AUCKLAND ANTI-POVERTY SOCIETY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIX, Issue 8785, 27 January 1892, Page 5

AUCKLAND ANTI-POVERTY SOCIETY.

•™ The annual meeting of the Auckland AntiPoverty Society took place yesterday even- ,. i»g at Wesley Hall, Mr. Adam Kelly u presiding. There was a very moderate e attendance. An apology for absence was '-■ received from Sir George Grey, who was tc !" have taken the chair, bub could not attend j owing to the delicate sbato of his health. i Mr. F. G. Platt, the aecrocary, read the . annual report, whioh was chiefly a dej fence of the principle of land taxation, and . a criticism of the opposition shown to the r policy of tho present Government. The s socioty were congratulated upon tho pro . grese of the cause, inasmuch as the taxation ( of land values is the foremost political quesf( tion to-day.. Ono of the most encouraging 3 signs, tho report went on to etat.o, was the . formation of associations with the express . object of opposing their aims—associations , which had adopted vague and elastic plat- . forms, seeking to cajole the public with a semblance of national aims and aspirations. p The people, however, recognised that land- • lordism was tho only thing they were , anxious to conserve. The report complained . strongly that the aims of the Society were misrepresented by their opponents. Regret was expressed that Sir Georgo Grey, \ thoir president, had not boon able to at- . tond the meetings, though he had shown , in various ways his sympathy with the , movement. . Mr. G. Pjsacocke moved the adoption of , the report. Though the Society objected to some of the features of the taxation policy, they believed that the Government , were moving in the diroction of the goal that they had in view, a substantial , land tax upon unimproved land values. j In an editorial note in the Hekald a few , days ago, it had been stated that nearly all . endowments had been misappropriated and jobbed, and eventually lost in many cases. This was a very sweeping assertion", considering that we had in Auckland a most j flourishing , corporation with a very large revenue, supported entirely by endowments —the Harbour Board. How would the i Calliope Dock have been built if it had not beeo for the Board's endowments? There had been, it is true, misappropriations of endowments, but had there not been misappropriations of Government money in othor ways ? They had heard of misappropriations of borrowed money in the building of political railways, boforo the land tax was thought of; but immediately the tax was passed cries arose that members of Parliament and others supporting it were thieves. It whs quite clear from the reckless way in which tho opponents of the present legislation were acting, croaking about capital leaving the country, creating tho evil they pretended to dread, that they muse havo eome motive for their bitter and intenso opposition. They need nob bo afraid of the eocalled National Association, who carao before the public with a general programme undor which any Liberal could join, but afterwards put forward propositions to which no Liberal could eubscribo. The National Association, they would find, would die a natural death—in fact, it was half-moribund already. (Applause.) Mr. Peacocko denied the charge made against tho Anti-Poverty Society, that they wished to tako away tho land from those who occupied it. The idea they had w«a to make tho possession of the land conditional upon tho performance of certain duties to tho State, ono of tho duties being tho contributing to the cost of Government. Though he did nob agree with the imposing of special taxes to reach anybody, ho supported the absentee tax, for an absentee was an alien so far as tho colony was concerned. Mr. Napikr congratulated the Society upon the fact that tho great principle for which it had struggled had at last been embodied in tho law of tho land, he hoped irrevocably. Ho believed that tho poople had become so convinced of the wisdom of a land tax that it would be absolutely impossible for tho INation.il Association to roll back the tide of political progress. A land tenure which resulted in the creation of a few wealthy men, and tho creation of an enormous mas* of ptuipern, plunged in tho greatest tnieery, phould bo abolished. The report whs adopted. Mr. K. Batty, who recently returned from Victoria, said that tho people of that colony wore not so far advanced on the question of land reform as those it: New Zealand. Mr. EwiNOTON' thoughb ib rather a pity that there had boon introduced into an otherwise excellent report sotno disparaging remarks with regard to tho Association. They had complained of misrepresentation, and yet in their report they had deliberately made statements with regard to another association which had not attacked them in any way—("Oh ! oh !") —and had imputed bad motives to that association. They ought to believe as much in the good faith of the National Association until they got proof to the contrary, us tho members of that association, and tho peoplo of the community should believe in tho good faith of those belonging to the Anti-Poverty Society. The members of tho latter society had banded thomselvos together to try to abolish poverty and misery in this world, and those who comprised the National Association hud also that object in view ; but ho warned them that that end would be much more quickly achieved if they exercised trust and good faith towards each othor. Mr. Pkacookk maintained that thoy had a right bo criticise tho proceedings and platform of an association established in opposition to them. Tho two associations were totally opposed in prinoiplo, and therefore there could nob bo any unity botween them. Mr. A. Withy spoko ab some lengbh, defending tbe principle of a bax on bhe unimproved values of land.