CURRENT TOPICS.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 450, 1 March 1890, Page 6

CURRENT TOPICS.

(By Zamiel in the ‘ Auckland Star.” Thu “unearned increment -what is it • From the way in which some people talk’ one would be led to suppose that the term related exclusively to the augmented value that is given to land by the mere increase of population, and a consequently increased demand. But this is a very superficial view of the term, for a little consideration serves to show that the “ unearned increment : attaches more or loss distinctly to every department of industry ; and it is with the object of putting the term in its proper light that ; 1 draw attention to the matter. Let us take

few examples. A merchant buys a cargo of wheat or some other cereal, and a great demand suddenly arises for the product. The merchant holds back the grain until he can get a high price, then sells out. Is this not a case of “unearned increment?” What sent up the price but a more than usua'ly pressing demand? and one thing that raises the value of land is an increased demand for it through augmented population. The merchant did nothing to cause an advance in the price of the cereal; he merely took advantage of the state of the market, in the same way that a man who has purchased land at a low price, holds back for a time, and then sells out at a much higher figure.

Again, a man, we'll suppose, considers that it will be a good speculation to buy up a large forest in a certain district, believing that there will sooner or later be a great demand for timber in that district. He takes the risk of loss as well as of gain, and we will suppose that his foresight is justified ; the demand arises, the owner of the forest has a sawmill erected, the timber is rapidly sold, and the speculator makes a “ pile.” This is really another instance in which the “ unearned increment” clearly operates. The remunera tion of the enterprising man, in this case, is not proportional to the labour expended, bub is determined by the public demand. True, when a man does drop upon a piece of good fortune, be should be liberal in bis dealings with others less fortunate; but no one has the right to say that the speculator 1 have just instanced was not entitled to the rewaid he obtained for bis enterprise and foresight. The same principle is exemplified in the case of a man who purchases a horse at a “ bargain,” and who immediately afterwards sells at a considerable advance —that is to say, at an advance altogether disproportioned to the time and trouble spent in carrying out the purchase and the sale of the animal. And so I might go on giving example after example. The fact is, there is no escaping from the principle of speculation, and the “ unearned increment ” applies to every trade and industry in existence.

In the ca:e of land the principle is more clearly brought out than in any other, but whether this be so or not, it is still the same principle that is found inseparably connected with the ethics of barter. Of course, there is this difference in the case of land—that the property is very frequently improved by the expenditure of public money. For instance, a man purchases a block of land in some district, and probably does not visit it for years. In the meantime, railways are run through the district, and roads constructed, all this being done at the expense of the general body of taxpayers. They receive no immediate return from the outlay beyond what is called the “ opening up of the country,” while the property in question, on which the owner may nob have spent a penny by way of improvement, increases greatly in value and he is enabled to sell at a great profit. In speculations with grain, it is true, the buyer gains nothing from the public purse, and runs the risk of loss from depreciation. Again, the man who buys an allocment has his rates and taxes to pay, and as a rule they are stiff enough in ail conscience. Therefore, the principle is good enough that a man whose unimproved land is rendered valuable by public expenditure should pay some part of bis profit, at least, to the State.

These questions a fleet us just as wc feel them, and probably the man spoke truly who wrote Circumstances oft adjust the man And make the scholar or the boor; He's conservative because he's rich, 1 am radical because I’m poor. It is too often the case that the man wh° is constantly railing at the capitalist, the land-grabber, and the “ bloated aristocracy ” in general, would be only too glad to step into some wealthy man’s shoes. For what is the ambition of most people ? Is it not to better their position ? Undoubtedly it is. When a man has reached one rung higher in the ladder, he endeavours to reach the next, and so on, until, if Fortune continues to favour .him, lie ultimately finds himself one of the el He. Strange to relate, also, his views on the upper classes now become considerably modified, and he may even go so far as to look with contempt upon those who occupy the level on which he himself aforetime lived, moved 1 , and had his being.

Now, lest some ’ornv-'anded son of labour may run away with the idea that I am posing as a particular friend of socalled “land-grabbers,” I hasten to state that such is not the fact. My wish is to hold the scales of justice evenly between all parties; and in asserting, as I have done, that most of us would be only too willing to step into some wealthy man’s shoes, I feel certain that the assertion will find a responsive echo in every reader’s mind. “Then you are in favour of the present unequal distribution of wealth ?” some one says. No, lam not. Everybody with a spark of humanitarianism in his nature must regret the present extremes in our social system—some fabulously rich, many on the borders of want, others again in downright beggary. It, is doubtless these extremes that have led the poorer classes to look with such bitterness upon those so far above them.

Still a good deal of the talk indulged in at the expense of the wealthy classes is mere balderdash. Many people are ready to take up the cry, “ Down with the aristocracy !” for the simple reason that they themselves are not in the swim. And so with the “ unearned increment I fancy very little would have been heard from those who now harp on this question if they had only been fortunate enough, or smart enough, to have a good cut-in on the same lines. If you want toascertain how heinous is the principle of the “ unearned increment ” with.the grumblers; just (if you are a large landholder) offer to share 5,000 acres in some rapidly,rising township with them, and there will be a wonderfully rapid chango of opinion. In fact, if we were strictly honest with ourselves, Fin afraid we should have

to confess that our social creed runs something like this:—“l’m poor, then down with the aristocracy ! I’m rich, then.hang the democracy 1” This should not be the case, of course; nevertheless, such is tbo tendency, and from present appearances this weakness, to use an Irishism, is still mighty strong.

An amusing story is told amongst master mariners frequenting this port, concerning the’cuteness of a well-known local steamboat captain, who has one desire above all others, and that is to give passengers a very favourable impression of the steaming powers of his vessel. This worthy skipper commands a steamer which is capable of about ten knots an hour, but ordinarily runs considerably under that rate of speed. He would, However, like to give passengers the impression that his. vessel is capable of attaining about double that rate, and the point of the joke lies in the remarkable manner in which he is accustomed to bring about this much-to-be-desired delusion. When the passengers are assembled in the saloon the skipper is said-to send a peremptory message for the engineer, and addressing that officer in ra'her angry tones, he says, “Mr Blank, what in the namo of goodness do you mean by running the engines at this rate? Didn’t 1 tell 3ou not to let her go more than twelve knots ?” The engineer probably" understands the skipper’s moods, for he is not credited with making any reply, and thus passengers, if not better informed, are given a very extravagant idea of the speed of the steamer by which they travel. * re * » *

The City Schools Committee have taken a very cunning way of getting pupils to attend the schools, or one of the schools, under their jurisdiction. They hare let the piece of ground next Wellesley-street School to a circus, and the result has been an unprecedentedly large attendance at the school; and the heart of Mr Worthington consequently rejoices. This is surely a good hint for other committees, and for truant officers who wish to keep the schools full. Keep a circus going next door to Hie school, or have a “ wild man from Africa,” or a “champion fat woman,” and you will have a real good attendance, especially if you promise free performances for the Saturday afternoon. At the same time, it is rather hard on the teachers of other schools that Wel-lesley-streot should get all the circuses, and wo may expect an exodus from Beres-ford-streeb, Newton and elsewhere when the youngsters find that Mr Worthington’s pupils are to get free passes'to the circus.

A funny story comes from a school in an aristocratic suburb. A well-known public man was presenting a certificate of proficiency to the blushing winner. As it was not a scholarship he doubtless felt that it was rather a solitary peg on which to bans' an oration. He got over the difficulty beautifully, for turning halfround he looked out through the window of the school, right across the blue waters of the harbour. Then fixing his eagle eye upon the cupola of the Auckland College and Grammar School he drew from his pocket a paper, and read aloud a lengthy and complete list of all the scholastic achievements and distinctions at any time won by the pupils, not of the school lie was then addressing, but by the students of the Grammar School.

Numerous and amusing are thefunnyisms perpetrated by children. Somehow, the little ones have a knack of firing their shafts, and at the same time looking so sweetly innocent that ire is disarmed, and laughter reigns. The other evening, a little four-year-old was carefully avoiding eating crusts. This was noticed by grandfather, who asked the reason. The child quietly remarked, “ ’Cause it spoils my teeth.” Grandpa smiled, and said : “ When I was a little boy I used to cab all the crusts.” “ Did you said the little one, looking at him seriously, “ then you can eat mine if you like,” and she quietly passed along her crust, apparently wondering what the others were laughing at.

Eureka ! I have found him at last. Discovered a man who will scorn to steal an umbrella. Impossible, says the gentle reader ; but Zamiel can adduce evidence, no less conclusive than an advertisement in the Star informing all and sundry that the owner of an umbrella that was left in a certain office can have the same upon calling for it. Sure'y such a man should be canonised. The idea of anyone not keeping an umbrella under such circumstances, why, it’s against all precedent. But stay, an idea passes through Zamiel’s mind, and when there is such an unusual occurrence it is well *Lo pause and fix it. Can it be possible that the sudden accession of honesty is caused by the fact that just at present umbrellas are useless, and apparently not likely to be required for some time to come ?

-* X- *■ Fair reader, art thou fond of music Zamiel is, and recently he perused a volume which purported to teach the art of singing. Carefully lie read the pages bo learn what should not be done by a good singer. Then at last towards the close of the chapter he found a footnote stating that he should abstain from giving the key to each of the lectures, that he should abstain from informing in a few words how to regulate the breathing, us such hints were too valuable to transmit to paper. The coolness of this is delightfully refreshing, especially in such warm weather. The idea is somewhat similar to a dentist who places a patient in the chair, fixes his head, receives the fee, prepares the instruments, bub abstains from [lulling the aching tooth because to learn to do it properly requires a large expenditure of money and great practice.

I have received from a correspondent who signs himself “ Pakeha Maori” the following note : “ Dear Zamiel, —“ I know that you do not like to see stupid prejudices of any kind hold sway in the minds of otherwise sensible men. For this reason I wish you to draw attention to the unreasonableness of a number of persons who look down on the Maori as a being unworthy of the same rights or consideration as white men. This is the good old feeling that has given us the ‘ mean white,’ and the slave driver of North America ; and that still actuates citizens of that free country to despise their coloured neighbours. It has often enough been well ridiculed by American humorists, bub still it lives and has force. It was the kindred feeling as touching the Maori that gave us all our trouble in dealing with that high-spirited race. Our pioneers thought ‘ the niggers 5 the scum of the earth, and considered them tohaveno rights as against the freeborn Englishman. They were robbed of their land, and if they objected were treated as rebels.

“Now, it is surely time this feeling had died out among colonists. Years of experience of the Maori should have taught us

that they are worthy of treatment as just as is obtained by white men. Yet the other day I heard an educated man, an old colonist, and one high up in legal.circles, state that he would not take the oath of a Maori against a fairly credible white witness. . He quoted some saying of Mi Justice Richmond or, the same subject and in the same strain. Now, what can be thought of the strength of prejudice when we find such men so bound by its influence ? An honest Maori is always as ciedible, in the opinion of those who know them best, as an honest white man ; and the piopoition of dishonest is about the same in each race. I give my correspondent’s note in full, though I tiiink his remarks hardly apply very strongly to Aucklanders, unless they be new-chums. Constant intercourse with the Maori in this province has led to a truer knowledge of his character : and I think it may be said we in Auckland know how to appreciate that character at its value.