TAXING CROWN AND NATIVE LANDS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 36, 14 August 1880, Page 2

TAXING CROWN AND NATIVE LANDS.

At the last meeting of the Patea County Council, the Chairman (Mr. Dale) estimated that, if the financial proposals in the Colonial Treasurer's Statement were assented to, the rates to be derived from the Crown and native lands in the Patea County would amount to over £9000. The majority of the members were of a different ophaiom, and the Ohairxnam promised that he would telegraph to Major Atkinson on the subject. Instead of £9166 135., which Mr. Dale estimated would come to the coffers of the council, he now finds that the amount will be only about £350 ! At the time when Mr. Gavin, the Secretary to the Treasury, sent round his circular to the local bodies, warning them of the impending withdrawal of the subsidies, we entered our protest against such a course, and pointed out the injustice it would inflict on sparsely-populated districts, but more .especially in counties where there were large tracts of Crown and native lands. Wn need only point to the amounts laying to the credit of the counties and road districts in the Middle Island to prove the truth of our assertion. Whilst the local bodies in the North Island are in a state of impecuniosity, the county councils and road boards in Canterbury have large sums to their credit. If the Government wish to deal equitably with counties in a similar position to our own, it will require something more than 5 per cent, of the estimated capital value of 20s. per acre for Crown lands, and 24 per cent, for native lands. We would suggest that a special meeting of the Council should be called, ere it he too late, to protest against the withdrawal of the subsides from counties where there happens to be such large areas of Crown and native lands as there are in this. We feel sure that the co-operation of other bodies has only to. be asked, in order that some strong pressure may be brought to bear to prevent such a cruel injustice being done. We quite recog i nise the difficulties under which the Government labor, but the sop they have thrown to Cerberus is of such a wretched nature that they had better have kept it altogether. Then we should have known our exact position. There is only one redeeming feature in the affair, and that is, that the right of taxing native lands — although only to an infinitesimal "extents-will be at length established, if the proposals of the Colonial Treasurer are carried out.