PASSING EVENTS.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1666, 3 February 1904, Page 49

PASSING EVENTS.

History is philosophy teaching b» e®. amnios. —Thucydides. The lau<d question is being revived. Those favourable to the nationalisation of land have renewed an agitation in 1 favour of the State’s becoming the sole landlord that has been as intermittent ' as the smali-pox scare. Theory and art gument are strongly in support of nationalisation, but custom and Jiuman desire are stronger far than, the fine presentation of the case by the land nationalisation party. It would have r been more desirable, doubtless, had the - State never parted with an acre of the *, land, and simply rented it under a'least- > ing system that would hav© permitted/ 1 of period.cal revaluation. B;at the time has gone by for the wide-spread appli- - cation of any nationalisation scheme, . beyond what has already been instituted, although it is feasible that taxation of the Crown lands let in terms of tho .' lease in perpetuity and revaluation at stated periods might be engrafted upon - the present method of repurchasing for closer settlement the large estates that- . impede the progress of both town and country. Those favourable to nationalisation are doing good work in diverting attention to these anomalies in the existing land system. It is manifestly * unfair when one section of oiar agricultural community is taxed on the . free- r hold and another section escapes simply because they hold land from the. Crown. If a lease is held from a private individual, then the rent is either, so miich higher or lower provided) the. tenant. , pays not pay the rates and taxes. v In the case of the Crown tenant it cannot he said that the taxes are included in the rent, since the rent is fixe/t upon the capital value plus so mrach for roading and other improvements effected by the State after the acquirement of the property. • And ' when the freeholder is his own landlord. he has to pay taxation, so. that it ‘ would appear as if the /State tenant is better off than either the leaseholder from a private individual, or the former occupying and working his own freehold. Yet the nationalisation party would destroy this inducement to l settle upon the land under existing circumstances. They regard the present sys- . tern of buying-big estates, for closer settlement as impolitic. Indeed, one speaker, more -infatuated and more . prone to hyperbole than the others,-. - spoke of the ■"land settlement policy of the.. Government as ’“the maddest ever initiated,” and “a specimen of national . insanity.” It is notorious that these phrases have been employed, hy the , same individual in tho denunciation of ! “another sett 1 eel policy” of the .country, and their application to our,laii(l ‘set-/, tlement system as at present carfied oh > may be regarded!: as eyidenic©:’ : <)f;it|(e: / I’nvte'cT; vocabulary qf the speaker. ...Be - that as it may.! the demand for land i* •

increasing[&n&settlement is proceeding apace under ihie existing laws. Whether Crown tenants are te be permitted to the freeholds of their £r<>* portiqs-iSf another question, but it seeing the-agitation, of the nationalisation party , wilt . hot . stifle the ainbitian of most inen to possess a ffiece of'land of their Own : and we do not think that all opportunity to procure a freehold should be removed. Limiting the areh, freeholds are hot objectionable ; they are desirable. What is best for the individual under certain restriction is best for the country, and most men prefer the freehold. * It is remarkable, however, that those who balk most theoretically about hmd have had >5 east to do with it practically.

- . ‘The *Premier has taken a strong stand ;■ in' the matter of enforced Chinese labour in tho Transvaal gold mines. Many of his oritics do-not understand why Mr Seddon should protest as Premier of New Zealand against the importation of Chinese into the Rand. The Premier is aware that tho Chinese have a demoralising influence in any community. He knows that the scheme for which the Rand mine owners are working is the literal enslavement of the Chinese, anrl that the degradation of the yallow race in South Africa would retard the settlement of the country by British, p opl e. Some argue that (Mr Sqddon is placing himself in h. position similar to that taken up by Paul; Kruger when that exPresident of the republic would not admit British- subjects to tho franchise of his country. •’ Apparently there is some analogy, but the marked difference i» that the people sought to bo exv eluded in the present case are not yet there, and their adm ssion would not be a gain to the sociai or political life of the inhabitants. Besides, if the millionaires of the Rand had their way, the Chinese would be little short of slaves ■ __ f lid 0"ts”-~ and against such .practice® the. moral force of this and other colonies ought to be impelled. But by what right, it is asked, does 4 New Zealand seek to interfere? Why should Mr Seddon attempt to influence the public policy of the Transvaal and aspire to give some leading to the Imperial authorities? It was at the Premier’s invitation that thousands of New Zealanders gave their services to the Imperial cause in, South' Afnca. Our sons fought the battles of the Empire in the interests of those the Boer -'oligarchy was oppressing; and it was expeoted that the British and other white people would be encouraged to settle in and develop the country. It is on this account that Mi* Seddon, as the representative of New Zealand, is called upon, to speak, and his rfrije utterances have commanded attention and jrespscfc* Some, like Sdr Wilfrid liiuxier, consider that the people of the Transvaal ought to be allowed to settle the question for themselves. That is true, and did the colony possess responsible, self-government the issue ( might safely be left with the inhabitants; but the Imperial authorities, forgetful perhaps of the part this and other portions of the Empire have played..in 'the.South. African, drama, are being reminded that this county and Aus- / trrfia ia taking a lively interest in the administration of the Transvaal, and th*b the * admission of the Chinese as “helots” to South Africa is calculated v to embitter public feeling in, these parts against the Imperial authorities and raise a disturbing issue in this country itself. We" did not help to win South tAfirica. for the British crown in order , that it might bo made the damping ■ground for thousands of Chinese; anil the minority report of the Commission - showed that their importation was not • necessary, to the ' development -of the - Rand mines. If native labourers are not available, white and highly-skiled workers are better and cheaper in tho long run. Under the circumstances, there does not appear to be any necessity for the introduction of Chinese into the Rand.

1 ' - The ghost of Cob-den is still stalking forth in the speeches of Viscount Goeclien, SU- Henry Campbell-Banner-man, and Mr Asquith. The first-named has this week denounced Mr Chamberlain’s whole argument as “a series o'f dangerous fallacies.” His lordship admitted -that trade depression is creeping over British industries, but the adoption of a measure of protection is not, ho contends, the oure. The unemployed ■ may increase, and employers and manufabtjurers may close their . factories and transfer their capital abroad to couna trios-where 1 protection prevails, and V a-coimt-Goschen, the Duke of Devonshire aad Others. Wjould glory m an England ' denuded -of its capital and population. A Viscount Goschen.- complains that- Mr Chamberlain is accusing., his opponents : ; of ? being barren of Imperial instincts; ; biife surely it is n. confession of such - baa*renness when his opponents offer no ■ IreSwfciAnce to the inroads being made (uptrade and industry by foreign riVate’J' ’<Proposing no remedy, they things drift; pie policy of ■ drift;hSe : more than once come near to ;Great Brita'n’s undoing, .ssd Mr Cham"t>wlaiiJ?'woul<l rouse the-nation tod. the ■Einpiref--to - a realisation of i-s • dagger. ’’ iWhjiejf Sii* . .Henry Campbe V-B a niion nan laments that protection is now pis coil rin

the forefront of the battle by the unabashed Mi* Chamberlain, it was formerly screened by the ex-Secretary. This Is hardly a correct statement of the case. Mr Chamberlain has not from the beginning hesitated to declare that he wanted protection for British workmen arid British manufacturers against the unfair competition of foregn countries whcMafer© underselling English traders in their own markets; and tor the purpose of compel I .ling foreign countries that now exclude British goods he' desired the power to enter into vec procal arrangements to the advantage of his countrymen. Mr Chamberlain has demonstrated that British trade is languishing, and he has. proved to the workers that what he proposes would stimulate trade and place them on an equal footing with the workers of other countries. But the, Cobden Club protests against Mr Chamberlain’s statements about languishing trade, and denounces them as “ludicrous exaggerations.” Yet Viscount Goschen admits, we are told, in the same cablegram, that there is no doubt about the trade depression m Great Britain, and that hundreds of thousands are out of empioyment. Still, Mr Asquith declares, like the Cobden Club, that there is nothing the matter with British trade. Mr Oh&mberiaiii, with apt illustration, answers them all. “I wonder.” ho observes, “if Mr Asquith were walking down the street, and he hoard a man crying for help, and saw another standing over him with a bludgeon —I wonder what he would do ? I gather that he would call in a friendly tone, and say. “Wait a bit; you are not killed yet. When you are lam going far a policeman.” This is “a dangerous fallacy” to Viscount Goschen, “a ludicrous exaggeration” to the Cob-den Club; but to the man of any business acumen, it is extremely near the mark and decidedly appropriate.

“There is room in this country for sixteen millions of people.” This was the remark of a gentleman the other day ’in our hearing, who, having hut recently come to New Zealand, was yet able to form an estimate of its popula-tion-carrying capacity. The t me will come when the inhabitants of this country may exceed the figure named, but as yet we are fewer in number than the inhabitants of the third city in the Empire. Wo, are a mere handful of people, and we are not increasing as rapidly as we ought. The country offers many attractions to outsiders. Its free social and political conditions are powerful incentives to emigration from older countries,, and even the ease with which we 11-watered land may be taken j up is a powerful attraction to the Anis- j tralian farmer, who has suffered during the past .decade so much from drought. While two thousand people reached this country last year from Great Britain, nearly ten thousand came from Australia, and w© have no doubt that the inducements to settlement here and the general prosperity of the colony as compared with any of the Australian states were the means of 'Causing so satisfactory an influx of population. There is a strong and steady demand for agricultural workers, and the reason for that is, doubtless, the facilities offered to land settlement by the Government. For years farm labourers and the eons of farmers have been taking advantage of the land settlement schemes of the present administration, and instead of being servants they ‘have become farmers and employers themselves. The development of the dairying industry has still further stimulated the demand for labour m the best parts of the Wellington and Taranaki provinces; b*ut the want of agricultural labour has been felt in all parts of the oountry. There is a fine field-foil hardworking settlers, and the Government is doing weld in advertising the advantages of New Zealand, with its equable climate, its productive soil, and its free institutions' over those of other parts . of the Empire, ’where “the winter runs half through the year.” The Premier has frequently observed that what this country wants is population; and-»l- j though it is said that much is done to give the colony a bad name h.nd keeppeople away, we find them coming m upon ns last year at the irate of one thousand a month. Still, when we recall the f act that nearly as many people emigrate" from Great Britain, every month as enter New Zealand in twelve; fno/iUiVi’ wt cannot but/ come to the conclusion' ' that- thousands - 1 ofv irretrievably lost to the Empire,- while in the oversea possession of his Majesty there

is room enough for all. Great Britain in twenty years has lost two and a-lialf millions, and her annual loss lias been increasing during the past decade. Any effort to retain these emigrants as British subjects is highly praiseworthy, and their - attraction to New Zealand*., would greatly assist in the progressive and successful development of this country. The necessity for population in New Zealand cannot be too wideily proclaimed.