The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, JULY 9, 1887. THE FARMERS’ LEAGUE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1605, 9 July 1887, Page 2

The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, JULY 9, 1887. THE FARMERS’ LEAGUE.

The New Zealand Farmers’ League has just pul forward the following programme :

Advances by State to farmers at lowest possible interest; working farms not to exceed 600 acres ; establishment of a Stale Bank of Issue ; land and income tax in place of a property tax ; local government and decentralisation ; reduction of railway rates on produce.

Here, then, is a platform for farmers, and it will be seen at once that it is in the main what we have advocated for years. The National Bank and Cheap Money for Farmers is the first plank, the size of farms to be limited to 600 acres is the next, and a reduction in the cost of carrying goods by rail is another plank, of which we thoroughly approve. We do not think, however, that it was wise on the part of the league to burden their excellent proposals with a change in the incidence of taxation. The country has now settled down to the Property Tax ; its machinery is in full working order, and any change would pul the colony to an enormous amount ot expense. Besides, we honestly believe that the Property Tax is better adapted to the condition of the colony than any tax which can be devised. We know that large numbers of the farmers are heavily mortgaged, and the result would* be that if a Land Tax were put on these people would have to pay a tax on property which did not belong to them. For instance, let us suppose that a farmer owns £IOOO worth of land, and has a mortgage of 5800 on it. Under the Land Tax he would pay a tax for the whole £IOOO, but under the Property Tax the mortgagee pays the lax. There can be no two questions as to the man who ought to pay it. It would be manifestly wrong to make the farmer pay for the mortgagee, and on this ground we object to a Land Tax unless allowances were made lor mortgaged landowners. The League has apparently been misled by the . idea that the land ought to pay all taxation. Theoretically this is a correct idea, but it would be impossible to carry it out in the present condition of the colony. Landowners would be ruined if the whole burden were shifted on their shoulders, especially when it is not they but the mortgagees who own the land. The farmers ought to have taken np the proposals of the present Government, and adopted them. The Stout-Yogel Government in 1885 proposed to exempt from taxation all agricultural implements, improvements, etc., and all machinery to the value of £3OOO, but the Atkinson party threw 'his proposal out, and consequently it was not given legal effect to. Now, if the Farmers’ League had adopted this line of policy, they would have done exactly the proper thing, for this means that industry would be relieved of taxation while the burden would have fallen more heavily on the mortgagees and money-rings. It does not appear, however, that the Farmers’ League is very favorable to the money-rings, and it is probable that if the matter were put before them they would be satisfied with our proposal. The League appears to have remained silent on the burning question of the day—that is, Protection, In this respect they made a mistake. They ought to have speken with no uncertain sound on this matter. It is of the gravest importance, and to us it is a matter for regret that they omitted it. On the whole, however, we must say that the programme of the Farmers’ League is acceptable to us, and we trust that farmers in this district will cooperate with their brethren in Otago to carry out its main features.