The exemption of improvements up to £3,000 on land affords a material relief to the farmers and improving land owners, while ib directly encourages thrift in conveying the intelligence that industry and labour no longer mean ad ditional burdens. The graduation of taxa tion on the large estates in accordance with the principle of bhe equality of sacrifice, will act in bhe direcbion of placing a check on monopoly. New Zealand is a colony of comparatively limited area, and ib is for the people bo say whebher the land, out of which all must live, shall be widely dis tributed, or whether it shall be held by a privileged number. Our policy, we be- ; lieve, raises the issue in the most practical form, while it will be seen not to be unfair, when wo compare the baxabion contributed by different classes. The abstract fairness of an income tax on profits derived from trade and commerce has never been ques tioned. Our change in this respect gets rid of a number of exceptional taxes, which rest on no principle, subsbibuting a single tax on profits realised. The compara tively light income tax under the head of salaries and professional incomes will fall only upon those who are in a position to "contribute ib without inconvenience, the exemption of £300 affording ample pro tection to all who will come within the limit of the schedule. If, on bhe whole, wo have nob gone far enough in bhe opinion of some, or too far in bhe opinion of obhers, we ask for that consideration which would weigh the difficulbies of a largo and comprehensive change in the incidence of taxation, and the difficulty of providing sufficient revenue to meet the necessities of our finance, and ab the same time relieving the industrial classes from the crushing effect of an unjusb system. If we have nob accomplished all that some anticipated, our proposals, at least, will have gone a very great distance towards the end we have in view. 