THE GLOBE FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 1882. GOLD DUTIES ABOLITION BILL.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2568, 30 June 1882, Page 2

THE GLOBE FRIDAY, JUNE 30, 1882. GOLD DUTIES ABOLITION BILL.

The above Bill, brought in by Mr. Seddon, provides for the redaction of the export duty on gold from two shillings an ounce, as provided by the Act of 1872, to one shilling an ounce. The debate on the motion for the second rending of the Bill brought out the arguments for and against the proposal with great clearness. For the new measure, it was pointed oat that the present duty represents at least 21 per cent, upon the money earned by the miner, and if every other class were as heavily weighted the Customs duties might be altogether abolished. Mr. Sheehan stigmatised the tax as an unjust and arbitrary one, and, as regarded the plea that the money was taken as a compensation for the use of the land, ho endeavoured to dispose of that by saying that mining was now almost exclusively confined to laud otherwise worthless. Mr. Weston pointed out that the digger obtained no permanent benefit from the roads made, for, when their claims were wrought out, they had to leave # the place, and the roads were left to be used by another class. He maintained that the building of water races was in itself a sufficient tax, because they were of no possible value when the claims ware worked out. Mr. Fergus held that Parliament had broken faith with the miners in not subsidising gold revenue £ for £, the same as other revenue. Mr. Petrie suggested that the Government should take over the main roads on the West Coast as a means of lightening local expenditure. Finally Mr. Seddon, in reply, stated that the inhabitants of tho goldfields were quite prepared to face the loss of revenue. On the other side of the question, Mr. Rolleston argued that the duty was not properly a tax, bnt a fair payment for a service rendered. The same was the case with the gold-miner as with the »aw-miller. They both paid for the use of the land. Moreover, tho impost was very easy to collect, and if it were taken off it would rest with the Government to find other means for local government purposes. Private water races on the goldfields represented £BOO,OOO, and the machinery about £400,000, and to meet local requirements a very heavy tax would have to be levied to raise an income from either of these sources.

It is indeed evident that the question is a very difficult one to solve; but it may be remarked in passing that the supporters of Mr Sed don’s Bill do not at all agree in the method of arriving at their deductions. Mr. Sheehan, for instance, in stating that the present duty cannot be looked upon as compensation for the land used, because the land is worth nothing, is entirely at variance with Mr. Weston, who says that the roads mado by the diggers will not be used by them but by a totally different class of settlers. It is very evident that, if the land is in reality of no value for agricultural or other purposes, it will never be taken up after the departure of the mining population. So that both arguments cannot possibly bo used at the same time. Again, there is a point which was, very judiciously, not brought forward by either of these gentlemen. It is well known that a large tract of country of a nature originally adapted for pastoral purposes at all events, though not good enough to be used for agriculture, has been utterly spoilt by the miners. There are blocks in the centre of Otago which have been turned, as it were, inside out, which are covered with unproductive subsoil and riddled with juts, and where sheep farming or any other sort of farming would be totally out of the question. These blocks were, before the miners arrived, of a certain value for grazing purposes; now they are worth absolutely nothing. Such country was onco not worthless, as Mr. Sheehan calls tha parts where gold mining is carried on, nor will others reap the advantages of the roads mado, as Mr. Weston complains is too often done. The members of the goldfields naturally did not refer to such cases as those. Again, it must bo recollected that special legislation has boon passed with a view of relieving struggling mining companies with respect to the property tax. By the Property Assessment Act Amendment Act of last session it is provided that public companies carrying on gold mining shall, ia tho prescribed form, in lieu of stating the property of such company, state what is the marketable value of the shares in the company actually issued, and how many of such shares there are, and the property tax payable by such company shall he payable on the amount of all such shares

ftt sack marketablo value. The effect of this clause, of coarse, is that when large sums have been speculatively spent on such works as water-races, which are to have a prospective value, and when no positive proof of the success of the venture has been shown and the shares run low, the company is largely relieved. This special legislation was passed with a view of meeting some of the claims of the gold miners. The gold duty, we take it, is imposed for the purpose of making roads, AC., for the miners themselves, and the real quea- / tion is, will the local bodies be satisfied j with less money, or can another source be j found from which the required money ■ may be drawn. The tendency to separata the interests of the miners from those of ■ the local bodies is of course absurd, because the latter would not exist if former were not there. It would seo m that the question is one that should be left as much as possible to the members of the goldfields, if they were altogether above the- temptation c£ yielding to a popular ciy raised by their constituencies. Miiiers are, cf course, anxious to seo the duty reduced,, and look forward but little to what may be the result of the cuttingoff of supplies from tbs local bodies. “ Sufficient unto the day ia the evil thereof " is more especially the mottoof the digger, and in these days, when members seem moro disinclined than , ever to tell home trntbr. to their constituencies, mottoes go a long way. We trust that the House will not pass Mr. Soddou's Bill, unless the case is clearly made out by that gentleman and bis supporters. The onus of showing bow the local government machinery oa i the goldfields is to work under the proi posed plan lies entirely with them. The , country at large would be delighted to . see the gold anty reduced and the miner relieved, but it will never do for the machinery alluded to to be thrown out of gear simply for the sake of allowing the goldfields members *o crow to their con--1 stituencics over their prowess ia the House.