THE Thames Advertiser. Favour to none; fea0r of none; jutice to all. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1896. OUR TAXATION.

Thames Advertiser, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8613, 17 December 1896, Page 2

THE Thames Advertiser. Favour to none; feaor of none; jutice to all. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1896. OUR TAXATION.

There are some things thafc wo ought not to forget, even though, in the prosperous state of trade and of the labour market, they may not appear very serious evils* When we compare , our condition no# with what it was two years ago we know that a very great change for the better has taken place, but even so, the burden on our backs, in the shape of debt and taxation, remains as it was, though there may bo a temporary easing of it by reason of the greater demand for labour, and the consequent higher rate of wages ruling in the local market. ' But wlen wo reflect that on ovory man, woman and child in the country there rests a debt wf sonio £61, due to the English money lender, this should make us pause, to reflect, and endeavour to find out whether this is not already a burden as heavy • as wb arc ablo to carry without making ourselves entirely slaves to our creditors. If we take five as the average number to a family in this country,: then we have each head of a family owing to the foreign capitalist a sum of £305* on which amount there is payable every year in the shape of interest upJ wards of £10, which, with the general taxation of the country, makes nearly £17 a year which each household has to find beforo ho can reckon on anything for himself or family This, wo think it will be admitted is I reason sufficient why we should not, in the near future, submit to any farther increaso in our national debt, which being larger per head than that of cither New South Wales or Victoria, must be a serious handicap against us in competing with those countries; especially New South Wales* which country under its present enlightened policy is advancing by "leaps and, bounds" as compared with inost pf the other Australian colonies lb will bo said "That wo must have railroads to open up the land for settlement, and railways mean loans.'* It is sufficient answer to that to point to the railroads, already constructed and to tho fact of their not paying worldng expenses plus interest on cost of construction, and that in many places traction ,engines and even haulage wfih horses compete successfully with the railways, Bub wo think that were those districts which are already opened up with railways, closely settled, as they might easily be, it would soon reverse the prevent condition of things, and our railways would in ft short fciirio be riot only returning interest on capital but large profits besides. Take any line throughout the colony and wo find alongside all of them ample room for a much liirgernumber of settlors than are there already, and common sense should teach us to make tho Most of what we have before constructing entirely new lines. No doubt, however, tho uncompleted lines should receive special consideration, but there need bo no reason to borrow to bring them to ft probable paying point. On the whole there is ample scope for ministerial enterprise during the next three years, in fostering the railways with the idea of a consequent reduction of taxation. Indirect taxation by means of the Custom House and other ways of a similar kind take the money out of our pockets without us feeling it, but if the amount which each of us pay were ■ taken from us directly, we would then bo more conscious of the largo amount which is taken from us yearly in order to carry on the government of tho country, and as a- consequence wo might be a little more careful of the way our contributions to the Con-! solidated Revenue are spent. J I I', tiin... ' ' ■■ .1