The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26. 1913. UNKNOWN

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 260, 26 March 1913, Page 4

The Daily News. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26. 1913. UNKNOWN

It 'was cabled last week that the Duke of Marlborough is ploughing at Jilenheiin in order to increase tin; national food supply, whilst, the Duke and Lord Salisbury, Major-! leneral Sir Prettyman. Lady Wantage and others are oli'ering land to local Indies or societies undertaking t.o build cottages for farm laborers on co-partnership,lines. This sudden manifestation of interest on the; people's behalf by the big land owners of England is probably (he., direct oi tconie of the initiation of Mr. IJoyd Ccorges scheme to regeneiaie rural life and emancipate the land of the country from what has been described as, "the. paralysing grip of an effete and unprofitable land, system.'' The land of liritain is held under conditions which positively discourage capital and brains being, invested in its developments. The land industry, which to be virile, healthy, independent, prosperous, is'under a system which positively discourages prosperity among its cultivators, saps their independence, and undermines their vitality. Mr. Lloyd (leorgc has claimed that he can substantiate this statement of the position "by overwhelming and irrefutable evidence. It is a condition that he can substantiate this statement attention of every man who loves his native land and every man who has any heart and sympathy with humanity in despair. The land ought ;o produce twice what it is producing now irv healthy, good food for the community. It ought to employ twice, almost twice, as much, if not more, labor, much more highly paid, better housed, better circumstanced.' I!ut the land question is not confined to the country. Many thousands of villagers liave fled during the past thirty or forty or lifty years into the towns to seek refuge from the thraldom of the land system: yet it pursued them even into the fastnesses. It has driven healthy countrymen into the labor market, depressing wages and creating unemployment. They suffer fiom the very low wages-and precariousness of employment which they (hemselves have helped to create. Therefore the evils have to be traced to their source. The escaped countryman and the .town laborer Miller together, and the remedy ought to cover both. They are crowded and crushed into the rflums. •And | the despotism does not end with (he laboring t-lasscs. The evil is reflected upon the trader and the manufacturer and the professional man. Trade, business, industry, is crippled and hampered: and it is to the intere-t of everyone to see that the hind is put on a business footing'. Says Mr. IJovd

Ceor<;e: — "Till l Ituid is t!ic jrrcatc-t. it is (In most (isscntia 1. of our national assets It is common "round, and at the present moment it is not used to the best advan tajre 'n tlic interests of 111,' connnuniiv and we arc rapidly rcacliiiiL' a point who: the £Toss waste di our national resource.--human energy. hiniian lifu-involved ii the perpetuation of tlial svsiein, meanuat.ional weakness and national peril A short time a.uo a number of trainee investigators were called lojiether fiii the purpose 0 f eu(|iiiriii!_' into tha con <1 it!on of life in tlu- rural districts, am tlic c(Tect of land tenure iimm our indus tries, both in (own and counfrv. and upon the lot of the people in thosi industries. \\ e circulated a vcrv carefill, complete and searching questionnaire- a verv scicniitic one- -one which was prepared In- sonic uf (he ablest invest iffiitors in (ireal liritaii:. Kven ho--lile paper* admitted that it was ail able document, ami Ihe result arc now in. Speaking i|ilite deliberately. -jtiito calmly. I venture to say I hat. tho-e re-ults are star(.!in<r. When llio-,. results arc published they will prove conelusivelv that there are hundred-, thousands, if not millions, of men. women and children dependinj: upon tlic hind ill this country. rni>a.»ed in cultivaiiu:.' it - hardworking men and women who arc living under conditions in regard to waives, housing. as well as hours of labor, which oujiht to make this Kmpire ban;;' its head in shame that such things should be permitted to happin in anv corner of these dominions. let. alone in this countrv. the centre and the source of all its <>lorv. It does not. this rich, proud Empire, pav its children, who in Ihe past have maintained and built, up its jjlorv. upon whom \vc have to depend iu future airainst every foe, enough to keep themselves. their wives and their children, from liviiifr above a. state of semi-starvation. The remedy is not fo tax the people's food. Tile I'cmedy, in my judgment, is not to crush the land with the weijrht of fresh taxation, nor is it to increase the burden of taxation bearinjr so heavily already on our population."

To develop the undeveloped ( states in 111<■ Old C.'omitry - to eolniiUe Croat Britain: to give tl\e funnel' greater freedom .'ind greater security in tlie exercise of fiis business; to secure a home and a career for tlie laborer. wlio is now ia many eases cut oil' from (lie soil, is tlie aim of Mr. Lloyd and the CoVernineiit. The land slionld be made less a pleasure-ground for the rieit. and wore of a tvea.siii'c-liouse for tlie nation.

sydnkv noi'sii. \ Jt is jiot a particularly edifying situation tliat has arisen in connection with the historic Oovernment House in Sydney. A popularity-hunting .Ministry, wishing to devote the house and grounds to the use of "the people," refused to allow Lord Denman, the (!overnor-(!cn-eral of the Commonwealth, (o take up his residence there. The legality of the so-called "eviction'' was disputed, and a special tribunal set up to deal with the I matter has decided that the (lovernment of New South Wales had no power to utilise the promises for otlier purposes than those for which they were originally sel apart. The 'Court has practically declared that the house and lands are tlje property of the Imperial (lovernment. and has issued an injunction against their proposed diversion to other purposes. It was an ungracious act on the part of the colonial (lovernment to deny the use of the residence to the tlovernor-deneral. The churlish attitude is apparently to he maintained to the end. Ministers are to-day to consider whether an appeal shall he made to the Privy Council against the decision just arrived at. If there are grounds for an appeal, it will he prosecuted: if not, the house will be again used as a residence for the flovernov of New South Wales. It is a petty spirit that is shown by the Ministry right through tlio proceedings. We are pleased to think that such a dispute would be utterly impossible in Xew Zealand. In this country Hie aim appears, to he to provide 'the King's representative with a multiplicity of residences. Welling!on must in the nature of things be the chief seat of vice-regal authority; but a residence is also provided for the fiovernor in Auckland, and now we find C'liristchurch and Dunedin each putting in a claim to provide "a local habitation" for. his Excellency. This may seem to some people ■ a piece of silly supei-lliiil-y, but it i 3 better than "eviction."