The Waikato Times With which is Incorporated The Waikato Argus. TUESDAY, AUGUST 14, 1923. SOLDIERS’ SETTLEMENT.

Waikato Times, Volume 98, Issue 15313, 14 August 1923, Page 4

The Waikato Times With which is Incorporated The Waikato Argus. TUESDAY, AUGUST 14, 1923. SOLDIERS’ SETTLEMENT.

It is evident that there is going to be a certain amount of'trouble over the Soldiers’ Settlement Bill. The country has accepted the position that a considerable amount of money must be lost, and with its characteristic apathy about capital expenditure has said nothing about it. Yet £2,000,000 gone in mistakes is a considerable sum and will help to swell the taxation, of whioh all complain. It is also by no means certain that £2,000,000 will cover the* losses, and when we consider that most of it might have been avoided by the existence of a certain amount of foresight, the reflection is forced bn us that .we are not well governed. Long before the war ended it was pointed out that a large proportion of the men would wish to go on the land, and that it would be wise to open up Crown lands. The men might have been employed in roading, fencing and building on such lands, so that they would be saved the hardships incidental to pioneering. The wages they earned thereat would have helped through the early days, and the country might have secured a large number of new settlers. The course pursued was to buy land which had been already more or less developed. The presence of so many buyers operating with Government money inevitably caused a boom in prices, for which the returned soldier has had to suffer, and the country is now called on to pay. The course of prices for produce has increased the trouble. It may be said that no Government could be blamed for not foreseeing the drop in prices, but after all it did not call for any great amount of vision. However, as the mistakes have been made, they must be paid for, and it depends on the manner in which the provisions of the Act are carried out whether the returned man obtains substantial relief or not. It would be a mistake to attempt any cheeseparing policy. One of the evils which would follow would be the attempt to make soldiers’ affairs a party question. There are already symptoms of this, and each party is trying to show that ■ Codlin is the friend, not Short. Nothing could be worse for the soldier, for it would end in some party taking up the opposition further favours, and such a party might meet with considerable support in the country. A question that is going to create trouble is the existence of second mortgages. There is a general tendency to regard them as representing merely some unjustifiable profit, and the Government may be led into dealing in an arbitrary manner with such securities. This would be wrong and would also be unwise. Each case must, of course, be considered on its merits, but if legislation or administration be introduced which is to lessen the security of a mortgage, it is the farmers who will eventually suffer. Much of the difficulty in rearranging mortgages is due to the legislation of the past few' years, which has lessened the value of mortgages as safe investments. Any further legislation in the same direction would be detrimental beyond expression. It should be realised that the freehold system, of which we arc inclined to boast, seldom means that the farmer owns the land he works. He owes one or more .mortgages for the greater, part of the value, and it is inevitable that this will always be the rule, for a fairsized farm represents as much money as would enable a man to live in comfort without the risks and labours of farming. The man who undertakes those labours will do so because lie has not got the money. If any disabilities arc placed on mortgages the result will he a higher rate of interest, and less left for the man on the land. It will be necessary, therefore, to treat existing mortgages with entire

respect, even though in some instances the second mortgage represents the profit made on the sale of the land.

There is another point, on which the Minister for Public Works does not seem to have shown the amount of judgment that we have cornc to expect from him. lie refers to a report of an Inquiry Board consisting of two men, and says .that this report must be worthier of attention than that of the Commissioner, because the latter has been dealing with these men for so Jong that he lias come to have a personal feeling about them. It is possible, of course, that the Commissioner is prejudiced or partial, and if so another man should be appointed, but it is. obvious that in dealing with a number of returned men the character and capacity of each one must be the chief factor in deciding what course to pursue. The Commissioner who has been dealing with them for some years has had an opportunity of knowing them in a manner which is impossible for two strangers making a journey through a district and inviting complaints. The statements about hot temper shown by returned men is beside the mark. It is likely in any case to be much the same as would be. found among any men subject to the harassing regulations of Government control. In spite of these regulations and of the annoyance they always cause, people constantly cry out for more State assistance, and until they can learn to do without the assistance they must pnt up with the annoyances. The Commissioner may not be happy in his dealings with the men, but it is more likely that they place the blame on him for the execution of regulations prescribed by the Department. It would certainly be unwise to prefer the report of two men- who have had no such opportunity of knowing the soldiers. Mr Coates is probably aware that it is not always the man who tells the most plausible tale that is deserving of the most help.