Rangitikei Advocate. THURSDAY, JULY 18. 1907. SECOND EDITION. EDITORIAL NOTES

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXII, Issue 8867, 18 July 1907, Page 2

Rangitikei Advocate. THURSDAY, JULY 18. 1907. SECOND EDITION. EDITORIAL NOTES

“THE revenue for the year exceeded eight, millions, the highest on record,” says the Treasurer in the .Financial Statement. It would therefore be strange, indeed, if the Treasurer could not at least protend to give the taxpayers some relief. For eight millions of money is a largo amount to extract from the pockets of less than a million people in a single year, especially when it is remembered that more than half the number are dependents. But while the tariff has been altered for the supposed benefit of the class who pay no taxation except thisnigh the Customs, any reductions which have been made a.ro more than balanced by increases in ocher directions. The tariff question, indeed, seems to have been attacked mainly for the purpose of enabling the ■printers, caudle-makers, confectionery makers, and a few others, to charge higher prices for their manufactures. The alterations, however, qre of a kind that will have no effect whatever in reducing the cost of living, which will continue to iucrease, A sop has been thrown to the Labour Cerberus by altering the tariff on potatoes, so that no mattter how scarce the local product may bo, how poor the return the farmer gets from his laud, tho duty shall never exceed £1 per ton. In one respect flie Treasurer has acted abolishing the sheep duty which has extracted large sums from the sheepowners long after th,ero was any reasonable excuse for its continuance. This abolition has been tho result of ] the action of the Farmers' Union j and vigorous attacks in tho press, and the Union may therefore fairly claim that it has been the moans of saving the sheep farmers £20,000 a year. Another matter that will bo appreciated is the reduction of interest on tho loans of local bodies, who have been charged too much in tho past. Speaking generally, though tho tariff has not been very greatly increased for purely protective purposes, there is yet a considerable advance for that purpose, aud wo trust to see some members make efforts to secure reductions. The most disappointing feature \u the Statement is that although the revenue lias been the highest on record our public debt has actually increased during the year by nearly two millions, and now amounts to the huge total of sixty-four millions of money—an enormous burden of nearly £IOO per head on tho 400,000 breadwinners, who are its real

bearers. Surely some effort should be made to reduce that heavy liability while our products are realising good prices and times are comparatively prosperous, but all the result our Treasurer can show from largely increased and record revenue is a further addition of two millions to the public debt. This is what the Ministerial journals call “strong finance,” The Statement, however, contains in itself evidence that so long as the present party mismanage affairs there will be no reduction of the public debt, but a continuous increase. For it is clear that the Ministry's only idea of dealing with larger revenue i.s to incur more departmental expense. Last year considerably more than

half the total increase of revenue was spent on increased cost of working the departments. In other words, the cost of running the departmental machinery last year increased by nearly half a million. This represents an increased cost of over 10s per head of the total population, man, woman, and child, for tiie privilege of being misgoverned. While the Statement shows that — thanks to good markets for our produce—the people are able to boar very heavy taxation, it also shows that those administering their affairs are taking no thought for the future.

THOUGH the tariff question is still of gravo-importauco it is the laud, proposals which will create the most controversy and excite the greatest bitterness. They are intended as attacks on the users of land, who for some reason are always singled out for spoliation by socialists. Why there should bo such hostility against the men who are using the land and creating the wealth of the country is unaccountable, except that certain natures are envious, and that there are modern Davids who covet the vineyards of Nabotlq and .there is no prophet to effectively rebuke them. The proposals, however, contain evidence that the party in power are shockingly incapable of dealing with the laud question in a proper manner. For instance, some time ago they extolled the loaso-iu-perpotnity as the climax of all laud legislation, and now they have boon compelled to reailso that it is a bad bargain for tiie State. To escape the difficulty which lias been created they now propose to make a baragiu with the lessee, giving him the option of the freehold at a price to bo fixed by arbitration. Tin's Ministry, therefore, which so strongly advocates the leasehold, now offers freehold tenure for surrender of that loasoiTold^tenure which was acclaimed

as perfect. We believe it will be better to extinguish that tenure as early as possible, but the Ministry are surely inconsistent, seeing also that they propose to lock up three million acres on leasehold tenure for ever. This latter proposal. ft» we have pointed out in a previous article, means that the country lands are to be made to pay tribute to town institutions. The rentals, ever increasing as the country laud user improves, will all go to bo expended in the towns. In our opinion the endowment proposals are the most objectionable of all, aud they should thoroughly arouse the country party gainst the town party. The graduated tax proposals, of course, wiU only affect a few and probably there will be litt.c sympathy with the sufferers who are to ho specially penalised to the amount of £70,000 next year. It is easy to look ou while others are being plundered, but the injust.ee remains. If the tax is applied it should certainly solve the question of breaking up the large estates. There are some other features of the Statement to which we shall refer in a future issue.

SENSIBLE Americans are no doubtdistressed over the development of hostile! feeling against Japanese in California, and it is not likely that the nation as a whole will care to risk war to serve the purposes of a small but noisy section. Recent telegrams make it clear that the antagonism is being excited by'moborators, some of whom are even attempting to create a belief that ,I'pau intends to ipvade America. It is regrettable that men who excite the passions of an nation, aud^ endeavour to plunge it into couiflet with others, cannot be restrained or adequately punished for their crime against humanity. Though our sympathies, if any conflict occurred, would have to be with the white race and Western civilisation, one cannot help admiring the calm manner in which Japanese statesmen are acting on this occasion, and most will agree with the Japanese Ambassador’s declaration that it is a hideously wicked act to try to involve tbo two Powers in war. There is a striking contrast between the wild ravings of Californian moborators and the studied courtesy of the Japanese. The latter should do much to excite bettor feeling on the part of the majority in the States. But in auy case it is (doubtful whether Japan would venture into a conflict with any Power just at present, because of the heavy taxation which is still being levied on her people on account of the war with Russia. It is also doubtful whether she could raise the necessary i,nouey to enable a campaign to bo conducted, and. in those days war cannot bo carried on .without funds. Also, in spite of all Tier gratification at. the victory over Russia, and the world’s acclaim, there is little duobt that the Japanese themselves fully realise that they wore fighting against Russia with everything in their favour. The information that lias boon made public as to the disgraceful surrender of Port Arthur, following, the revelations of Russian corruption, loaves no doubt that the war was not a fair trial of strength between the two nations, aud that Japan’s skill in warfare' has liecn greatly overrated.