RUSHING UP LAND VALUATIONS.

Temuka Leader, Issue 5823, 29 May 1909, Page 4

RUSHING UP LAND VALUATIONS.

AUCKLAND, -May -J7. During the course of his presidential address this morning at the J-armors' I nion (.'onfereircc, -Mr Allen Bell said that one wry important work that had been continual by the executive during the past year had been the agitation for reform in the. present system of assessing land values. lie regretted to have to report that tho latest returns show that the valuations made by the (iovernuient of rural lands were still being rushed up at an alarming rate. The present financial stringency and the accompanying probable decrease in laud values was totally disregarded, and the al>4 normal booming of the past few years went merrily on. Tin' annual increase in ttie unimproved value now reached the large amount of over CI-2,0011,0011 per year. This enormous increase wa-: made to the detriment of farmers, and to the hem-lit of the land boomers and -peculators. He was convinced that tlie very worst thing (hat could happened io them as a farming community was this unwarranted inflation of land values. "In my ollieial capacity." he continued, "I have conductthe agitation against the present system, and as a result of meetings held a large number ( >[ objections have been lodged, and a solicitor employed | ( , I'edil the i'H.-.s at the Asse-snient Court, and I feci certain that if we stand .-olid, prepared to light to a finish, we can in the near future bring about thi-' much-needed reform. It ia significant fact that since the agitation started, the valuer has again \isiled the objeeiors, and in -oine ea-es I be!i,\e cut down hi- former valuation by .">H per cent. In my la t foreca-l. I sounded a note of warning against high land ~. I would again do so, for though the suggesf'oii innv at the time be unpopular with a lari/e number of farmers. the (lay will assuredly come when (he bona lide far r will curse I hose who as-is(ei| in (heir creation, not milv to the detriment of himself, but to every section of the community."