TAXATION ON FARMERS

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3033, 21 March 1917, Page 6

TAXATION ON FARMERS

Sir,—How much more taxation does the Government expect the dairy farmers can stand? First, that unjust and brainless butter-fat tax, which, by tho way, must be 2d. a lb. butter-fat now, as the-Jd; per lb. tax was imposed when butter was Is. 7d. on the London market. Every penny it rose beyond thai; price wo are taxed a further Jd. As butter is 2s. per lb., tho tax must he 2d. This tax, which is contrary to all boasted British fair play and justice, is earned by the' absolute slavery of tho working dairy farmer, his wife, and children, who ara out at i o'clock every morning in all weathers,

while the people whose butter we, help to pay for aro comfortably in bed.' Our work goes on all day and every day, and is no "go slow stroke," I can assure you. It's a direct tax on the sweated labour of women and children. The Minister of Agriculture says it is an honest endeavour to reduce the cost of living. I 6ay it is a dishonest us& of power. Power is a dangerous weapon in the liands of men incapable' of using it in the best interests of the . country, as they will see' before long. Conscription is not* the only menace to production jusfi now. This tax is putting more people out of'" dairying than anything else. No Britisher will tolerate class taxation of this kind... To add insult to injury tho Government upset our contracts with the agents we wore consigning our cheese through, l * and now have the impudence to charge us with the commission due to those agent's. Up to the present time we ; have had to finance since the begin--ning of the season to pay out, and which, of course, we are still paying, interest on, whilo the Government are muddling with. our. money. Many farmers have had to pay-penal rates on overdue interest, and 10 per cent, .on overdue-rates as well. Some factories did not pay out for three months; so you can guess the inconvenience and expense farmers have been put to. L once'heard of a man laying that anyone with a strong arm and a weak head could drive bullocks. The Min-. isters who are running the show at' present evidently think the farmers are bullocks. Why does not the Minister of Agriculture tax- beef and wool to help reduce the cost of living for the "soKialled" poor people that he professes to have so much sympathy for? Of course, he wouldn't dream of doing such a thing, because that would hit the wealthy farmers. So until the Government come to their senses, we will take, a spell from cow-spanking.— I am, etc., . ",-'-. : • A FARMER'S WIFE. •