The Wairarapa Daily. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 1890.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3648, 29 October 1890, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 29, 1890.

We can devote but little space in our! present issue to comment upon Mr BuehatUfi'g .excellent speech at Carterton. Wo ftyitrl however, as au exhaustive reply to lit Depi)/» thoughtless proposal to change the incidence of taxation in New Zealand. Leaders of the Liberal party like Sir Robert Stout and Mr Ballance dare not Jajjethe responsibility of changes wliioh w,e;> Jjfe jMessrs McLean, George Fisher, fe)ry ]}piiy advocate, Mr Mclean })i jigural the thing out in a guess work eori of way, and comes out wrong by about half a million of money. Mr Fisher, w|)o pies himself upon his finance, is more Wisftll, irat fails to make both ends irtfeefc by 3, 1/gwJred tjioipnd pounds;' Mr Bunny supplied up data as yet, but he must im piepji Mr JfycJipnan's exact and elaborate sfatistiss yjtj; some data, or have lo ftflmifc tmkkpMosals are an illusion. Mr Buchanan offers to modify the property tax, go that a portion of the burden now falling on the s|#ulders of the struggling settler shall 114 placed on the back olthe man of wealth, Jhis is a proposal that ought to corned itself to my small farmer in the district, and iswp;thy of careful consideration, all the wow that it is given explicitly and in plain tefifts, Mr Buchanan has worked out the financial position of the Colony, got down to Hk9 ])ed rock, and shows exactly what mew/fif of help can bo given to that class of setljp who constitute fjje bjjckJjone ,of the Cot. ony, and who most mi .assistance.! It now remains for Mr Bunny, jf hecan do so, to show that Mr Bueliau- J nn's figures and argument arefalla- : cious, or to support his own extra- 1 ordinary proposal by equally plan 1 and reliable estimates. IfMfßunjjy ' be right he is an abler politician than either Sir Robert Stout or Mr 1 Ballance, but he has yet to prove he j is right, lie has yet to tell us exactly ( bow much revenue will be sacrificed E by abolishing the property tax and reducing the customs revenue, and 8 in what way the half million or so 11 that he is prepared to surrender can 8 be wade good without placing ut J

crushing burden on,, every acre and in the Colony. Mr'Buchanan ,< lias spared no pains to'place before ' the electors reliable data in support ! 0 fhi 3 policy, and we trust Mr Bunny will not shirk a similar respohsibil- , ity. He must indeed do: this; or be open to tlis imputation of treating i the electors like so many children by assuming that they will take for granted any unsupported statemen be may choose to advance. 1