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Star (Christchurch), Issue 5328, 5 August 1895, Page 2

'whatever each man makeß by the application of hia labour to the land is his as against the world." Supposing that the existence of such moral law and of Buch natural rights be denied, what is there save The good old rule, the simple plan, That they shall take who have tho power, And they shall keep who can. In the adoption of the principle of the taxation of land valnes, Mr Withy sees "the only means of reviving trade, the only means of placing industry on a sonnd, honest and permanent; footing, the only means of averting universal bankruptcy." To show what is the trend of public opinion, the writer says :— " I am glad to say that, though somewhat late in the day, the Australasian colonies are now beginning to adopt, the principle of the taxation of land values, and, but for the interference of the Second Chambers — which, aa in the Home country, mainly represented the landed and other monopolist classes — they would have progressed much further in that direction, la South Australia a tax of id in the £ haß for some nine years past been imposed on land valnes, and in 1893 a Bill passed both Houseß of the Legislature empowering local bodies to rate the unimproved value of the land j but a Bill passed in 1894 by the Lower Houae increasing the tax on land values, and graduating it heavily B gainst absentees, was rejeoted by the Upper House. In New Zealand a tax of Id in the £, steeply graduated against large estates, was impoßed in 1892, but a Bill to empower local bodies to rate land values was passed by the Lower House in 1893, only to be rejected by ' the Lords.' The Bill was p&Bsed by the Lower House again last year, but was aga : n thrown out by the non-representa-tive Chamber .by 14 voteß to 12, two reactionaries thus overruling the will of the people. The Tasmanian House of Representatives also pasaed in 1893 a Bill taxing land values up to £500 }at id in the pound, and over that I amount at Id in the £, but ' the Lords ' threw it out. In Victoria, again, the Lower House passed last year a Land Tax Bill on the New Zealand mode), but the Upper House rejeoted it. In Queensland, in 1893, a Bill was pasaed by both Houses adopting the land-value system of taxation for municipalities, and fixing the amount of the tax at 2d in the £. This has been found ample for all local requirements; there is now no local taxation on improvements in Queensland, and in the country districts the tax haß been found to considerably lighten the burdens of the users of land. In New South Wales, too, the (Reid) Government is pledged to the principle." It is somewhat curious to note that this question of taxing land values as specially applicable to New Zealand was under consideration bo long ago as 1844 by a Select Committee of the House of Commons that had been set up "to inquire into the state of the colony of New Zealand, and to report the same and their opinions thereon to the House." One of the clauses of the report subsequently presented to the House was, " That, in order to prevent land from being held by parties not intending to make use of the same, a land tax ought to be imposed; that all partieß claiming land should be required to put in their claimß and pay one year's tax in advance, within twelve monthß." Had the policy therein enunciated been carried into effect, there would not have been quite bo much of the land monopoly that this oountry has had to deplore.