VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

Taranaki Daily News, 6 March 1934, Page 9

VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

VIEWS ON CURRENT TOPICS , MR. BELL AND SINGLE TAX. “ATTITUDE NOT SUBSTANTIATED.” (To the Editor.) Sir,—l really must thank Mr. Bell for the friendly attitude he has adoptee, throughout this discussion on the proposed method of raising revenue by collecting economic rent known as “single tax,” and though he has failed entirely to substantiate the attitude he took upin his first letter, and failed again to disprove my reasoning as to the advantages the system would be to fanners if adopted, I do not think the time has been wasted. Adopting the role of a prophet, as in his last letter, does not matter. What matters most is whether the system can stand investigation. If Mr. Bell had read “Progress and Poverty,” and thoroughly grasped Henry George’s axioms that there are three factors in production—land, labour and capital, with their returns—economic rent, wages and interest, he would find that under these divisions the nation’s activities would group themselves in orderly manner, clear to the understanding of the ordinary mind. He would not have stated, as in his first letter, that e farmer would pay under “Single Tax” the bulk of his returns to the Treasury, nor would he, as in his last letter, have included and confused a farmer with a land-owner. Mr. Bell must know there are hundreds of farmers who are not landowners, and probably hundreds of landowners who are not farmers. His first example I took as dealing with a farmer who did not own his land, and proved that as a farmer he would be benefited by the change to the extent of£Bs per annum in his payments. Our contention is that the present system of ownership of land (or economic rent) gives the power of buying, selling, mortgaging and withholding land from use, a power that is detrimental to the com- ■'

munity as a whole, and our controversy has dealt with;its influence on a farmer as a farmer only in contradistinction to a landowner. In Mr. Bell’s last letter he introduces another phase, and makes farmer No. 2 a landowner, presumably free of debt. This example is not quite on all fours with his previous one, but in this instance he-may or may not pay more by the collecting of economic rent than he does, under present As- a landowner, he may pay more, or about the same, but as a farmer he certainly would pay less. . If, however, the contention holds good that.the .collection of economic rent ;and - reduction of Customs duties and other taxes proportionately would mean freeing our trade, lowering costs, raising the purchasing power of wages, attracting the trade of the world to our.ports, freeing areas of land, city, suburban and country, from a debt of approximately £300,000,000 that hangs like a mill-stone round the neck of industry, is the system not worth consideration? Mr. Bell’s farmer and landowner combined would undoubtedly lose his power as a landowner, but would gain immeasurably as a worker or farmer, and if a parent the , brighter, outlook for his. children should have compensations; surely an ideal or vision worth keeping in view.—l am, etc., DAVID L. A. ASTBURY. Mangatoki, February 26. THE MYSTERY BLOCK. (To the Editor.)" Sir,—The “Mystery Block” is, as you are no doubt aware, a block of 5,000,000 acres of undeveloped, land in the Taupo district. I take details of the area from a statement made by the Rt Hon. J. G. Coates at Inglewood prior to the last general election. Mr. Coates was one of the “No. 10 raiders” on the Wilkinson territory prior to the last Parliamentary election, and he stated in his speech at Inglewood that there were 5,000,000 acres of undeveloped land in the Taupo area. The Prime Minister just recently made a tour through part of the “Mystery Block,” and he states that there is no doubt now about the land being suitable for settlement.

I learnt this fact over 30 years age. Therefore the Prime Minister’s statement is out of date. I may mention that I have endeavoured to obtain a list of names of the owners of the “Mystery Block,” but so far I have had no success. Some of our members of Parliament may have sufficient courage and backbone to obtain such information.—l am, etc.,

SPEED THE PLOUGH. New Plymouth, March 5.