The Waikato Times THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.
SATURDAY, JULY 11, 1891.
Equal .:nd exact icsticu to ;tll men. Of whatsoever ur persuasion, relißtoui or
At lust tho Tlouho has come to a vuto oil tho linuueial proposals of tho Govormmmt, or to write moro correctly on tho fiacal principles laid down in tho Treasurer's statement. This stage has been reaehod after a very and generally uninteresting dnbato, the cffoct of which has been, however, that, thore are certain to be many modifications intraduced into the" Bill to be brought down by the Treasurer to give effect to the broad principles which have been accepted. When the Bills are before the House the serious business of tho session will commence. Those constituencies which returned their members on the strength of tho pledge that they would insist upon the abolition of the Property Tax on the grounds that its effect was.a check on the industry and energy of the people and in consequence on the progress of the colony are not likely to be vary forgiving to those of them who support a similar system under anothor name. The Treasurer will, we fancy, have a good deal of trouble with these members later on. The motion of Mr Duthie was of course defeated, but the principle therein laid down is worthy of the most earnost considerations of wage-earners, and we should imagine that when they have done so they will thoroughly endorse Mr Duthie's propositions as being much more calculated to benefit thom, than the graduated taxes proposed by Mr Ballance, in obedience to the popular cry to treat as a penal offence the ownership of wealth in any form, when above a certain value. If the present party in power were really the friends of the working classes would reduce tho cost of living by reducing the Customs duties on necessaries, or would propose to use the surplus in the prosecution of necessary public works, and thus provide employment for a considerable nninber. The reduction of the postage is not a matter calculated to directly benelit them, except to the most limited extent. It has been asserted that it was only embodied in the financial proposals in order to gratify the Hon. Mr Ward by causing his Same to be handed down to posterity as a Rowland Hill on a small *cale. There has been no public agitaiion for the reduction, and this gives some colour to the rumour. One of tho weakest reasons for foregoing public revenue, the raising of which is not felt to be oppressive by any class, is that urged in favour of the measure—" It is anomalous to charge twopence for the carriage of a letter within the colony and only twopence halfpenny for delivering one in any part of Europe." The circumstances are quite different ; and, as a matter of fact, the cost of a letter to Europe is often less than that of one delivered within a few miles of the postal town. There appears to be some hope that the measure will be withdrawn. Labour representatives should certainly put their weight into the scale to bring this about. One effect the debate should certainly have, should be tho opening of the public eyes to the fact that reward for political services has been more considered by the Minister for Lands than the interests of tlft colony, One man has been appointed who has anything but a good record ; he proved, however, a good canvasser during tho last election, and this in the eyes of the Minister has been deemed sufficient reason to overlook the claims of the retrenched Civil servants—through no fault of their own—to any appointments that may chance to be in the gift of the Government. A small vane indicates the direction of the wind, and small matters are indicative of the purity or otherwise of public administration. Wo have only rumour to guide us as to how far the Ministry are willing to modify their financial policy, or rathor to what extent they will be compelled to do so by their own followers. They are the avowed snemies of the comparatively rich and the emphasised friends of the poor. That they will be able to oarry their proposals in a somewhat modified form, tho division ou Wednesday night clearly demonstrates, bat we are clear on tho point that tho working classes will lave good cause to exclaim: " Savo us from our friends!" Giving effect to the policy can only have one effect, that is to make capitalists very chary of investing their capital in the colony, whether in land or the prosecution of manufactures. This, of course, will make employment more scarce, and again cause meetings of the unemployed in tho open spaces of our cities, .It is argued that by village settlements and other schemes for settling tho land, the danger will be obviated. That sottling people ou land i<< tho natural solution of the difficulty nobody will deuy, but in practice all are aware that to give a man land without any payment whatever for its occupation is useless, unless he is possessed of some little capital, or that he is otherwise exceptionally fitted for tho occupation of farmer, or again that there i 3 employment procurable in the neighbourhood of his selection. The direct tendency of the proposed Government measures is, in the first place, to keep capitalists—tho only class which can givo work—from investing in tho country, and, in tho second, to discourago thoso who havo alroady done so from making tho improvements which would find employment for tho impecunious settler, and enable him to live whilst gotting his land into cultivation.
Somo members of the Ministry belong to a Liberal Association, ono of the tenets of which is that
it is the duty of the Government to fiud employinout for all who want it. Tho policy of tho Government is calculated to vastly increase the number of those who, cither from necessity or inclination, would be propared to sink their manhood and descend to the position of paupers. Tho moro earnestly wo look at tho cloud of socialistic radicalism which is hanging ovor tho colony tho moro dense and difficult of disporsion it appears.
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Waikato Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 2963, 11 July 1891, Page 2
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1,038The Waikato Times THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. SATURDAY, JULY 11, 1891. Waikato Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 2963, 11 July 1891, Page 2
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