Citizens Say—

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 438, 21 August 1928, Page 8

Citizens Say —

(To the Editor.)

RELIGIOUS WARS Sir, — I heartily agree with. “AJ.R.” It is strange that so much discord exists between the different religious organisations, when the One' whom they all wish to please in their own way urged us to show love and goodwill to each other. From St. John 15-12: “This is My commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you.” Yet educated men war over spiritual affairs, until they appear to lose-sight of the fact that they themselves are going against our Lord’s wishes. There is just this about it: they are at least acknowledging God. HOPE. DAYLIGHT SAVING DELAYS Sir,— I read with interest the remarks of “Extra Hour” on the activities of the newly-constituted Daylight Saving League at Auckland. I-lere is where the organisation has failed in the first week of its existence: Within the past two or three days several bodies of greater or less public import have met and discussed in a desultory manner the desirability or otherwise of local daylight saving. In almost every case the meetings possessed an open mind, yet tending toward an affirmative opinion. If that persuasive voice of the Daylight Saving League had whispered into the ear of members the advantages of the scheme, there would have been no doubt as to the outcome. As it is, the majority of these bodies have simply taken no action. And in less than a fortnight, the Bill is to be read a second time in the House. Procrastination is truly an enemy when indulged in by responsible men. KEEN. PAPATOETOE RATING Sir. — Your correspondent, Mr. J. G. Browne, by his letter, shows an apparent lack of knowledge of the affairs of the district. He states (inter alia) that had the Town Board struck a rate only on the unimproved value, calculated to produce an equal amount as under the capital rating levy of last year, there would have been no increase on small holdings of four or five acres with good buildings. At the time the advocates of unimproved rating broadcast the “slip of paper* giving relative comparisons of “what you are paying under capital value” and “what your rate will be under unimproved value.” the various commitments were well known, and certainly the body over which Mr. Browne presides should not have been ignorant of the same. Mr. Browne’s allusion to the land speculator shows that he has not sized up the real situation. A Worker who has a section and is gradually paying it off, as his limited income will permit, to enable him to secure a loan to build a home, is hardly a speculator, and yet he is hit harder than anyone Most of the very few remaining blocks of land have been farmed by their owners for over a generation. No doubt high taxation will compel even-

tual subdivision. But as there are hundreds of sections around the district available at low § l ines as compared with other suburban districts, with no buyers at almost any price, is it fair unduly to load those who have resided on and worked their land from a time when Papatoetoe was never dreamed of as a residential suburb? In my own instance, I have a home and the difference in rating is small, but I know of other workers who are now rated much more heavily, simply because they have an acre or so. Mr. Browne, being a retired farmer, may be all right, but what about the worker who has the cow on a narrowfronted section and is striving to save a pound or two in the way of milk and butter bills. I venture to say that most of the shedding to which Mr. Browne refers is not tears, but something rather stronger, at being so easily persuaded to introduce a system that helps one man to have an expensive home free of mortgage and another modern shops and pleasure houses—all held at virtually the same rate of tax as the poor grafter struggling under the burden of a heavy mortgage. DISSATISFIED. TRAVELLING IN STATE Sir, — It looks as though the Prime Minister, as Minister of Railways, had been compelled in the days of desperate need to accept a hard bargain from the new sole general manager of railways. In addition to granting a sevenyear contract at £3,500 a year, with a retiring pension of £2,000 a year( Mr. Coates was obliged to give Mr. Sterling a regal status. The palatial car that was built for the Prince of Wales has been converted to the mana- ’ ger’s use as an efficiency office. Is this extravagance a wise innovation? If Mr. Sterling really means to learn something about all the reasons why the railways do not pay, and why people would travel by motor-car every time if they could in preference to a slow, dusty journey on the ,o-called railway expresses, he would travel incognito as a second class passenger. That experience would convince him that his superlative ability was badly ; needed in the slack system. He might ; learn that way to save money for the j taxpayer by reducing the cost of col- i lfecting tickets. Then, a fortnight’s ; residence at Henderson would give him an insight into the stupidities on that j suburban line. ECONOMY. I OUR MILK SUPPLY Sir, — The proposal to block the city and deliver milk just as letters are delivered should reduce the price of milk by at least a penny a quart, but it will throw dozens of men out of work. In Wellington, where the delivery of milk has been controlled by the City Council, one man can deliver 80 quarts of milk in the same day as the Auckland milkman can deliver 35 quarts. It is only common sense to adopt the systematic way, yet in so doing we add dozens of hard-working young men to the army* of unem(Continued in Next Column.)

ployed. Here we have the great social problem which none of the political parties in our House of Representatives understands. Obviously these young men would be better employed in producing something off the land and increasing our exports than in the wasteful overlapping that is going on in the delivery of milk; yet few of them will be able to go on the land owing to inflated values. It would be far better for this country to let people have the land for nothing for a few years than let it get overrun with weeds. It would both increase our exports and absorb the unemployed. We have to abandon the mad idea of taxing the man who uses the land more than the man who will not put his land to use. As the country gets more of its large public , works finished the unemployed question will get worse. Yet the cure is quite simple. It is to collect the annual value of the land for public purposes. When this is done both lab* our-saving machinery and the better organisation of the distribution of commodities, as is proposed with milk, will be a blessing instead of a curse. E. STEVENSOX. “ARGUS ANSWERED?” Sir. — According to The Sun, Mr. Liddle “in the main” claims that he proved the performance of Argus to be trickery by demonstration. Before giving my humble opinion of that demonstration, may I be permitted to refer to The Sun of July 0 last, Liddle “accepts” the challenge of Argus, on his (Mr. Liddle’s) terms. In those terms Mr. Liddle stipulates: O) Th*t tlie performance be given in the Town Hall concert chamber. (It was actually given in a small hall known, I venture to say, to but few of the picturegoing public.) (2) The whole of the proceeds to be given to the unemployment fund. (The fund would have benefited to a considerable extent had the performance been given as Mr. Liddle stipulated. As it was there will not be more, I should say, than a £lO note for the unemployed.) (3) Advertising —quite all right if Mr. Liddle thinks it was adequate. (4) The same commit* tee as was at Prince Edward. Maybe they were, but one man at least uad had enough before test was very far advanced. (5) A prominent citizen to be sole judge—l, and others, would to know who he was, what his qualifications were, and what was his decision. (6) None of Copeland’s assistants to be on or under stage. —The** appeared to be quite an army of Mr. Liddle’s friends present on Tuesday. (7) Mr. Copeland and Argus may sit with the citizens and Press representatives, and remain as quiet and still ss he (Mr. Liddle) did during the Argu* test. —Seeing that Argus and Copelsn® were hundreds of miles away fulfills? an engagement, and the short nouce of the demonstration prevented «tM of them getting here on time, air. I Liddle took no risk here. With the exception of two ro^ e6 ’ sional entertainers’ items the sno was painful in the extreme. The Argu= ! “tests” were to a great many a | joke, and Mr. Liddle appeared ver> flustered and anxious the whole tun--lat one stage going the length or pe * emptorily ordering his assistant “shut up.” XJ Liddle’s refusal to ado* an outsider to write the number on ’ slate was an obvious admi—he had confederates working 01 ' His assistant, too, had to give UPtlie latter’s own words, “the strain too much.” I assert unhesitatingly ’ Liddle did not prove that the ats performance was trickery. taintly stated this to be a fac . than once, but brought forth no P. Argus has nothing to fear *ro * lar challenges and tests, ana . v . through showing to big housw. ing Mr. Liddle and his frien f® bt dtf joy themselves as they no 11 on Tuesday. Let’s hope the - • been heard of the matter, pRO.