The Press THURSDAY, JANUARY 14. 1892.

Press, Volume XLIX, Issue 8071, 14 January 1892, Page 4

The Press THURSDAY, JANUARY 14. 1892.

Unless the cable meesages entirely misrepresent; the tenor ot' Mr. Perceval's letter to the Loudou Times, that gentleman has made a fatal blunder within a few weeks after entering on the duties of his office. He has already placed himself in the position of a partifcap, and laid himself' open to a style of criticism in London which may completely destroy his influence and usefulness as representative of the colony. As summarised in the cable message, his answer to the article in The Times of .November 9th ia the kind of deliverance one is accustomed to hear from Mr. Ballance on a platform in the colony, when mere assertion, without..argument, usually, goes down with a friendly aud noncritical audience. But quite another thing to have to face the cool criticism of a journal like The Times jn , the replies from keen business men -intfetfe£tedC>inithe colony, rwnieh his letter will probably bring forth. Mr. Pebceval's reply * is that tlje taxation pf .foreign capital haa not been 5 increased, 1 * "except •" in u instances where money ha 3 been invested in • large areas of unimproved land, and that it is not the-mtention of the New Zealand Government; to make Loan Companies or Banks, conducting legitimate bu*hießS,.pay formerly. ■; Now r thesja are deliberate statements, tvhich'ar'e eaisily capable of Verification j.orxirefufcatiQn, and- the materia,! i» in ■the haads of those at Home interested Jμ the qMestjott. 'Cfre meaning; of the Land aud;lncome Assessment Aotia as ■well Ipnpwh to the directors and managers ;pf; compwiee dping/bushiiess fu Zealand as it) is to Mr. Pjcuosval; the chances are", indeed, that -it' rs much. •feetftr. kupwn,,! i Whoa.; the ~ English ! public 'ham-the Chairman of the ; 'New* '[$&§:' Australian Ltitid Company Yelling liis sHareholders in "6. few week* ■'. agoj ~the, (v n&.w; c , Act, • , W UI " double " \ t&e' " ! Co'mpany*s* taxation ; when j they have the London Times] quoting from Mr. Reeves' "social! pest" speech, in which the Minis-!! ter described large estates as " a " social pest, an industrial obstacle, j " and a bar to progress;" when; they have before them the Colonial; Treasurer's Financial Statement, in; which it s .poiA^d f .Qut F J;hafc the; system of taxation has been framed so as to take at least £60,000 or £70,000 a year more from the larger holders than before (English capital being chiefly invested through CompVnU^tjttt^dj"|i| large estates), how'cantfia Agent-General j be so fool hardy as to commie himself to the statement "that the taxation of foreign capital has not been in-■■MqMsQ.fi-fißysqtfs ths oaee of. large -unimproved* eitates? Then there are the speeches of Ministers in the colony. We have Mr. Ballancb at Auckland, for instance, boasting of the- , loot; fchab' % 5 dompany-' paying £6000 under the property tax $ty : : ;'pow a '-}&ty"'. :.tP ! Again? fcbere I is the Act,, vvbich tells its own tj&le. English capitalists can study- the Act foe themaelyea. Tbere, they will fjtid jt special clause twpQ*iing aft e4ditiQaal: "iweitfy per centum "on a,ll absentee land owneni; |iu4 clause fraitned with the deliberate inteatioa. of taxing debenture holdere, although thoHo 4ept tbeW Wpney j Home to the Companies, and are in no or fprnt Jjftble to our legislation j op under *, qur cijnitrol, Wit h faqtf like these before them what other "CQnaluSjlj&g cariktUey possibly £r.rlW'ftt| I than that thejNew Zeaiaud Legislature has deliberately respited that foreign I ?aj4M4 i4v§sttf4 i» shall b$ 'epecially taxed, and taxed, aa Tlie .%imes 'Mfc to an amount wh?ch $m only be desenbe'd aa, ? f ferpciouV' In I ot\e respeefe, we admit, M>, I Uajs stated what to be teUe.;. Hβ «aye .tup.fc;ft*ukß.a¥e -nob to pay more than they did forrafcriyl It is the case that during the passage of the Bill through the House of Representatives special provision was made, at the instance of the Government, to place Banks on a different footing to other iustitutions dealing with money, notwithstanding the protest o! several members who claimed that all should be placed in the same position. But this leniency towards the Banks does not: relieve the Government from the charge generally

Jof eeeldng to impose special biirlT Joa capital, a paw of , fc L^: ttedly bofrowe * *■* iSa i 1* is unnecessary, howey*. • multiply instances. The ' R B Vf ' investors are not the faola Mr fir UKCB apparently takes them to th l lhey are always anxious to place tl, ' money where it gives theS tZ return for their & ml 2 would not be sending out InJtrSthS as they are undoubtedly doing i≥s numbers, to reali.ee their invWel ? had they confidence iv the future the colony and in the honesty of J Administration, Aa we remarked 2 other day, they do not caro a b≤! farthing about our political a^gg inthocolony ThePrenuorisuudert * pleasing delusion that those pe Z > are only helping the OppoaitioahS I and aro taking the steps they hi! I been doing in order to damage 5? I BamaNcs's Ministry. Why LX I they care whether hoi. in of the Treasury Benches or not W 1 their investments are safe and W 1 credit of the colony is eecure ? Go! * safe investments, at fair rates Z % interest, Rra not ao plentiful as Z ' enablcthemto play a game of th*tkind : Mr. Ballancb and his colleagues ma? be very important personages i v the;; own estimation, and they may think that; tho wholo English public' ar! watching their proceedings witU eu grossing eageniose,- but wo can assure tliem they are wofully mUtaken. h is simply heoause they have Ucome associated with a policy of plunder that they have received even a pasain* mention in the London financial newspapers. It i 3 i v tho n o lj cy . itself that the Kuglish investing are interested, aud nut in the uuf. - struggles in the colony. Indeed The i Times GxausQa itself for calling I tion to tho taxation measure of I seosion on the ground that f capital to the extent of 40 millions i 3 P invested on mortgage or ia direct pro> I prietoraliip in tbo colony; ,'fhe m, 03 . j tion therefore, says our ccutemporarv I is uofc " a matter of merely colqaijj j intereat." It ia 'as a 'Jpractioal " measure likely to affect the " agricultural prospects of Ne«? "Zealand," says the same joUroat " and through them tho profit*bb " returns of capital iuve3teJ tUgre •* that the Government soliome of taxation, " will be judged in tE|9 " country. Viovved iv this light, fe " aeema almoat impossible that the ■" effect can be anything bub dis«« " trous." Such ia the verdict of The Times after a oaroful review of : tHe provisions of tho Land and Income Tax Assessment Act;. Had our !- newly appointed Ageut-General set himself tho task of proving to hh \ friends iv the colony thai their eohetno ', was working serious havoc with our * credit at Homo; that it was preventing men with means from comiug here ? aud settling iv tho country; and that it w*s actually beginuing'to drain tlte colony of its ouly means of progress-* chaap capital—-he would have bo&& : bettor discharging his duties to Now ■ Zealand than by writing partiewi ' cdmninnicatjons to The Times iatb political interests of those who, appointed him to his present positioa, ;