VIENNA’S HARD LOT

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLV, Issue 287, 7 November 1925, Page 14

VIENNA’S HARD LOT

A CONTRACT WITH BERLIN. SOME “TERRIFIC TAXATION.” A visitor who arrived in Auckland this week by the Tofua is Dr. Richard A. Hermann, representative of several of the leading newspapers of Vienna, Prague and Berlin. J)r. Bermiiim iias come to New Zealand to make a study of Maori ethnology and to collect data to enable him to write a, memoir of the, New Zealand experiences of a countryman, Mr Andreas Keisrhck, who spent fourteen years in this country in the “seventies” and “eighties.” Mr Rcischek was a well-known authority on natural history, and was for some years taxidermist at the Canterbury Museum. He also helped to establish the Auckland Museum, and in the course of his research work formed a friendship with several of the leading Maori chieftains of the day. Dr. Hermann, who is a close friend of the son of Mr Rcischek, exhibited with pride a fine greenstone eardrop, given by “King” Tawhaio to Mr Rcischek many years ago, in token of admiration and friendship. While in Now Zealand Dr. Hermann will also make himself acquainted with the Dominion’s systopi of social ’legislation. SOCIALIST CIVIC CONTROL. Speaking of present-day life in Vienna and Herlin, Dr. Hermann said that, in spite of all the efforts that had been made to improve the pitiable post-war conditions in Vienna, the plight of the people was still deplorable. A Socialist system of civic control had been instituted in Vienna in 1910, hut although improvements had been effected in certain directions, the outlook to-day was very gloomy. The city had been cleaned up, the electric services restored and improved, public utilities placed on a better footing, and great improvements effected in the appearance of the city, hut this had only been accomplished by an enormous increaso in taxation, as the civic authorities were averse to floating loans. The taxation imposed on all forms of luxuries was terrific, said Dr. Hermann. One of the heaviest forms of taxation was upon private motoncars. servants and all the little luxuries and refinements of civilised life. The theatres and music-halls had almost been taxed out of existence, and the city’s financial administrator was easily the best-hated man in Vienna. It was only upon the rich and middleclasses that taxation boro so heavily, however, every effort being made to ease the lot of the poorer classes. THE HOUSING PROBLEM. One of the schemes put into effect by the authorities was the building of 25,000 Hats A large number of these had been completed, and were being rented at a nominal figure. The housing problem, however, was still terribly acute. Rents had dwindled almost to nothing as a result of depreciation of currency upon a law passed when the Republic was established in 1918, forbidding any increase in rent. As a result, people who were living in fiats practically rent free, refused to go out of them, while no new houses were being built by 'private enterprise to make good tile shortage. The speaker cited one interesting instance of a famous musician, who previously owned 45 houses, and drew a rental of about £SOOO a year. To-day the rentals barely covered maintenance and repairs, and the musician and his family were existing in a state of semi-starvation in one room of the beautiful villa that was his home. CONDITIONS IN BERLIN.

Conditions in Berlin were stated by Dr. Hermann to be incomparably betler. The factories were working, there was plenty of raw material available, and Germany was rapidly recapturing all her old markets, with marked' results upon the general conditions of life. The contrast between conditions in Germany and Austria were painfully marked. The separation of tlie latter Empire into independent States was not working out for tho good of the country economically, and was rapidly creating an impossible condition. Most of the industries remained in republican Austria, while all the raw products, coal and markets had gone to tho neighbouring States, which had achieved independent government and were not over-friendly towards Austria. The working people of Austria consequently had no outlet for their manufactures, while the heavy taxation which was placed upon all raw materials was still further crippling industry. There were only two ways in which Austria could hope to recover from her present plight—reunion of the old Empire, or by economic union with some other large and powerful nation like Germany. The former course was considered by Dr. Bormann to be practically impossible, and lie was of opinion that sooner or later some step toward cfconiomic union with Germany was inevitable if his country was to be restored to anything like" its old-time prosperity.