The Waikato Times. TUESDAY JANUARY 8, 1878.

Waikato Times, Volume XI, Issue 869, 8 January 1878, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

TUESDAY JANUARY 8, 1878.

qu.i. an > uauui , usuou i« uli iHv<.. i ..'llal.:tcl "L-.li- Ol |iei»Uda.'>lt. ilillgi •• * „.ilua. » • « • ana .IK. l'lUH'. thu Pl.liJ'Lti'n r,- I . JlillUl...

If tlieie laooiio' iiieabttio more man auothe' ou winch the present Government will have the voice oi the country wich it, that uaeaauie will.be 'found to be ihe iutroduci.ou of a spocal tax upon property. Hithei to almost ihe enure aiuoun of the ordinary' revenue ot tht Colony has been raißed qijou txciseable goods. A lew yeais ago personal pi-openy was inuUe to contribute aometlnng It wa» though i that the holders of bauk awd uih i stocks, inunv of wbom clraw.ng then income from the conmu-rce of <h» colony s^eut it m iingKnd ami elsewhere, should be made to contribute something towards the general cost of taxation, and »». annual tax was laid upon the issue*, of bank notes, cheques, i-eceipis, &o. Jint ail this time real pioper.y im* escapei tax '"on. True, there haY( ] been local rate*, but the«e hiveuee. solely expeuded m it 3 icupruveiueu Towards tiie general revenue of tu> Colony it has contributexl not ing Yet all this while, and ni-<u-especiHlly of l-.te years Binetae Public. Works scheme w..t> mati^nrtited, many millions oi money have been spent* m a manuei which could not but materially increase the value of real property. And it has increased it to a. enormous extent. We do not thiik we shall be beyowl the mark it w« say that 'be const ruction of road and railroads, and vhe genf « expendiiure of he loans smce 1870 have, on the average, doub el t value of real property throu^hom the colony. There «re districts, i.f course, where they liavt quailruplt-u it, nay, perhaps, iucreaaeil it tt-nfoM m value, and very few where they have left ie as Jt was. Y<'l towards nie"tiuir the intere-t and sinkiny funds that tliese loiins have entailnn upon the inhabitants of th<« c«>lon> , thelaml directly contributes nothing. The l«»r- 1 of - ten thousand ov oin hundred ihousiiid acres i obkH'l con uin< j s no larger amount ot .iutiabie goods than bis stock Irivior his — not so u.uch. peihHl'S, wh^n, as is often tiie cas rh^ latter knock dr>wu the r hdi: yejirych ques a : the grog hlwul* .r m the nenie.-.t City. Bo h nliU gwin l*y the ad\aiiC' meut of ii. colony m in-Nm< I'ro^ress. ii: taciliiies • ttoule fo»- quick and eats raveling, p' s al aid tel-gr*. J coinmaiiicHtion, aud other .-nc matters, but. ihe landowner, m nddition to ulj this, see> the value o his prop- 1' 1 y double hiu! qnadru: U without, an « fiort ol his own. Thai the m .srt oi the c-ilonisss shoiil.. have been so long m seeing th s is-stomewhdt.suri-risiti^, nay, even now. many are on-y drowsily awakeninj.' to the fact of the case. -, The advocates of a land tax hay two objeuts m view, the one h financial, the other a political pui pose. The expenditure of th colony canno be cut down hplow h certain standnrd. Na\, or. n.er reproductive much of the iiioup already spent on public vw yk-, further loans and coui-equent lies!, lidltilities are nee led, an 1 even as i is, wi'b its gnisp upon the and fund, the Government fail to sic ho»v income and expenditure ma\ l>e m ide to run co-ordinately without recou se to the Mickawb* r.lik dev'ce of • kins; nut the former l»y a resort o ' reasury Bi'ls. Tiiis iihe. ti iinciii! view of ihn q estion, and a pi-eS^n* o c 00. Bn iher isanOiliKr spect, the political one, :,nd hin will enlist thousands m th advoi-acy of k roperty tnX. Theie is hii unha.ihy tendency towar s the agt'iejaiion of laud into Mie bs.nds of a lew. The time is t.-s npproaching when, if *otn thing ' t not done to check it, the monopoly of tho land by holders of laive estates will be mo-it injuriously felt m this colony. In the South tliis ques'ion is more progtiant wi h j anxiety than m the Auckl.. • d | district, but even there we are ot without iiiHtaftoes;in.4'O'Utw... ;.'. •>■. | There m, however, n.< ned t-

it irt h special one. X'o do »«» woula be to defeat .Us Jibjeot by c eating a r -*tigt^^lKtf^w^ Wo tiee.l < ew '\ xeß to keep the revJßime up to the rig tired standard. Wo need, if pub»ib'e, the reduo ion of cxi otinsjf taxes upon nmny.of ihe nec'-siries of life. We lived m fact a ivo.isti' g oi i ho v\hule uioidtiucu of tax t'iou, ho that, instead of an indireob jioli tux whicii ihe oastouia d"tv system by i'Beit reaiiy, is, we *h»ul have ;tie , weight of taxation a 'justed to tho breadth of tlie shouldcici " of " tliosei who have to lie.ii 1 a. In this j dilemna, and to elf ct this gieitj benefit m Jigh euiug the burden 10 ; ,o monj, tho lira*' retort whiuh j uatuailv auU muni lairly sagg sts i iicje 1 is the land, the rum wmen j the tinai 3iat aurahaui tiiuls j caught by its horns m the • bush near the s-ct.tijial altar of tiie exulitq'ier. WiiaD .» needed to be done is to u.ake the proprietors v/t large estates pay i.i ja-oporcon <o the v lue ot ibeir iiolnng-, and whether the government chit lutrociuue* bucli a ujeasure commence* with ihe holder of SUU or 1000 ncies is only a niao.ei' ni d»tau not lavoivLiig ii»e pnucipleß of Cue case. Vs v\e have said, to make the cax vp r »reaaive, that, m, to f.til upon tho >onu ti^e holder and occupier of a .n.iueiaitj mzoil holding, wuiud only ue \o UeteiiL ihe object lut ended. It is the •> en who monopolise the and, who add turni tu.iarmai.d ijoiiae to house >iL the cuuutr side ■>e cornea poj.ulaud nob wiih human noi .gH bnt wivh fluC&s and herds 1 1 i the tax niu.-t; <« mds to teici;, nt who tuusl b.- matin .o Ci»nr.ri.,uLe the.r fair aha it- of ihe goods tnev enjoy toward ihe cjst of the government which ere; tea it tor t turn and enab.es ihcin to enjoy i» m .salety.