A MAN WITH A GRIEVANCE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXI, Issue 1725, 26 July 1883, Page 3

A MAN WITH A GRIEVANCE.

TO THE EDITOR.

Sir,— Only one ! well, I had only one which I wished, had the chance presented itself, to lay before our representative, but as he never thought tit to take into his confidence the people he represents, either after the last session or hefore this one, this makes grievance No. 2. As ninny grievances are flying about, it would have been as well to discuss them. If you would like me to enumerate some of them, there is the case of the Newcastle people, who want the Waipa County Council hung up— not the councillors, of course, but the act, though the councillors ought to get a little stretching for not taking security for the Newcastle dog tax collector. Secondly, Tuhiknrampa and Mangapiko Avant a mam road from Te Awamutu to Alexandra, and local government bills so amended as to ensure to the local works of the country the greatest amount of benefit from revenue received, as pointed out some years ago by the Waipa County Council in a memorial. Ran«iaohia requires a Native Lands Court'at Kihikihi, the publicans' license fees to be local lcvenue, reform in the railway traffic, with a branch line to Kihikiki, the road to the Lakes opened via YVaotu, so that excursionists could travel at all seasous of the year. This is about the size of their cheese. Pnkerimn wants railway reform, a small bridge across the AVaikato, and a grant for the Rotorangi road. Hamilton wants nothing, or nearly nothing — in fact never did, and iti is well known their modpsty has been their ruin. The fovugoing a\e the whisperings you hear in the night air. My own grievance is the property tax, which at one swoop confiscates every freehold in the country. Some of Sir G. Grey's supporters advocate nationalizing the land, but the Whitaker party ha\ c done it. There is now no such thing a.« freehold, and any future candidate for legislative honours who will not advocate the repeal of the property tax shall have no vote of mine, though he be a heaven-born statesman. Our member always played the JEoOO excemption clause as a trump card when addressing the electois, but I fail to see its benefit to a man who has not got £500 when all iust liabilities arc met. The pioperty tax is a tax on labour and improvements, co much so that capitalists will not withdraw capital from even low interest to embark it in any of the vat ious undei takings that" would be for the futuicgood of the conntiy, knowing that to do so they would be taxed not on the amount of interest derived from the undertaking, but on the amount of expcndituie, even though the monetary return be ml. The valucis in most cases are land aaents, who put on a value which is quite fictitious, and without a proper babis, winch should be the amount of lent or profit deincd, not w hat might or ought to do if certain contingencies occur, such as the success of the iron s>nnd, the fiozcn meat, or the direct steam service, and an influx of population. And then, it you do not wish to accept this fictitious value, and object, you are told that 10 per cent, will be added, and your homo will be confiscated to the State. Sir, is it light that a judge shall have it in his power to insult a man with money for his home. Theie are in many cases sacred associations surrounding a house that money cannot compensate you for. The property-tax say there is no such thing. It capital is deten ed from \ cntuiing into so many enterprises it must have such an effect on labour as to counteibalance the £f>oo exemption. Let there bo no exemption, and every man pay according to his means, a man who earns £50 per annum pay a penny for each pound of his income; £100, one penny and one-sixteenth of a penny, say, and for every £100 of a man's income add one sixteenth of a penny income tax. In the case of the General Government a man may avoid paying any taxes with the aid of a mortgage on his land, a bill of sale over his cattle, and the £500 exemption, but in no case can lip get out of locil taxation, wliich takes its. basis fiom the Government Adluatinn 1011, and I am afraid the local tax will be the means of driving many good settlers away. To illustrate my meaning of a tax on labour, I will suppose a man has a piece of woithless clay land ; he converts it into biicks ; while in the kiln or stack it pays nothing, as the value of the brick is met by the stoiekeeper's bill for gioccries, and these bricks are personal property, and pay to local taxation nothing ; but let that man put those bricks one on another to shelter himself from the inclemency of the weather : get another man to split him some shingles in exchange for as many bricks as will build him a chimney; send to the Union Sash and Door Company for doors and windows, and this heap of clay becomes leal property, to be taxed by the General Government, the county councils, and the road boards. Now, Sir, I should like to know how w oi king men benefit by this £500 clause, because in no case will it exempt him from the two latter governing bodies, even if that hruse remains empty, and no rent or benefit is received. The Government valuer will stick a ficticious value on it, in most cases more than the actual amount of eos>t. I remember an old law in England that taxed the windows in a man's house, but in this country the flowers, the trees and shrubs— everything that aJds beauty to the country — is taxed, independently of whether any monetary value is deiivcd from it or not. A lady's silk dress, or gold watch, or carriage pays 10 per cent., and is done with, but let the farmer get a lot of posts and rails, and as hoon as he sticks them on end to keep stray cattle out of his crops, these posts and rails become real property, to be taxed for ever and ever. If I had time or power of speech I would stump the country to get this thing repealed, which is coiling itself round thp industry and enterprise of the country. I would also show how the large timber companies are cutting and destroying the native forests, and contributing nothing to the revenue, where the man who plants trees has to contribute to the revenue. A planted tree is real property, but a heap of timber is personal property, and exempt from local taxation. Is it any wonder the people north of Auckland have no roads ? Let thinking minds turn this matter over, and see how the timber from Kaipara is sent to enrich other countries, leaving behind a wilderness paying the State nothing, because all personal property such as engines and plant, are covered by bills of sale, held, perhaps, in Sydney or Melbourne. The land, the real property, is secured by a good fat mortgage, the security is daily getting of less value, and when the timber is all cut out, o ' ship comes alongside, takes on board lock, stock and barrel, to seek fresh forests to slaughter, you will see hoir unfair this property tax is. The man who builds up for the future welfare of the' country , has to pay, whilst the man who is improvident gets off free. • Sir, this letter may be somewhat ' disjointed, but it will set the active mind to work on this important subject.— l am, &c, , s • i Ohaupo.

Jon^s was an old bachelor, whote' temper was not the sweetest, and he did not like to 'be questioned.' The other evening,' ju»t as Bupper'was ready, he went out, and kept it waiting half an hour» ! > 'When' s he' 'damb 'back' 'the landlady said sharply r "Well, Mr Jones,' why did&you/ go J ouujusft. previously be-! fore supper frftthatiwrfy?" "Became,! i -,ma4ajnf,V'he > Ba;d, ; Vl ;can't Vrovidjisly. after snpper ,iri. that way."t