THE SINGLE-TAX THEORY.

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXII, Issue 8902, 23 August 1907, Page 3

THE SINGLE-TAX THEORY.

In his address in Morton, 011 Wednesday evening, Mr E. T. Evans said the laud question was not ouo of leasehold, or freehold, hut rather one of the land being administered in such a way that no man need bo landless, and'of the whole community shaving that; value which it was compelled f 1 give to the land. Mr Mc-Nab's Bill hardly touched the fringe of the question. The Bill did not make it easy for-landless men to get land, nor did it toucli those great town laud values created by the presence of population, and which had all along gone into the pockets of a comparatively few people. Of course it was impossible for any Ministry, in the present state of public opinion, to carry out all at once so large a policy as that of the How Zealand League for the taxing of laud values. Tile League did not expect it, but they did expect that a Liberal Labour Government would immediately sweep away all taxes on Ihe necessaries of life and make up flu; revenue by an increase in the

bind fix, and without any exemptions. At present nearly 100.000 out of J3B,(Kit) freeholders did not pay any land Tax at all, while the consumers wore taxed on coniniot’ ifcios last vear to the extent of about 2 : };<

millions. When the cost of collecting these customs duties and the merchants’ profits on the taxes wore, added to the sum, it mounted up to about £1,000,000 a year, nr something like £•>;■> per family. Now that was a very large rax indeed upon labour, and it was a tax which Labour would never consent to pay if it were levied directly instead of indirectly. Even working men and protectionists would violently oppose it. Mr Evans now proceeded to speak of the loss of freedom involved in land monopoly. A man ought to value freedom more than more wealth. It be possessed freedom bo • .tight to endeavour - to win it for those people around him who did not possess it; and if he was deprived of his natural freedom he ought to bceirac an agitator for universal freedom. A. landless man was not a free man. because he was entirely dependent mi some other man for Ids living. That wus.au unnatural state of things, wiueli ought not to bo allowed to exist. Eat in tin's country. as in other conn tries of Cliris--I"iidom, the major:'tv of men were !endless —deprived of their natural rights, anil consequently, deprived of freedom and the fust reward of their labour. It was a system of robbery, aud robbery of the, worst bind, because ir robbed the poor man, mat only of his freedom but a Iso of a large portion of his earnings. It was estimated that every 'Landless working man in this colony 1 worker] two days a week solely for tiie bouolit of the ground holders. He, Mr Evans, called thorn ‘'holders” rather than “owners,” because, whether freeholders or leaseholders, i hey were simply holders from the State. Ail land was held by the Crown, as representing the people. The community-created value of the laud of this country now amounted to about £.1.000,000 a year. That was a part of the lingo toil tiie landless mental and manual toilers had to pay yearly simply for ( ho right to live. This was a slate of serfdom. It was an outrage upon justice. It was iu the last degree infamous. The landless did not know bow they were robbed, or tiny would rise and pair an end to the iniquitous system. Discussing the question ox free-trade, the speaker said Neve Zealand would gain enormously by free trade. Protection was one of the greatest frauds iu the world ; it benefited a few at the expense, of the many; it created “mists” and “rings” to sweat the toilers and heap up riches for a few avaricious anil unscrupulous persons. Protection limited trade: it was a clog on the wheels of progress. It was a frightful injustice to the people on the land, for they had to sell their produce in a free trade market in competition with all the. world and buy almost everything tlicv wa in a higher protectionist

market. Therefore tho farmers might hi bo. ‘.uu-l mast if ; item were, IT' enai.h vs, Tie' true policy was to abolish tho eu -roots duties and throw tie;' 3"lid ''pen to all by appropriating that value which rite nation

gave to it by their presence anil iu-du.-.jvy. Tiio results of this policy would be a rapidly-growing population. an enormous increase in wealth production, groat expansion to all industries, a just distribution of wealth and a very contoured and happy people. He moved; “That tltis meeting is opposed to the imposition of customs duties, whether for protective or revenue purposes, mid demands that tho revenue bo raised by a tax on the communitycreated value of land ” Tito resolution was carried unanimously.