A SCANDAL AND A DISGRACE

Greymouth Evening Star, 8 April 1910, Page 1

A SCANDAL AND A DISGRACE

—<».«*■ (id ini; Si i: i V. ,1II! i■,l el j .ij ~1 eel | ; 11 11 • ii'!'- linn ni;i\ interest \uii, a ll <{ will i ir< 'I hi ill \ 'ii um■ ci iiimi i i‘ra Me ci >m 11 1<■ 1 1 i. • year ihe ( 1.. M nmiciu passed v. hat • v ' iillcil Hie 1 tea lli i• u 1 1 1• s Arl. 11 was .-ii An winch was su |i[ii,mml I, ■ill'll''- it lightt r ..ii liic i■sia I< ■ w ihc ■n |:l 11 | "'"1 >lc. m 1! • ■ ell,’i Me lira \ ler 1a ! I'-i 1 ■ lie i' i! lee: c. I till .leal ii t'n .ie 1 lie I’M all'- el (ii.- weal 111 . . Wicit I ■'.■nil *' i Jell y i.a aln ait i- v. hai has .a tna 11 \ • -nine,l in ;in 11 1 ■ sI cine in i >nnoi lin miller ill,, new \et m which i!ni>' Ji.’is heed !>:;! 1 1. \ peer man. who

1 < ’>'• 'I in I?iislvn. -In i| I ,-' tin ntii. \!1 He 11 'i■ 1 mi the world amounted. when realised. l" £9?, The expenses of hi--mieral, .inner, ami sn nn aiiieimleil 1., ~13 5s (si, leaving £7B Ms &ii. The Mil iii'in by iim will i[in*i*tei 1 ill,al lus crave Was te lie ('lll’ll isc I ami (| si el l e pm lip. This was ,|elie, tin si toeing £lO. leav--1 I'M £6B 14s (1,1. He left liv his will ' lnee small amounts ef £lO eaeii te 'nine fneinls win, hail been kiinl in him when alive, ami win. ha. 1 helpcl him le live—-liar] nurscil him cuii(inu.all v, ami supplied his little wants. |[,. alsi. left ■’ M '"i "f £25 te a feiirth. win, had dune ""‘MI 1"|- liim Tierinns le the Heath Hnties Ae( el last year lie dnlv wh.at-'-vi-i would iiave been payable nn sneJi a !'ii if"! little estate. New however, a marvellous change has cotne ever the "‘•‘■'lf- A sum iif £7 17s 5d was demanded hv (lie (■nvernmeiil as deat h ; l .i" v ; that is 10 per cent ~n £7B 14s 6d. I his is supposed til he duly payable by Hie prisons wile receive tile little liytMi-ies already nienliiuiei), am! is snp- <" l, e I’,-lie,dated on the am,unit »"<HI lliese pie rereive. lint it is I'l’lfe. Ilv iwident fli.ll these legatees I" ‘ -ibh lerejve the ,am,Mint of Hie legacies given to them by i be will, !"i there lias le be deducted (he ann Ml 111 "i I ids duty ( £7 ,17s sd), £lO for Ihe ' l, ""'| fid ab mt £ll for rusts and e\ f 'raises of admin Ist rat ion. leaving less Hian £SO a, be .list ributed. Kv.m sup f ii>sincr that duly was ehan-ed mi the ‘"""'lit a valla Me In dis> rd',,),. m tin I *■* '■?}) f t I». • f ie ♦ , .. a. I rro

• ■ ' ' ■ •rj- - , ir ■■ U ’l> 'll, >);-:■ 'v * > 11 1,1 be 15 N' l ' cl I hejcss. ill,. I(i • I >;i II II1; ■li ( , .1! t. ■ 1 ;m (" Wellington. insist..,! on the slm ; "1 17s 5,1 being paid as (luty. Now. it seems to me si in |.l v .a scandal and a disgrace linn so poor and little,an ,-i;ite should |„. absolutely plundered in this wav. It is little less than dav- * 1 '-1111 ioniteryg 1 cannot conceive that in, min is o| I’a i lia men l were aware o| understood what the effect of the Act would lie. If they were, I cannot conn ive how they could possibly have liassed it in its present form. Probably tne majority of t hem km-w verv little al’onl the mailer, inti the framers .and .authors oi the measure had the knowledne. and must, he held responsible lor its contents. They cannot plead the excuse of ignorance or of overlooking the matter tlirmigh pressure of business. The lion. Dr. Findlay and the Stamp Commissioner should have known well the effect of the Bill, which

•'as their offspring. It is indeed grim iioin that the Ward D'overnmeul, who hniiilv professed, when introducing the Nd, that they were going to make it easier lor the small men and harder ■of the big ones, should, as a first remit of their measure in Dunedin, have collected from a pill try estate of £92 a inn of £7 17s sd, not one penny of "'inch would have been payable under I be old Act, besides probate duty (£1 10), and numerous other rlmri^s. Just as a matter of curiosity, I furnisli you with the list here' of the amount, paid to various flovernuient departments in connection with this poor lean’s few belongings : --Supreme Court.—

Total: £ll 15 5 Dr. Johnston wrote in the epitaph of Oliver Goldsmith; “Nihil letigit quod non ornavit.” In (ho epitaph of the Ward Government—now in course of preparation, I understand—it may well ho said : “They touched nothing that they did not bungle.” I am, etc., A. 11. BARCLAY. April Ist. P.S. —I am taking steps to bring this matter under the notice of the Press generally in Now Zealand.

''ilinjT affidavits, etc. . . £0 11 0 Probate duty . . 1 10 0 —Stamp Oflice.- - >.state duly .. £7 17 5 ■•(iinip on declaration .. 0 5 0 — Deeds Registration Registering dorlaration .. . . £0 18 0 Depositing conveyance .. . . 0 10 0 iearclt fee .. 0 2 0