The Hastings Standard. FRIDAY, NOV. 12, 1909 COMMENTS ON THE BUDGET.

Hastings Standard, Volume XIII, Issue 4309, 12 November 1909, Page 4

The Hastings Standard. FRIDAY, NOV. 12, 1909 COMMENTS ON THE BUDGET.

The New Zealander to-day who can intelligently follow politics must belong to the leisured class and not devote time to either horseracing, football, or beer. This is equivalent to stating that in the aggregate only about one in a hundred possesses more than a hazy idea of how the affairs of the country are being managed. The lengthy budget brought down by Sir Joseph Ward on Wednesday night provides an example showing how political pabulum can befed out to overwhelm the public's digestive mental organs. To make matters worse the Financial Statement has been carefully prepared with the object of pleasing all the little parties within the great Liberal fold and hoodwink those sheltering under Mr Massey's segis. Eliminating all issues except the most important, and frooi these again eliminating the unnecessary in the great multiplication of words contained in the massive document we find that we have before us proposed legislation dealing with the four important subjects : Land, Taxation, Defence and Licensing. In the land policy outlined by

the Premier we fail to see that it will bring the settlement of this lasting and contentious question one step nearer. One thing that must meet the approval of the bulk of the people is the avowed declaration that national endowment lands will remain to fulfil their purpose ot pro viding funds to meet the cost of higher education and old age pensions. That the holders of 999 years and renewable leases be given the option of converting their tenure to freehold is a proposal which must necessarily cause a split in the Liberal camp. It is a complete surrender of the nail-the-flag-to-tbe-mast policy which was declared by the late Mr Seddon and his followers a few years ago, and of which policy there are not a few adherents still in ; the House. The handing over to the State of a percentage of the increment on these lands makes the surrender appear all the more farcical, for it lis tantamount to acknowledging the State's right to the unearned increment on a 1 lands whether freehold or leasehold. The granting of any further freehold rights is but perpetuating the mistakes that have been made in the past. We hope that the House will refuse to give its consent in this direction. Next on the list comes taxation. It has come a? a shock to the people to know that one per cent Customs duty is to be added to all duiiable goods. The raising of revenue by indirect taxation is a system whiph should be discontinued i for it places the heaviest burden oa | the man who has the biggest family while allowing the people who play the solo game to escape- iNo great exception can be taken to the pro- ' posed increase in deathduties, but we are afraid the extra tax on banks will have to be be paid by the customers of those institutions. An increase in the graduated income tax may produce more revenue, but it is proable that as taxation increases the number of income*tax payers will decrease. Summed up taxation is increasing alLround notwithstanding the heavy retrenchments made this year. And taxation in the long run falls on the consumer. He is the man who has to pay, and the heavier the burden the greater the bar it is to progress. The defence proposal is going to be a big drain on this country, and the question arises whether we can afford it. One thing is certain, we must as a people live a more strenuous life. There -must be no idling away the time if we are going to build up a strong nation. Increased expenditure must necessarUv be accompanied by increased wealth, not imaginary wealth founded on fictitious land values, but wealth the resu't of increased production. The licensing proposals are dramatical!}' sensational. So much are they so that to comment on them to-day would carry us beyond the limits of our space. We shall speak of them at a later season.