ABSURD CRITICISM.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 29 March 1913, Page 4

ABSURD CRITICISM.

-I lie rubbish that is served up by some of the. Opposition journals in their attempts to discredit tho Government, would b • tfuirlvd with \ni,s it not dressed in stick plausible kn-riuu* Tn its issuo of yesterday, the New Zealand Times the tota.ra re serve at Ni realm, as an illustration of what might happen «inco the Government has granted the freehold tenure. Tt has fnund n. settler who says "there w one thing that irw'-es u.s unwww. Wo .arc p.Frnid. nn »- +W w« all have th, r u ? ht of purchase that onir neighbours will be .s»llj,ty out and ■«■« will W their mmnv and the cheeso factory n-s vol] ~* o , tl . selves will ,n:ff f ,r." ' On these remarks, the Times draws the inference that there i. nothing in the .plea that the freehold promote, .security of tenure. Now, if the Times knew anything at all about settlement ib womkl b<> .ware that the leaseholder ha,s unite a.s great an inducement to sell a,s the* freeholder Indeed, he ba N a far greater inducement, for he wviild do almost a.nvtlnng to rid himself of State landlordism'. Tf our contfimpora ry liad made a little inquiry it would have discovered that very few of the selectors, of the Ni realm, and other FortyMile Bi'-ih leaseholds are at present en the land thev origi.na.llv took .up. As against the instance cited by our contemDornrv, let us urooe-vj a few fr.»T.; l?ll . ; n fhe F-rtv-Mile Bush. Let n s take t-k» Bnllanee settlement. There- we .-hall find thriving settlers who, many years ago, took-up the virgin forest'under the deferred payment system, converted their holdings into freeholds, and became .per.manent-.and Prosperous occupiers of the land. The -mat) who is afraid that the cliee.se factory will go because of the freehold tenure doe vS not know what he is talking about. Either that, or he i* having a little joke with the city 'Surr.n.l. • £. O long as the land remains, what matters" it. from the point of view of cheese factories, whether it is held under the leasehold or the freehold tenure? Tf there should he any appreciable difference, it is ali in favour of the freehold, far under this tenure tho productivity of the soil is naturally increased, if the freehold is de.-igne'd to destroy the dairy industry, how comes it tluit in free-hold. Balhm.ce. which i.s proctirally tPxfc donr to \'i>-a-ahn, the iuchisfcry is fn n .;r r '-t fb-nr-ishhio condition? -Oh, no; this dreadful tale, from Niteaba will rot :ro down. May we again for llie next?.