The Wanganui Chronicle "Nulla Dies Sine Linea." SATURDAY. DECEMER 18, 1909. THE FREEHOLD.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume L, Issue 12397, 18 December 1909, Page 4

The Wanganui Chronicle "Nulla Dies Sine Linea." SATURDAY. DECEMER 18, 1909. THE FREEHOLD.

I Ovr contemporary the " Herald" loves to pose as the only friend of the working •■man: it would have its. readers believe that nothing which doss not directly benefit the working man can possibly be right. From this text it has preached many long prosy sermons. It is in its bitter hostility to the freehold that the " Herald" prides itself on being the / working man's best friend. Who then'is the working man? A definition would clear the field for logical debate. Are the members of a newspaper staff, for instance, working men? Are .judges, magistrates, lawyers, engineers, archi- | tects, doctors, farmers, shop-keepers, auctioneers, land agents, insurance agents, bank and other clerks etc. working men, or are they not? If it is claimed-that only those who earn their livelihood by manual labour are to be considered workiug men, then it is open to question whether the working man has a preponderating vote in the majority of the constituencies. Let the " Herald" define a working man as narrowly as it pleases, we still contend that ho desires the freehold quite as ardently as the wicked landowners who have acquired or inherited freeholds and on whom the " Herald" never ceases to bestow its. most vitriolic vocabulary. On however small a plot of land a man makes his home he becomes attached to it and longs to make it his own. The working man, in however limited a sense ho is defined, is the main-stay of all the bulding societies which have sprung up of late, years. He makes his fortnightly payments with the greatest punctuality and rejoices when his num- . ber is drawn fro-iii the ballot box. When ho is fortunate -enough, to obtain a loan, what does he do ? He immediately buys a freehold section whereon to build ! a housa for himself and family, so that j liv may have one little corner of the, j globe which no one can deprive him of, ■ for which he pays no' rent and which ! becomes verily,, and indeed a home for ■ himself and those near and dear to'l him. Ask tho working man whether he prefers a leasehold to a freehold tenure? If he does, then he is a most inconsist- ' cut man, whoso actions balie Iris words, j And what about the small farmer?'; -Does lie not covet the freehold of hir, ' farm every bit as eagerly as the work- I iiif?; man covets his freehold home? The "Herald" must bo singularly blind to' tho stubborn logic of facts if it lias not profited by the ksson of the" last election. It may be very convenient to forget the number of seats between Wauganui and New Plymouth, lost to tho Government on this very question of Leasehold v. Freehold. Take as an example tho Rangitikei election, when a vacancy occurred through the lament-' ed death of Mr. Remington. Five candidates contested the seat., not one. of whom dared go to the poll except as an advocate of the freehold. Sir Joseph Ward, who, for the time being, is continually coming under the lash of the " Herald's" bitter condemnation, is moro far-seeing, and in a better position to interpret the trend of public opinion, has realised that the people (including those who work) not only want, but insist upon having the right to purchase freehold properties when they ara in a position to find the neces-

sary capital, ,We are. of opinion that' the aggregation of very large areas of laud in the hands of a small number 01 ownei-s is an abuse of the freehold system, which ought to be remedied by firm, equitable legislation. In the early days, the old pioneer colonists, who opened up the country for those who wero to follow them, obtained large grants of land on ridiculously easy terms. It was a blunder of the then Government not to foresee, that with increasing settlement, these huge estates would become stumbling blocks to agricultural progress. We fail, however, to saerwhy. tlis freehold'system is to be

condemned because it was unwittingly abused in former times, or how these over-grown properties have any bearing on tho ownership of small freeholds at the present day. Those who blindly advocate the nationalisation of the land are like the frogs in the fable, who would not be satisfied with King Log, and never rested until they had ex-,1 changed him for King Stork, who promptly gobbled them all up. There is no more stony-hearted, unrelenting landlord than the State, unless it be a Municipality. Tho State, like Shylocfc, exacts its pound of flesh to the last ounce; all personal interest in the tenant's welfare is eliminated: sickness,! floods, fires,, droughts, and other misfortunes cannot bo considered. ,The State can take no cognisance of the reasons which prevent a tenant paying his rent on the due date without laying itself open to the charge of favouritism. Every man who owns a freehold, even if it is only an eighth of an acre, feels that he has -a personal stake in his country, he Cleaves to his homestead, he takes a pride in each little improvement, which he would never do to the same extent if he was liable to be dispossessed for non-payment of rent, and often »without compensation for improvements. Our contemporary is endlessly striving by feeble arguments and socialistic platitudes, to destroy the inherent desire of the thrifty and" prudent for ownership ; it reminds us of Don Quixote tilting at tho windmill. The frantic struggles to persuade intelligent men and women'that the, freehold is in itself an evil, make no converts, for it is a well-known fact .that those who are loudest in their .outcry against the iniquity of. freehold: property are the first to secure one for themselves as soon as they have means and, opportunity. The best thing, that can happen to £Jew Zealand is for the present Government j. to nail its colours to ,-the., mast, if. tho Premier will consent, and appeal to the. country foi; the abolition of,.the freehold. There would, be no doubt about j tho result.. ,- ,-■ ... ~ ~ . . I