THE LAND QUESTION.

Evening Star, Issue 4953, 17 January 1879, Page 1

THE LAND QUESTION.

Ist all the Colonies the. -land.*question" Snust ; necessarily btirnipg ;one.# On its ! prapgr; sqlutjqiv depeiudtß jsnudj degree; j the future destinies -of- the people, not onty jas regards that power and prosperity which spring from of : rights find the-absence of "extremes an-con- ■ ditiorijTbut the sociaf-and moral-being, which.' character and which cannot exist amongst the masses/.wbe^^ey^i^ : ;B9rfs|' : aS''but in j;name and have chance' above I the servile labor the'^ekly^pay.•' -In ;the settled i owing to the very nature of things, resolves itself rather;into one for JL the£politicaJ ecpno*" mist, than the. ; bases of which were settled perhaps centuries ago, are now. .developing: their fruits; systems good, bad^and 1 indifferent, according to the opinion'-of different iehoohv'of thought, but:apparently unalterable except by revolution. 'The lands are hopelessly, alienated and passed. Away" out of "•{&«s■ powjer of -Crown;and 'Parliatiieht. right and'vested wrong are . buttressed, up by. law and,.precedent; until, they practicaliy unassailable.; All: that canvbe d 6» is', -so far as possible, to 'modify'results to temper s the to the' shorn"'lamb. In Great Britain the,tenure : of the fee-simple o| the soil by' a- comparatively'few individuafi has, with the enormous increase of pop'ulat tion during the' last' fifty" years, brought inequality of., condition amongst the people to a point which .threatens danger toi the communwealth. Whilst' the few rich get richer day by day, until some .amongst thqn can hardly count their incomes, the totjiigj millions get comparatively poorer! _'. There is little hope for the laborer and working-man beyond a struggling life and a pauperis grave, the only bit of land there is ever a chance 'of acquiring. This is not' a things, nor can it be regarded wjthout nam and apprehension.;/.Fortunately)f 6r Engfcufid she "has her Colonies,; .and'inipeopliftg them, tbe strain: may; be-relieved which •is'now pressing upon her own overtaxed resources. Emigration upon; a large ;seems, indeed, the only remedy, which' cany reasonably be adopted with any prospect of success. The landed interest. u is. too .'powerful, -to ;.aU<Hv>of any hope in the.directipn pf df the evil',-:aß.we believe,it, >is not ibo firmly seated to ,be dealt with vbyanyj, legislation 'possible. In the Colonies/ 1 , with their future before themj anfd no irremediable 'post to contend.'; withy: the •' sfailds ;upon altogether ; a .'different;'basis.?- } $b'is- nbt'ii morbid carcass to :.bV 'theorised abbtrt .and dissected in it's.vari6us'. v tisSties; : for:tne entertainment of; political) anatomists, but it is a thing of life capable of practical treatment—of being.made the y«ry» soul, of our. polity, rock; stable "in "th'e"Security^ensured'" , by'a free and conteHfeM''population. It may be -argued that •in -New Zealand-the -mischief-' has- beenYdone fergeXlahded estates already exist*and 1 that Vested rights in the soil; haveYbeen treated >which cannot under any circumstances be interfered with. •Both facts- mayvbejadmitted ; the latter, however, .with certain qualifications, which we shall hereafter deaUvithJ, ev'er, a :vast area of -land?* ; ISTorth-Island, either by the'"Crown or the Native owners, and 4his will sooner or later come'to be dealt with under the land laws, of the Colony. So ■far the"heritage of the people is untouched, and no one; can denytheir right through) the constitutional channel of Parliament to d)o-ais they please with. their own.; But" r jv?e are quite prepared to advocate that'the "vested right" of the present is limited, and must give Way, if necessa)rs, to the general interests of the community, especially considering that these rights are of-very recent-acquirement, .and- have obtained' -rather ideliQto than de jure. Stuart,,MiLL,.rwhp Socialist, distinc.ly lays down that the " sacredness of property." Hoes not appertain iii the fcoffipaie degree to landed property. manj?'fne says, "made the land. .It is •'the.'original inheritance of the whole species:'- Its appropriation, is solely a question, of rgeiieral expediency. When private property tb'iajnk is not expedient) it is unjust." -And again : "The claim of the landholder !to; the-land is altogether.subordinate'.to :the/.gen : eral policy -of- the-State. The principle-of -properly gives, them no right to .the>.lanuy. bufrpnlja-a. right to compensation for whatever of their interestT;in.> the?/land it may be the ; policy of the State'.:to T afepfive ' tliehi "of. Tothat their' Maim indefeasible. ... . But, subject to this proviso, the State is at liberty to deal;witHlanded ■ property as.-the general ihe-com-muriitymay require, even to thVextent, if it so happen, of -doing with tlie .wholerwhat is done with a .part, T whenever'- a Bill is passed for a railroad or a) new:) street." Accepting, as, we are justified in: high authority; it appears to.be :beybnd any -reasonable doubt that the-Legislature-has power in the laws afFecSiigV'the tenure of land to make such laws'rßtrospective,,if so considered necessary in the public interest, and further to place the -temfe under restriction as. to the should such a course cbiriniehd itself tpparliamentary wisdom. - stating the proposition in fche widesi : and. ■significance; and we need' that aibitrarj' legislation of sucha'cbaraeSr is hardly likely to be proposed or adopted, although circumstances- may be conceived •under which so crucial a-policy might be justifiable. : The Attbrney-Gfeheral,' -.whose views uponthe laudquestion generallV'TOay probably be taken' to ■ represent those" bVithe most.advanced school.bf ; thought, dis'cu'sSid the subject at some length in his addressTio the electors last week,; and with a great deal of what he said we most • cordially, sympathise.; .With; aU/his T vagaries, iriteUectual and political, Mr Stout has in troth always been, to parody one of^; his'-'favorite expressions, ".spund on the land.j";and ; thas w.e may say, in pur opinion; covers -.'a: mnlti&tte of sins. '-He has consisten% : adv"©cated breaking up of runs'and'fe de-fferred-paymen4 systen\,and we:.ar.e glad.-,to hear that; haying. charge' of "tne' IportMo of he is, doing his utmost "to press forward settlement/ and people the interior with men and women instead of sheep.' Holding, as he dbes.'very strong opinions as to. the political evil of the absorbed'intio a-few beiipted that :he expressbs no approvll of anything, approaching a " bursting " policy, but indicates two ways) in which, the effect of gradual subdivision may be brought about: the French law of heritage, which. re3u l ta .practically in a.system of.small.and peasant proprietorship, or the imposition o'f a progressive 4and: tax,, which specially t«uches--up the possessor of-acres~over and above ,a : Certain:;fixed. and moderate maximum. In favor of the first schemethere is much to-be said, and--we shall take an opportunity of 4ully into the consideration of 'the fufc ject, which is far tdo important*!*) be disposed of in a few words at the end of an A progressive not,at all mcW tpsuDpjrt.;... It savors of penal legislation, and i S : altogether inconsistent with that "equaUty of ffghts an<i conditions' which Mr Stout andhisfrfends; so loudly advocate.,;. The existingteimre '*£ land may be altered by means-direct or indirect, but so long as that tenure is legal it is opposed to all erxcepliibnat taxation should be* imposed ' uponthe freeholder: Fiatjustitia f should ! be the abiding principle of every statesman. "Carried out to its logical conclusion.the greatest happiness, will result to the greatest number.

«_ - ...... ~ J For continuation of New Be-, Fourth Page.)