Page 4 Advertisements Column 2

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 9, Issue 543, 25 June 1920, Page 4

LETTERS TO THE* EDITOR M - LAND AGENTS. Sir, -The profession of land agents has been slightingly refeired to on several occasions recently. Eun cite magistrates upon the bench hnvt with assumed words of wisdom, spoken disparagingly of out' (.'ailing. Oi.e even went so far as to sa\ that the profession was the last refuse r>f men who had been unsuccessful in every walk in life. This is a boomerang assertion, for were we a vindictive class we niiuht. retort that a magistracy is the asylum of i.inny an unsuccessful lawyer. There is a consensus of opinion amongst our wise men, in which I concur, that the hiyh cost of livingis caused chiefly by a universal shortago of commodities, and that the best- solution is not to be found hi higher wages, or charges, but. through greater production. Now, in this matter of increased charges, land agents stand unio.ue, in that tiiev have not increased their fees. Doctors, lumpers, jockeys, lawyers, t\ctorv hands, tailors: in fact, all "lasses, including money lenders, sa\c and except land agents, whose -barges remain the same as twenty years ago. Vet paradoxical as it may appear, the profession was never so puttperous as now, the reason being t'Mt thov have followed the Prime Minister's advice, viz., increased their turnover, their output, and hundreds of farmers who spent the best part of their lives in arduous toii, with long hours, are now quietly spending their last days in peace and comfort, and saying, "Blessed are the land agents." Whilst the uurchasers, through the aid of theUflra agents, have acquired improved farms that are immediately productive, with comfortable and good roads. And yet thofS" £l'ro silly wags who insinuate alhe agftut does nothing for his .'money. Let me enlighten by an illustration. Some years ago on the Waimate Plains a sett lei had a good crop of cocksfoot seed going to waste. An agent passing by saw possibilities. He interviewed the farmer, who said he was about to graze cattle ir. the paddock. After a confab he agreed to give the agent two-thirds tor saving the seed. The agent then had a lu>rero with some whi agreed to harvest it of tite proceeds. found a market, and the farmer received UOl fatbis land, the Maoris 3-101 for then' labour, and the agent UOl for his brains. And many a settler on new land rejoiced to secure the best of seed which, but for the agent, would have been lost to the State. We lu.ve here an illuminating illustration of the mutual help and division of profits for land, labour, and business sagacity. MAX D. KIN'O. Manurewa. "SLANDER " AND " LIBEL" DIFFERENCES AND DISTINCTIONS. Ask a lawyer what kind of dispute brings the most cases in the Law Courts, and he will say (apart from ordinary claims for debt) libel and slander. Slander and libel ha\e much ;n lonimon. They belli mean defamation -of character: but while slander tan only be by word of mouth, libel has to be printed or written. In a slander case one has to prove "special damage'.'- that one has stifle red pecuniary loss. If you are in business and you hear that someone has been saying slanderous things about what you put m the market, you need not prove special damage. The reason is that this would concern your character and your business, and would be serious. Were someone to say that you habitually came home drunk, or knocked your wife about, you would have difficulty in proving that by saying this they were damaging you in any way. ii immorality is imputed against a woman there is no need lor her to move special damage. Slanders to the effect that_ a person has been guiity oi a criminal offence or sulleis from certain diseases are actionable "without pioco of special damage. . From the defendant's point ol \',cw there is a great mll'irenee between libel and slander. II you are M.cd for damages for slander you have only to prove that what you said was true. Whereas, if you '.ire prosecuted for libel, the case will go against you iinies* you can prove that you published the statement fo-' the benefit of the public and without malice. Therefore, one can be scr.t to prison for writing the tiut. but not for speaking it! For slander to be actionable it must be "published to somebody. \ou may say what joil like to an cone's face. He cannot sec vou for slander unless someone else is present, as otherwise there would be no "publiva 1 ion. '

T!ic Indian wheal hardest >s climated aL I<>,U'.»-3 tun-s or H-J per cent, i.bove l!ie previous year. JERSEY BATTtt. •'SI 1r; R%00!)" 11 LTv I iJffiiALMAXA. SAI.EVAWS, ILWtLToW <;» i Lit J-'KlMtiitEmP-'V.S AM) HKIr Ilevtl^ c^j^t ion oj \|M' THE COMPANY, Li'fliTEfl^. 70 HAMILTON \l.'« I iUNEEU--DALGETY A.VO t Cr» 200 j|.E. r,n l£V Ei>» DALGETY AND CO.. LTD. ,!. C. SEEK, . A! Agent, Tunkau.