THE SINGLE-TAXERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11734, 16 August 1901, Page 3

THE SINGLE-TAXERS.

TO _ THE KDITOJt. Sir, In your issue of to-duv\s date there appears a letter from Mr. .Samuel Vaile, having reference to "Messrs. Fowlds, Sprang, and C 0.," and the late contest, and as I presume I have the honour to be included in the " c 0.," I claim space for a short reply. Mr. \ aile says: "No set of men have ever created so much ill-feeling in Auckland as tho single-taxers have done." My reply is that such is ever the case when truth meets error, and that the ill-feeling is not on the side of single-taxers, but on the side of some of our opponents, is amply proved by Mr. Vaile's letter under consideration. That we have been defeated of course we are aware, so also have of he. reforms in the world's history _ suffered temporary defeat. So did the British at Tugela until learning lessons by their defeats they passed on to success and victory. So we, although temporarily defeated, have no fear as to the ultimate triumph of truth, and that Ladysmith will be eventually relieved we have not tiio shadow of ci doubt. Mr. Vaile again accuses Mr. Fowlds of contradicting himself during the course of the contest, in stating in one place that land values would go down, and in another that they would go up. Mr. Fowlds, to my own mind, was perfectly correct in both his statements. I believe that if rating on unimproved values had been carried land values for speculative purposes would have gone down from their speculative to their using value, but as all taxes (for city purposes) would have been removed from industry in every form, there would rapidly have been given to land an increased using v.'luo in consequence. Personally, I believe that it would be an excellent tiling to cheapen land, for if any body of men had by any process, got possession of God's sunlignt, I take it that wo should be conferring a benefit on humanity if we could invent any process whereby that sunlight could bo cheapened if. we could not do away with the iniquitous monopoly altogether. As to Mr. Fowlds having broken his electioneering pledges, I may say that as chair man of his centra! election committee I was at practically all his election meetings, and in my opinion he has not in any v-ay violated his promise made that he would not, as their representative, either vote for or advocate more than one penny increase in the £ of the land tax of the colony. As to Mr. Vaile's statement re London and Glasgow's demand for power to rate 011 unimproved values, I may say that there has arrived in the colony a copy of the Commission's report 011 the subject, which I expect will be in my hands in the course of a few days, when I shall be glad if you will (for the information of the public) publish a fair synopsis of it. As to whether Mr. Fowlds has " a kink in his conscience and a crevice in his brain," I leave your readers to judge. I only want to say that I am finding out that honourable men 011 both sides of this question are expressing their disapproval of these unfair, ungentlemanly personal allusions. — am, j etc., Thos. Webb. i Auckland, August 12, ISOI.