Single Tax.

Feilding Star, Volume XVI, Issue 89, 9 October 1894, Page 2

Single Tax.

how to Nationalise ground RENT. (Published by The Ground Rent Revenue League of New Zealand.) Reivew by X.P., Feilding. [Article No. 1.1 Insanity takes strange forms and phases. A few years ago in England a gentleman by birth and education, who was sane in every respect but one, and that was, he thought the world was flat and went about the country lecturing and trying to convert his hearers to his way of thinking; his madness also took the form of writing, publishing, ahd sending broadcast pamphlets in which he attempted to prove that the world was flat and not round. He had, poor fellow, a single idea, not the "Single Tax," that single idea was in a sense developed by an American who, getting his theory and theories probably from the Romans, aud pondering over them too much, became a man with one idea. Such men are to be pitied. That such men should have some believers and followers is not to be wondered at, if Carlyle is to be credited when he says that, " The world is made up of fools and knaves, mostly fools." The essence of the pamphlet pub* lished by the Ground Rent League is : (1) That the State ought to purchase all debentures: (2) That all taxes and rates (general and local) should be raised from the land. Statesmen in all countries admit that taxation is difficult to apply so that it will fall equally (i.e. in proportion to the means of the people) upon the inhabitants of a country who are benefited by the application of the proceeds of taxation. They all admit taxation ought to be placed upon the shoulders of those best able to hear it, but that no one portion or class ought to be punitively taxed, and that all classes should bear a share. But here we have an absurd, a foolish, nay I must say an iasane idea of placing taxation on one class only of the community, viz., those who own land. The writer or writers of the pamphlet quibble and do not call in taxation, but ' ground rent ' ; the alteration of the names does not alter the fact that the land under the single tax would have to bear all the burden of the various local bodies and of the State. The writer or writers of the pamphlet state on page twenty-four that " we might expeot increased immigration" after the Single Tax had been in operation some time. Charles Dickens describes a man of great expectations wbich were never realised, nor would this be realised ; not a farmer from Great Britain or elsewhere would come to this colony if he knew that the laud bore all taxation. When the idea was mooted — politically — a few years ago, of nationalising the land I heard a stalwart young settler who had just taken up a bush farm of three hundred acres, growl low but deep curses between his teeth, muttering he would shoot the man who tried to take his land from him. There are thousands of his stamp in the conntry, who would fight to the death for their homes and land. We should have a civil war, with the result that the men who had hewn homes for themselves out of the bush sturdy, muscularly strong men with good staying powers, men who know all the roads and back oountry would wipe out the luxury-loving and effeminate townsmen. The Yeomanry wera England's glory at ths battle of Aginoourt ; and country born men make the best and hardiest soldiers of the British Army at tbe present day. There could but be oue result of such a struggle. When the Maoris, hundreds strong, took possession of Hastie's paddock in the Waimate Plains a few years ago, I saw fifty or sixty sturdj settlers bundle the Maoris out into the road. They were fighting for a principle, the freehold. They would not let their neighbour's freehold be invaded. What has made the Anglo Saxon tbe most powerful race on tbe faoe of the globe ? One reason is that he has always endeavoured to sseure a freehold, however small, for himself and family. Who were the mainstay of France during the Franco-Russian war? Tbe volatile, the fickle, pleasure loving Communists of Pans or the sturdy ion's of the soil? Who, paid tbe enormous indemnity to the Prussians, the sans cullottes of Paris or the thrifty freeholders of the country districts ? Apropos of war, and rumours of war, one wonld imagine that the single tax* ers think New Zealand is isolated from the rest of the world, and independent of every other State. Should a war take place between England and France at the present unpleasant juncture, and should England's fleet be out-man-oeuvred and a few Frenoh men-o'-war pay Auckland, Wellington, Christchuroh, and Dunedin a visit, does any single taxer imagine they would accept "lftqc( debentures " in answer to their recmisii tion? Good Heavens! Noi They would demand gold under threat— nea of " taxing land," but of blowing up the towns ; and every freeholder in the country would also demand gold for his freehold, and would not except paper; " debentures," And where is the State going to get the eighty millions m*sest sary to buy up all the freeholds of th© Colony. X wish to make this dear, If the State wants to buy up all tbe free, holds, the State must pay in gold, or try to buy on debentures, which, as I havo shown above, the freeholders would reject with scorn. A struggle, if persisted m by single taxers, would lead to a oivil war. At present the State can buy up comparatively small areas on short, dated debentures, because there are a large number of freeholders in the colony who are the mainstay of the oountry and responsible for the discharge of the debentures when due. The men who are not freeholders oannot be held responsible, for if any great oalls were to be made by the State on those who are not fix.^ to the soil tbey would take wipgp aud fly t^ other countries