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Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XII, Issue 3835, 18 June 1891, Page 2

The financial statement ot the Colonial Treasurer hides a piece of foolishness in a cloud pf words. He may be forgiven for the cloud of words, it is a way treasurers have ! Especially in little communities it has come to be an axiom that the smaller the state the longer the financial statement; but can Mr Ballance be excused for the foolishness ? He knows very well that any radical change in the incidence of taxation unsettles trade, arrests progress, and disturbs the Governmental machinery. If we had a Lan 3 Tax now we would say stick to it and don't touch .the Property Tax. If we had even an Income Tax now, we would say it is a bad tax but the animal is used to it and it does not pay to change. We are afraid that there are gifted blockheads even amongst liberal Colonial Treasurers, and that the Hon Jobn Ballance has acquired a reputation for cleverness at the cost of his common sense. Is he not bursting up the big landholders to please King Mob yith a graduated Land Tax which puts 5/Bths of a penny loading on the biggest of them. Why these monarchs will not be a bit crushed by such an impost but will be able to save it.. by a.siight adjustment of the wages ol their, working men, on whose credulity the Hon, the Colonial Treasurer is trading. . ..v v ' ■ ..