The Evening Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 1879.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 886, 17 February 1879, Page 2

The Evening Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 1879.

Tfttß tand question is both targe and important; and, judging from the signs of the times, we are warranted in- anticipating the hippy prospect 06 its being dealt with during the ap* preach in;? Session of Parliament in a manner somewhat commensurate with its importance. It would be welt for nttr legislators to examine the land taws of the neighboring Colonies and of othercountries, and we trust that some at least of them tind pleasure in doing so. Ttie Attorney-General, we know, holds very advanced opinion* upon this tprestiom and in those opinions he U supported by some of the most profound and advanced; thinkers of the age. Opinions deliberately urged by Jorra S'trAE-T Mta and iiKtviuwvc S/peSitkk in the Old Country. and fiKORUB and Boliert Stun? on this side- of. the fftobe. are at once removed from the arena of ridicule :: and. however speculative or adventurous they may appear, are worthy of. careful and patient io.vestkattotv. There is always in every community a timid element which becomes scared, and, worse stilt, a selfish element dreading nothing so much as the faintest prospect <■ > f interference with " vested rights "—vested rights, and monopty, according to the vocabulary of the last mentioned, being synonymous terms. We easily recall the ridicule of some horn members during fast session when Mr. Swc'C spoke- of the " unearned increment." Those who- jeertngty asked " Wtiat is the unearned increment i" displayed their ignorance of the wholesubject under discussion; and that ignorance- became s<> painfully apparent as to- demonstrate the necessity for some rudimentary examination in the- dements of Pbtit.ieal Economy,or the boys' History of England. Whilst thus expressing ourselves, we wish it tt-* be understood that we do not commit ourselves to- the extremeviews fieht by Sir, StoFT and the school in which he has graduated, But we freely admit that, in theory at least, they are defensible, and are such as showtd evpke from men with heads upon their shoulders some more substantial opposition than laughter or ridicule. The t£ttestton is so pregnant with importance, and its fullcat and most intelligent discussion so-desirable, that we shall be sorry if those who- profess such advanced 5 views wilt allow themselves to be vanquished by such weapons. We claim for this subject catm and impartial consideration in Parliament, for whilst .inch attvanced the.iri---t.-t a,* those we have mentioned must ever be in the minority, they serve a noble purpose, and present an ideal at least for which communities may with advantage strive; a lofty standard by which other and rival opinions may bu gauged. The moat important ingredient in the creed ef such rfwta'natm is the teasing system which they would apply t(> knds whatsoever. The advocates of extreme view* in this direction maintain that all land* held En fee simpt" «tb.iirlvt. b" ri-.surmed Ky a process,

with Mic lives '4 r.he prtwtvt sj"! we ration. The Cfuvtu-nnu-ivf. whuUl thus have the reversion <>f such, brut* vested in thetnswlvbs a* trustee for the people, thus becnminir. with some limitations, the ht»ir!«-i*t:-Uw i>f listing owners, cpmportsat„... • • . t M itue of such t-uids. and ; Uu:ng secured to 6ft» exßCUttH'* *'. «fAk»ei*nt j>K*.|ieifaea. inis is, irwJesdi,, very advanced thinking; and we doobt tf. for many years to come, the dreaxaa of the crigiaaton and advo-

catca of such a theory will be, to*, any appreciable extent, realised by the adoption of their favorite views, even in pari, by any English speaking community. It is argued by some, who have been almost wholly overcome by the reasonableness of the policy, that it would be now too late in the day to introduce such an idea for the conservation of the people's patrimony. The advocates of such advanced views, however, profess that they would be content with the application of the principle to all lands still in the possession of the Crown. They propose that, instead of selling the lands of the Governments should lease them for a period of years under such conditions as would secure to the lessees the utmost security of tenure; but that such leaseholds should be valued fairly at wide intervals, the State thu3 becoming the sole landlord, any increase in value arising fmm the prosecution of public works or the natural growth of the Colony—the -unearntd increment (for to tin's these terrible and mysterious words refer) —remaining the property of the State. This method ha 3 I>een tried on a small scale, and is at this moment in operation with regard to pastoral lands and the properties of corporate bodies — those of our own Town Council and Harbor Board, for instance. It is this latter aspect of the question which we think is at least worthy of careful and intelligent consideration. Land differs from all other kind* of property whatsoever. You cannot manufacture it or increase its extent by a single acre. It is the only thing needful for the sustenance of the human race. It is Goo's gift to man ; a noble and priceless; heritage, which can never be diverted from the purpose for which it was originally intended without a violation of the Divine Law. An increase in the material value of lands in all civilised *»mimmtties is inevitable, ami it is this process, indcpendentl}- of exertion or ability on the part of large land-owners, which contributes to the aggregation of vast properties in a few hands, so disastrous to the progress; of any country, and transforms, as. more particularly, in large portions of the Highlands of Scotland, sequestered villages and cultivated fields into sheep walks, or worse still, into game preserves ; the wretched inhabitants beitvy thus driven from the homes of their fathers—the hallowed spots they loved so well—to become wanderers and horn-teas. It" in a comparatively short period—for fifty years is but a haud'sbreadtti in the history of a nation—such fundamental changes have become effected —a complete revolution of the whole social fabric*—and this, too, in obedience to an inevitable law—what would be the inference to bo deduced i Is it not thus that the entire lands of any country may becntne in process of time the property of ■a sinv'te individual, who may, in exercise of his right, employ it for what purpose he pleases. The doctrinaires of whom we have written put the case thus broadly for us, and there is surety some food for thought in such an astounding conclusion as they so logically force upon us. We cannot pursue ttie subject further at at present, but may perhaps fee! compelled to revert to it rut a future occasion. We shall K? sjtad it our necessarily cursory 'j'tartec at the fundamental principles held by the advanced school of land reformwilt aid our readers in comprehendin-_' Client for themselves, even if they go n» further than we have done at present, and regard the question as *<»'» y->ll>-.