The Daily News. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29. RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 236, 29 September 1908, Page 2

The Daily News. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29. RATING ON UNIMPROVED VALUE.

'llu! poll to be taken by Waitara to-day Oil a. proposal to adopt tile system of rating on Oio unimproved value is one fraught with tile direst possibilities, for liie yom'.g bol'Oligii. \s e know ol 110 borough hi the JJoiiiinion where; tile operation of tile unimproved system oi' rating would operate more inenuitably tiuui in Waitara, and we counsel ratepayers lo weigh well tile whole question before casting their voles to-day. Leaving out of consideration tlie cities and one or livu mug established lint decadent borough.-:, Waitara, in area, is amongst tJie largest in New Zealand, having an .ictcige of 2080, compared willi New I'lymouth , 850, Jnglewootl To:i, Stratford l'J-0. Uawera. T>UO, and Kltliam lo»o. Willi a comparatively small number of ratepayers, and 'barely 1000 population, it is obvious that a very large propf.-riion of the borough is not, in the ordinary seme of the word, borough land at all. j As a matter of fad. a very consider- | able area of farming land was "roped I in" when the borough was lornied a S year or two ago in order that the re|(|uisite population might be scoured. Waitara is not singular in this respect, as but a very few years ago t'.iuimu had recourse to a similar procedure in order to secure the advantages ol borough government. In Hie latter case, however, it was all along recognised that the farm land included eoum not obtain tile same measure ot Denefit !fvom the increased taxation tohuwmg on municipal works as enjoyed by the residents in tile populated area. Accordingly, at the earliest opportunity, H and when the population and valua--1 tion of the closely-settled portion of | the borough had sufficiently increased, H wore mtulc 10 give ru- § dress to the outlying farming Uuuuold--9 ers by re-merging them into the

I county. The promoters of the unimproved rating proposal in Waitara, by j t'lioir present action, are showing very little consideration for those on their outskirts who alone made possible the , establishment of the uorougn. jnol content with having had the "use" of this fanning country, they now propose ] to heavily weigh it with taxes in order ' to lessen' the burden of inose enjoying ' all the beuelits of tlie borough services. That is simply what it amounts to, and ■ no impartial critic of the rating sys- ■ terns could contend ollicrwisc m so lar ■ as the particular circumstances obtaining in Waitara are concerned. The power given to the people to adopt the rating on the unimproved value system is one Uhat should bo carefully exercised, for while we admit that the system is fair a"d equitable in the case of rapIdly expanding boroughs in which land is held for speculative purposes at lie expense of the, improvements of the enterprising, in cases where land is being utilised for its only available purpose, and not required for building purI poses, it would be most unfair and inequitable to alter the basis of rating from the capital to unimproved value. To rale land in Waitara used solely for farming purposes, or land which is of

no virtual use at all except for uuildings (that are nut wanted) on practicafy the same level as valuable business sites, can nevvr be • justified. Many ratepayers, in considering tlie question, have no doubt, formed their conclusions after inquiring into their own positions under the respective systems. Many will 'have figured it out Hint there will be a small annual saving to them in riftes, but we would ask them to consider at whose expense the saving would be effected. The adjustments nave to be mad.' so that the total rates received by the. borough on the imimproved value shall be such as to | produce as much as, but not more ihan. the rates under the Hating Act. 1804. i'or instance, if Waitara had at present, say. for argument's sake, a /ating power of three-farthings in the pound on the capital value, then it could levy any rate in the pound on the unimproved value of its land so long as tile producing capacity of such, rati' is not greater than would be the producing capacity of a three-farthings' rate on the capital value of the district. The operation of the Act does not apply to water, gas. electric light, .-Towage, or hospital and charitable aid rates. Tt will be clear, therefore,'that ,f a number of Waitora ratepayers owning improved properly llnd I hey would be belter oil' under the proposed system, somebody has to make good tlie difference, and in the case of Waitara it will obviously be most p.-rrfieii-'larly those whose properties at present carrv less highly valued improvements, land' for which there is no demand for building .purposes. Xo permanent good could possibly be gained under so harsh a system: and we sincerely hope, in the interest of W'aitara's material welfare, that no selfish motives will be allowed lo weigh with ratepayers when exercising (heir votes to-day.

COMMONWEALTH DEt'ENCE. .There is no doubt that the ,Hon. Kobert uMoNab struck a tru« keyat the Te Ngutu-o-te-M«nu Memorial service the ■other Sunday .that we in New Zealand .were living in a fool's vKtradi.se in regard to the matter of .defence. At about •the s.uuc time the departing GovoruorGcncral of Australia (Lord Nurlhcoite) uttered a timely warning. Speaking at ■the farewell military dinner tendered in him at Sydney, .Lord Northewte said: .'T .would i'i«k all of jou with your mili- > ibary knowledge to think of the vast iN'or'lhern Territory, and to think «>f ' that harbor at Tort Darwin, capable of sheltering n large licet, whether friendly . or hostile, but which is -stiill undefended. The isuggewtion .conveyed in that single isetttenve is isiillicieut to make the people 01 the neighboring colonies, and even iof uVc-w Zealand, pause, and seriously consider the problem that is before them. The splendid harbor at Port ■Darwin is .defenceless, and the door to ■the Northern, xerri'tory is wide open,| inviting an invasion .from the colored iraccH ,of the .northern hemisphere. .When we ''think of that harbor at Port Darwin," says tho Sydney Daily Telegraph, "we iimist recollect that it is iwilhin two weeks' steam of Japan, and Mint .at a still shorter distance away XJennany is spending large emus on a naval base, just round the corner of

■New Guinea. Ja.va, with its twenty-live I million people, which may at any time fall into the hands of Germany or Ja■pnn, iis within three ior four days. Port ■Darwin could accommodate the whole Gorman or Japanese llect. and should a raiding squadron—wliile British .ships were engaged elsewhere—reach there, any power could enter without hindrance, and in a. short lime convert it into a fortified 'point d'apptii' of its own. And when we think of the Northern Territory .forming the hinterland of this defenceless 'port, we have to picture, wit a barren waste, but a land teeming with natural wealth. Right, from the .line w'harf at J\i!anerston runs it' railway down to tho fringe of some of the ibest ipaslornl (-ounlry in Ausilra- ; liau whi re. from the existing .stations,, large -supplies of beef -could be had at: any time for the taking. The territory i.»'re.lieiiluled with river;, upon whose rich d-ilDns rice and oilier food cro|is could [lie raised in quantities sufficient to \sust-ain not. -an army.-but n nation.

Wh a-ud jxs*mc abumUm. A hostile fuvoe whidii nol tooting in the Territory w-uiil'l therefore not require, to .bring 'any <rmil amount of supplies, as ■noon tlicy i-oiild raise all they 'required ft>r themselves. An army of Orientals emi.d -live (here .beUer tlum they live at burnt*. and if they go't time to (fortify IV.vt Darwin, ulio ta*k of dislodging tuiv t'onsiilriublc which /managed to in during «a Ktiropoun turmoil iwonM l»o no «l»«lit one. All fbis its inivulved in what Jjoihl Xm J t h<*'ott\ a-, liig f|v;trlimr word, urgnl \\< to think about, , nnd -a heavy ,responsibility li«'s at i'io ,

Moor of I'ltr .Cnniiimnweuhlt (i«ivcnini''iit 11l Pat it. has aiVvl thought about it to sonic purpose liefore now. AVe wa'iit jport Darwin iiiadi' «■> tlinl it lie Joekeil ;ur<tiiKt ;v foreign lire! ami npeiiii'i! f'o a. Uriluh ll<>ri whenever occasion writes. an<l/U" want isubove •:)il a pupula'lion to i'lic ,nvh lenilorv lo iwlnYli it alVorils -invest Wi thou I. thai -t'lie V-M Krliriin' of if'rtnnnnnweiiVih ;ie■fence will Always eonihin a morions tlfa-w. and the AYhile |Mlicv ■reinain exposed «o constant Manner.''