FARMERS AND THE LAND

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 32, 8 February 1933, Page 6

FARMERS AND THE LAND

Writing as an "Old Farmer," a correspondent, gives it as his opinion that the man who bought his land prior to 1914 should have no difficulty in making his land pay at present prices, despite the ministerial talk of the hard lot o£ the New Zealand farmer. "Old Farmer" considers that the man who has had the benefit of the whole of the period from 1914 to 1929 should be sitting to-day free of mortgages, and if -he is not, he has no right to be on the land. The correspondent has lived in New Zealand for 54 years, and considers the high exchange will make the wealthy 'farmer more •wealthy, and will not solve the problem of the.- small man with a mortgage. ATso that it would be impossible-to find anyone to-day who has not had to discount his purchases in any class of commerce, possibly excepting the banking institutions. "Old Farmer" asks why should the mortgagee be exempt? Having had his good yeai-sj lie- should now ' share the lean ones in common with, the rest of the people; and discount his investments in the Eame way as a shareholder has to do in any business proposition; The correspondent suggests that all farm mortgages be reduced 75 per cent., as it would discount land to .25 per cent, of its present value/only where mortgages are held. As land's earning, capacity is '50 > per cent, less than formerly, values must come down. By taxation sufficient could be raised to pay another 25 per .cent, interest to the mortgagee, ensuring him 3 per cent, instead of nothing as at present. I ''Overtaxed/ claims that the high price paid by the/farmer for his- land is the crux of the whole situation, and that land gambling during the war has had a great deal' to do with the present economic position. "If farmers cannot hold their expensive farms let them hapd them over to the, State, as many workers have had to do with their State' Advances homes," he writes. While recognising that the farming _ industry is essential—land being the basis of pur civilisation—-the correspondent holds that our whole economic, structure is undermined owing to' this form of speculation. The land-and what can be produced from it is'the-only true basis for value,' and "Overtaxed" avers that we could quite easily have a nwiased ,paper currency on this basis and- give every one a fair deal instead of the onesided legislation we now have.