LAND AND ITS BURDENS

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLI, Issue XLI, 10 September 1921, Page 10

LAND AND ITS BURDENS

The single tax men. are ever oh tiie alert, aays a British newspaper. It would appear, however, "that 1A the ordinary course of events-their occupation will be gone. This result will follow, not because of the deliberate statutory acceptance of their "tW>r;ies, but through the operation of ordinary economic principles. In times past it was though^ a fine thing to be a laird; now ' it'is an honour of very doubtful advantage. Sales of agricultural land arestill going -on quietly, *nd landed proprietors " affe in .this way getting rid of responsibilities. In the case of certain grass parks in the west of Scotland the owner has paid in income tax and rates; 22s 6d in the £. This, of course, is exceptional and arises from the method of assessing for income tax in the case of ownership and occupancy ot grass parks. But in normal conditions almost similar results are seen, and the number, of mansion houses Falling into disrepair is an abiding witness to the rapid depreciation in value of that class of property.. Mot only is thi s the "case in 'so far as great houses are concerned, but the land around such houses and the woodlands are being allowed to "run wild,"' In /some cases this is due to the fact that the present beneficiaries are merely life-renters" and have no desire or interest to do anything bi*b take all they can out of th^ property for their own •personal aggrandisement. , When one sees estates andjhoine farms being allowed to .go to ruin, it is" necessary to , knotr^ all the facts before forming theories on the subject, which may be erroneous. Making jaflowancea>^for such cases, the fact remains that over all it is to-day a questionable privilege to hold the position of a landed proprietor. A statement has been made public iof the condition of things'on the Dukp of Buccleugh's estates in Dumfriesshire , and Roxburghshire. There are no morfcI gages on these estates^-surely a, unique r and mbst satisfactory condition of things. In 1912 the burdens per pound of rental, after deducting coats of man•agement, maintenance, and repairs, was 5s 6d; in 1920 the relative figure was 19s 7d. The net return- fnrom these estates in 1912 was £22,327; in $920 it was £468. The greater part of the increase in charges is due to increased rates and taxes.