THE WHANGAROA HIGHWAY BOARD.

Waikato Times, Volume XIII, Issue 1018, 2 January 1879, Page 3

THE WHANGAROA HIGHWAY BOARD.

Sib, — Tho Whangaroa Highway Board, when first formed, included the present town of Raglan district and Karioe district. A seat on the board soon became eagerly sought after, it being found that tho Provincial Government, with the utmost impartiality, bestowed the title of " Esquire" upon all members of the Board ; all invidious questions or references to the census returns, m respect to calegraphy, being dispensed with. To adminifter to personal vanity, the district was split into three, and every man Jack of us ratepayers, m due course, obtained the covered distinction. This having been effected, the enevitable result has followed, five men cannot be found m each, of the three small districts, who can or Will devote the necessary time to attend Board meetings, for the purpose of spending a very few pounds. I was led to these reflections to-day, when attending a duly advertised meeting of tiio Whmgaroa Ratepayers, colled to elect two members of tho Board, to replace tw o resigned. There was present, the Chairman of tho Board, the Clerk of the Board, and two ratepayers, myself iucluded, and I was informed that, last week, at a similar meeting m Ra<ilan,the whole and sole attendance consisted of the Clerk. Of course, there could be no meeting to-day. The remedy for this di.- creditable state of ''affairs is simple, re-unite these distrcts. This is the more necessary, because, m a Very small district, any disagreeable duty is shirked by the Board, such a duty as having reopened a road illegally closed and cultivated, and valuable work», suoh as the Waitctuna. Wharf, are . allowed to remain unrepaired, and thereby rii-k total destruction. The smaller the " Little Peddlington," the smaller the views and actions of the Board.

Having- my pen m my hand, and this being "the great goosebury season," I would, with your kind permission, make a few remarks on " The Counties-Act." Ah the journal of the first agricultural district of tho No r th Island, I would call your attention to tho two additional taxes to which tho already overtaxed agriculturalist was subjected by the present Ministry during the last Session of Parliament. In addition to the highway rates, county tax and clearing the roads of gorsc, eveu though we may have planted nono, we have now, a hind tax and. a dog tax. With your permission, I shall, as briefly as possible, give my own caso, not as a case of unusual hardship, for, I 'believe that, m tho North, there aru many settlers suffering from greater oppression. I, therefore, give my own, merely as v, representative case. In tl.o year 1853, I purchased about 1800 acres from < overnmeut, for 10s an acre. It is now about the same value, or, if forced into the market, would fetch less. Tho last, land m Raglan district I heard of being sold by auction, realised less than •is $iv acre. The sapient Auckland Provuk -.sJUomicil made this land liable to au/'awiwl tax of one shilling an acre, and, m jjoint of fact, I have been fined threo flenqc an acre, or nearly £21. Indeed, Iliad a narrow escape of" confiscation, a kind neighbour proposing a sixpenny rate, which I could not have paid. To escape, I advertised the land to let, for £50 per annum, and let it to the only applicant, for four years. However, after less than two years, he threw it back on my hands, and, but for the General Government substituting a valuation for an acreage rate, I should have been taxed out of house and home. Some people who pay only a few shillings, like to make an easy living out of the highway rates. On the ad valorem rate being enacted, the collector of rates, who, for gome years, has received about 60 per cent, of the. rates, for collecting them, was appointed to value tho land, and valued mine at £66 5s per annum.

I appealed to the late Magistrate of Bagrlan, then Judge of the Appeal Court, wild by the most minute and delicate calculation, which I was utterly at a loss to dbmprehend, decided that I had been over-rated fourteen shillings per annum. So that, m the usual event of the highest local rate being enforced, for ten days attendance at Raglan Court, I save the interest, at 5' per cent., on fourteen Hhillings. , I failed; as it assumed to understand the most learned reasons of the Court, and, at once rev.creed the theory of value I learned at school, " the value of a thing is what it will fetch." I may be allowed to observe thtit the centralizing tendencies of Government, m making its paid Magistrates, Appeal Judges, is greatly to be depreciated. The paid Magistrate may be a farmer, or engaged m trade, of m medical practice, and certainly ought not to bo a" Judge of Appeal, indeed, it is bad enough that those who pursue other avocations should be paid magistrates. I would respectfully suggest that the appeal ought to be made to the County Council* if it be not the object ef Gover^ lnent to make that body a sham Itmis been reserved for the Government o#New Zealand to discover that th(K agriculturalist' ought to bear the/neaviest/ share of taxation; The anojcDo _goyernr\ meuts cherished the agriculturalist indeed, bear the brunt of th/ l xa &mjgfyi of the world. The Ermyefor of m person, , assists at jjko ' (xrand -annual Agricultural Festival m tho Institutes of ManuV the jpwt Hindoo. Congeuer tho ' posi&pncoi $ c cidtivator is most honorable, ranking after £h9ae of tho j>riost v 'aud / 'Wjb"sold.ior J i&SI fa? abovy;

that of the merchant, wly>, by the way, m New Zealand escapes w^th his shoulders unwrnng, while the agricultural hoise is i-idden to death. To turn to reoont hißtory, m other parts of the world, m a London* 'limes,' of August last, I read an account of an interview between the well known General Butler and Dennis Kearney, who will, perhaps, soon become only too*well known. General Butler Btated that, he is "m favor of taxing idle investments, and allowing manufacturing interests to go untaxed." ' *" Here, " idle investments," m the Yogel loans, &c, go free, but even the dog of tho struggling farmer is taxed ! Had not the Member for Waipa a word to say m defence ? I would apologise for the length of this letter, but my agricultural and horticultural pursuits bo rarely allow me to take a pen m my hand, that I find, that on the present occasion, my pen has run I away with me, and I think that the . subject of appeal, from over assessment, may interest many of your readers. In England, tax assessments are usually from 2<5 to 30 per cent. beloAV the actual value. — I am, &c, JO. Johnstone. Te Haruto, Raglan, December 21, 1878.