The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. SATURDAY, JULY 20th, 1921. FELCHED REVENUE.

Hokitika Guardian, 26 July 1924, Page 2

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. SATURDAY, JULY 20th, 1921. FELCHED REVENUE.

Tuk Timlior Uoy;iltit'S C■oinuussioii 10j.uit supplies in netnil particulars til the large Mini of legitimate, statutory revenue, whif.ii lias keen lilelied from the lot ill hollies by the State Forests 1 fcpartmelit. As explained previously, the West Coast of this Island is the piineipnl sull'ercr. The four West Coast Counties, llnlle:, lunugahun, (trey and Westland, eolitain of! per cent, of the total area of forest lands in the Dominion. while Westland Comity is half of the HO pel tent. Jt will lie seen from this proportion howvital the whole matter is to the Coast districts. ami the need lor the fullest ohjeetioii being urged to tile revenue '•tune taken from the lucid bodies eoncerned without the .strongest possible protest. For the til Sit year of the operation of the Forest Service under its policy of con list a ting local revenue, Inangahua County lost 1 £lB, Crey County £1 &>.->, and Westland County £l(K'). 'I his total of £2!)o8 went into the eolfeis of the State Torest Servile, and the local bodies were short by that amount. 'Hint sum will he an ever-increasing amount as the vears roll by. Some inkling of the Hundreds oi thousands ot ] minds of lost revenue to the local bodies is given by a table published with the repoit which gives an estimate ot the royalty value of the timber at the present rates (which, however, under tlie policy of Forest Service have ail upward tendency). The figures are aricsling. and looking to the great lores t wealth of Westland County, should no u-ioumling to the ratepayers who are losing the value of the exponditu:o of the huge sum involved in the matter of district reading. Jevclopment and iiiiprovtmcnt. According to the table published, these are the prospective losses of tluv four countries i. royalties revenue by the hypothicating of Ihe income to the State Forest Sor- . vice : I Boiler County £80,b!0

Inangahua County ... 24,750 drey County ... <>o-1.322 Wc.stiand County ... 1.148,051 (.'1.857,553 \Yc should say Lhe.se figures are impressive enough to awaken the people of Westland to a sense of the injustice put upon them by the dovemmetit De. ] arlinent collaring legal and local revenue whi "h is to 1.0 derived from the natural resources of the district. Westland is losing over a million of money. As wo have said before, there is nothing of greater import talloii upon the people in the past, and the experience is such a catastrophe to the future of local government that something hemic must, he done in the endeavour to seek justice. The community should not remain passive and leave the task of protesting solely to the local hotly, livery man, woman and child will lie affected hy the filching of a million of money from local development purposes. All the ratepayers are immediately and directly concerned, and from one end ot the County to tin* other there should Ire protests made and steps taken to make an impressive demonstration which will airest the nefarious net ot the government and secure to the district that measure of a square deal it was once Mr Massey’s ready honst was available for all.