO yearly, and, for the only two years that any attfenipt at collection was made, tho.J!2i gathered in cost the council iIOO. Consequently the council haß given up' further effort, as being "too oxpensive. . Hawke's Bay reports" striking' J54696 in fire years, and recovering .£IO7O. The Hutt county's figures aro £H3 lis. ,9d. 'levied and *Jeiß collected.■ ' 'Patengata county levied i 975 7s. Id., and'the .£517 ss.i7d. recovered cost £<0 in Court costs, etc/ . , . , Wairoa county complains that its progress is greatly hampered by large areas of non-revenue-producing Maori land, and, although it does not now attempt to collect Native rates, it estimates its annual loss from this source ,at between. and J32000. , ; ■ Wanganui county lost JB2BB 13s. ,Bd. on i this'account last year alone. . ' \ , Tor last year only Clifton county levied Xl5O and collected .£37. ' • . For tho last five years Eangitikei coilnty recovered .£l6lO out of JE2511 levied. ..Patea,lost nearly halfwits Native rates iii five years, the figures being .£263 levied' and >8141 recovered. • . . Masterton county is in the liappy' positoin of having only outstanding out 'of levied, this being attributed to the fact that ,-most of the . Maoris in that district aro farming their own .land. When all the counties written to havo replied the Patea County Council will deal further P'ith the matter, it being understood that joint action will bo taken in the direction of urging legislation ■ upon the Government' to at once stop what lias, been a crying scandal for years.'