The Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY, JULY 25, 1907. SOME MORE STEALING.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 3769, 25 July 1907, Page 2

The Manawatu Herald. THURSDAY, JULY 25, 1907. SOME MORE STEALING.

Go-carts, building materials of all kinds, flour, crockery, furniture, and many other necessaries of life are still to be taxed, although the tariff has been reduced, and in most cases the taxations remain because a very few people are engaged in any of the industries. A particularly iniquitous increase is tli£ increase on ammunition, and tins (from 50 to 80 per cent) has been levied to help one company, nearly all of whose employees are young girls. The peculiar part about the raising of this ammunition tax is that the one company is not a cartridge manufacturing company at all. Most of its materials are imported from Birmingham, Germany, and elsewhere, and it is practically a cartridge loading company. One can’t eat cartridges, and on this account an increase of duty seems unimportant. But the point is, that any company, not necessarily a New Zealand one either, may by representation tax the whole of the people heavily for that one company’s protection. Candles and soap are to be dearer because the local candle and soap makers want to make a fortune. The Government will listen to any inteiested band of manufacturers who employ from 25 to 100 hands, and decide to make 900,000 people’s soap or candles, boots, shoes, or any other commodity, dearer, because of the squeals of two or three fat men. The children are to be robbed again by the increased duty on imported confectionery. Considering the hideous disclosures recently made as to the kind of filth put into some colonially-raanufactured lollies, it appears that the duty has been put on reputable imported confectionery so that some colonial “boodlers” may go on poisoning the people. With heavy protection of necessaries, the locally-manufac-tured goods become of poorer value. The “ boodlers ” who do not fear outside competitors naturally use any rubbish available. There is no doubt that not only does the colony need a Pure Food Bill, but that it will need the enforcement ot it( Curiously, although the Government is so remarkably ready to protect 20 people and tax 1000, it doesn’t protect the pains of the of the community. If it wants a specialist it generally imports him. Why doesn’t it tax his salary heap of traders in New Zealand makes enough noise the Governvernment wll immediately make it a present of the liberty of the whole people. In trade matters in this Dominion the minority rules every time.