THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. THURSDAY, JULY 23, 1908. BEGGING THE GREAT QUESTION.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9149, 23 July 1908, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. THURSDAY, JULY 23, 1908. BEGGING THE GREAT QUESTION.

The chief question of importance in a young country like this Dominion is the settlement of the land. Everybody knows the fact, and a creat majority of the people are vitally, interested in the progress of land settlement. It docs not follow, of "course, that all those who are interested, or affected, by the land settlement policy of the Government, realise how greatly their condition can be improved, or rendered worse just in the degree that the Government is faithful in the discharge of its duty; but it is* immaterial how far public appreciation gauges the importance of the question in comparison with the duty devolving upon the Government to see that a reasonably vigorous land settlement policy is carried out. So far as principle is concerned in the matter of tenure, the Government has no principlea whatever-—it is simply nothing. One j

session a measure of a leasehold tendency is introduced, while the next session a distinctly freehold Bill is advocated. That a Government that is neither freehold nor leasehold in it* land views should be found detestably lacking in the work of laud settlement, and should suddenly evince a desire to leave the wholo question alone, is not surprising, but it will bo astonishing in the extreme if the people of the Dominion nllow the Government to have its way. The Government, of course, has power to resume bind compulsorily, and power to negotiate for the pur chase of estates for close settlement, and, in the Government party is in such a large majority that .it has, practically, power enough to do anything; but in the matter of land settlement the Government has been strangely lacking in both energy and principle. The special land settlement proposal mentioned in the Budget speech means to our mind that the Government, anxious .to avoid the work of land settlement, u going to find a means to an end. More than once of recent years Ministers have been careful to emphasise that the work of the Land for Settlements Act involves a considerable annual expenditure, which is added directly to our pjblic debt. The Premier declares that he is of opinion that the expenditure in the direction referred to should not in any way be curtailed, but why then doed he father the "special land settlement" proposal? The special land settlement proposal, if agreed to by Parliament, will prove the opposite of fair to the thousands of poor men who wish to go upon the land. It is proposed that upon application by any number, say ten or more, of intending bona fide settlers who have obtained from a private landowner an offer to sell the estate at a price fixed by him, the Land Purchase Board shall inspect the lai d t-> ascertain its suitability for and the-fairness of the price, and if the Board is satisfied „on both points, it will report to the Minister of Finance. The proposed settler willthen submit a scheme of settlement, which must be consistent with the limitations and other conditions of the Land for Settlements Act. If the scheme is approved by the Land Purchase Board, the Advances to Settlers Department, through the Minister of Finance, will obtain the money required to purchase the estate at the lowest possible rate of interest, giving to the lender as security for such money a mortgage over trie estate in the name of tho settlers, who will also bind themselves as ordinary mortgagors by their own covenants, in addition to the security, and the Government will guarantee the repayment of capital and of interest to the lender. It

is proposed to provide for a redemption fund by which the settlers would repay both principal and interest in 32$ years. It i 3 obvious that such a scheme couJd be more easily taken advantage of by the man with means thun the poor man; it is, also, obvious that .the introduction of the scheme will not tend to increase the activity of the Government in tne work of close settlement of large estates, and, in our opinion, the scheme ha.i its origin in a desire on the part of .the Government to beg the whole great question of close settlement.