Sir Thomas Acland has made a very important speech at
Dunster. Sir Thomas generally knows which way things are going, and in this instance, though "he knew no secrets," he had "talked matters over with men in high position," and discovered apparently that rates had not increased in the country while rents had increased 75 per cent., and rates in the cities were enor- mous; that the "landlord got quite as much rent as was good for him ; " that he, even if he did pay all rates at last, "ought to share the pinch of them at first" by dividing them with the occupier ; that rates upon personalty would fall heaviest on the farmer, and must not be suggested ; that the Exchequer would readily surrender the gun-tax, carriage-tax, horse-tax, and dog-tax to the ratepayers, to ease the highway rates ; that the real burden of the sanitary expenses would fall upon the poorer landlords ; that it was a shame he, Sir Thomas, should go to Sessions and vote away rates without control from the ratepayers; and that he ought to be assisted by men like the Guardians, who would spend more but would take a bolder line. There is the County Organi- sation Bill before us,—the Magistrates superseded by Guardians, the incidence of rating left as it is, the rates themselves divided between owner and occupier ; and the petty licensing taxes handed over to the highway boards. The Bill may contain other ideas, but we venture to predict it will contain those.
