THE LAND BILL.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8299, 30 November 1906, Page 3

THE LAND BILL.

Interviewed by a Press reporter .Sir Joseph Ward stated the position of tbe Government in regard to ita lpnd proposals. Sir Joseph aald:— 'The policy of the Government will be explained fully in different parts of the country. lam going to speaK as soon as I get clear of my present engagement. It cao be taken for certain that the proposals contained in the Land Bill and the rest of our pulicy will be clearly laid before the people of the country so that they will have an opportunity of fully understanding tbew. The land proposals of the Government, though understood by a section <of the community, lam quite certain are not uuderstood by a great mass of tbe people. I have received many letters supporting our laud proposals." Asked If he were likely to take part in the campaign soon, the Premier said:—"Yes, but I am not quite certain where 1 will speak first. Most; probably it will be in the north. There are a number of farmers in different parts of the colony,'who are themselves tbe own ers of freehold land, who have written to me after ruakiug an examiuation/of our land proposals, and they state that they genernliy agree with them. " [he farmers (by tbe union itself) have baen circularised throughout the leng-ih and breadth of the country putting forth the limitation of. areas a 9 one of the union's planks, and the fact that this is now being cpposed by a section of the executive' on the face of it indicates a reversal of what was the policy before tbe last election. There is no proposal in the Land Bill—and we have stated this on more than one occasion—which in any way can be oonstrned into interference with the freehold. "The idea has-been industriously circulated that the freehold of the ordinary farmer throubgout the country is not safe. This is absolutely contrary to fact. There ba9 □ever been a suggestion of any kind ever made oy any member of the Ministry, nor as far as I know by any member of the House, that any intorferenue with the existing freeholds of the farmer should be attempted or take place. Certainly it is beyond all question that the Ministry are against land nationalisation, and would strongly oppose any proposal to nationalise the land of tbe oolony. To the commonsense thinker the days have long passed by when even the aspirations of a sincere land nationalisei—and there are some of these It* the colony—would in practice ba possible. My own opinion is that it would have required to be commenced concurrently with the period of Adam and Eve to have enabled such a policy to ba put into effect. What the oppouenrs of the Land Bill realise is that the noantry as a wiiolo is totally and earnestly opposed to the continuance of large landed estates or to farther accession to tb(S3 large landed estates by the existing holders. The fact that the present graduated land tax has enabled large areas jn differenc parts of tbe oolony to be further increased clearly demonstrates that a change of a practical character to ensure their cutting up and the prevention of the growth of large estates in the fntare is absolutely essential in the general interest of tbe country. "The limitation of areß, and the prevention of a man who haH a large landed property now of adding to it is as muoh in the interests of tbe farmers and tbeir families as it is in the interests of tbe mechanic or workman, or any other section of the community, wherever ho .or they may dwell. The Land Bill now before the country has been sabmitted with an honest desire to assist-the country as a whole, and without injuring the landed proprietors, against whom, as individuals, none of us have a word to say.