South Canterbury Times. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1893.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 7080, 28 February 1893, Page 2

South Canterbury Times. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 1893.

We yesterday pointed out that the assessments of property values in the colonies are of no practical use to the English holders of colonial stocks, inasmuch as they are asseaments of fixed capital, and not of available revenue. It is true the assessments are supposed to be founded upon the revenue producing power, but we all know very well that a great deal of “speculative value” enters into every assessment. It has been suggested to us that the Government go on the wrong tack in seeking to increase the assessments of lands, for taxation purposes ; and that they ought to institute an independent investigation, ascertain what lands are really worth as a means of wealth production and free from any “ speculative value,” and assess them at that worth declare that to be their real immediate market value. For it is easily seen that a falsely high value obstructs freetrade in land, does not benefit the community, but injures it. Take a simple illustration. Amongst a small farming community A has a horse to spare, and B wants one. A, however, puts such a price upon bis spare horse that B sees he is not worth it, for his earning power ; the horse is not bought, and remains idle. If B had it, the horse would bo earning something for the community ; A’s higti estimate of the horse’s value earns nothing. The statesman’s point of view of the value of land should not be capital value but productive activity. If land is idle, its value to the community, to the statesman, is just nothing ; if producing little, just that little fairly capitalised. And these values should be declared to be the values from the .State point of view ; from that point of view their selling value. Were this principle adopted we conceive there would soon be a difference in the condition of some of our “ large estates.”