Wisconsin tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1847-1854, 1851-06-19

) feet I inches in height.
~ The highest market price will be
paid for few Strawberries. at this Office
~ Below we give the Communication
of our friend Progressive" On account
+ Of severe indisposition we are unable to
accompany it with any remarks further
than to say that in the main, we differ but
little from our friend upon the subject of
Land Reform We may take up tie
subject hereafter We hope to hear from
our correspondent often
Wcstfald, New York. May 10 1851.
Mn Bliss .-Ifth Members Of your
Legislature have acted in bad faith In ad-
yocating the passage Of law limiting the
number Of acres man may hold. for the
purpose Of manufacturing capital for them
selves, and then turning round and defeat
ing it, [ viii not object to your calling
them humbugs, denagogues. hypocritCs.
and Will join you il holding them up to
the contempt Of the public Perhaps |
have given them or part of them, more
credit for honesty than they are entitled
to. But ii they fad it necessary to favor
measure to winch they are at heart OPP
posed 1t argues well for the popularity.
+ present or prospective, OF Land Reform
+ IN your country, and for their sagacity as
meteorologjsts. [ think there are some
/ sincere advocates of reform in Wisconsin
and those who take cranfisL course
may yet learn that = honesty is tile best
policy" IN politics as in anything else
But it is not the Wisconsin Legislature
with which have to do. for personally
| have no acquaintance with them 1t Is
the principle OF Land Limitation on which
in my weak way. | would Join issue You
ask, if III my opinion there would not be
just a. many vino would exc out their eX-
istauce at the mercy of the landlord had
this bill become law. as there ROW is}"-
/ If you refer to the present time ! think
there would be about as MANY. for ii would
not have had time to show it, effects If
You speak Of the future, it Is hardly ne
cossary for me to answer IN the negative.
+ There IS plenty Of land in Wisconsin for
all, but can any reasonable lIan suppose
that II Is always to continue so2 | live
/ in comparatively new portion Of New
York. and it Is very difficult for a man
/ with nothing but his hands to depend up
+ on. to earn enough to buy farm farther
east 1t IS next to imposs bile. and in the old
Countries, England. ireland &c it would
be the heighth OF folly to think Of it
fifty years ago there was plenty Of land
here to be had at company pr.ces now
there is none or next to none. Fifty wears
hence and land will he scarce in Wisconsin,
That legislation which looks only to the
present and secures the blessings" to our
selves leaving out the 'posterity is short
sighted indeed. A. to giving land to tile
landless it would be right but as to sub
stituting it for limitation | consider the
. latter Of Htuch the greatest Importance
The exchanging reminds NE of an old
couplet
Jack with his charity. his conscience Gains,
lie steals permits IL pig and gives the
tail for aims.
No doubt there are some in every com
munitv who would be .shiftless." in spite
II Limitation. 1t Is not proposed as a
remedy for all the ills that flesh is heir
to" Bat from the fact that there are some
who would not cultivate land if they had
it. we should not deprive those who are
willing and anxious to do 50 of the priv /
Iege. What Land Limitation proposes is |
a prevention Of monopoly Of land. SO as
TO leave some for all, thus giving every
man an oppo1tuHltY to sustain that life
which was given him by his Creator
right which lie inherits as a man. which |
oar Constitution recognizes as inalienable /
and Of which, society cannot deprive him.
La reply to your inquiry, " by not to pre-
vent monopoly. and inequality. pass laws
al once that no man IN community shall /
be possessed Of any more property than
his reighbor, and thus place all on an
equality. at once There is something
to be said On both sides of this proposition
In the affirmative. it might be said that
1t would be quite as equitable division as
the present For 1t is true as a general
rule that no one gets immensely rich with
out the earnings of others. And there
are ten who get rich by overreaching their
neighbors or as Sam Slick saws doing
them out of it to one who does by his
own labor Another circumstance which
might have weight with a conservative is 1
the fact that there is a case on record of
an ancient community who had all things
common and sold their possessions and
goods, and parted them to all men. as ev-
cry man had need" See an ancient work
called Acts of the Apostles 2-44-45-I
Query. Did these Ancient Land Reform
ers mean to palm off a humbug when they
limited the land member should hold p
But do not 20 IN for division of prop
erty, because 1t Is impracticable and un-
necessary at present here Is enough
now in the hands Of government to sup
ply all the landless with the means of liv-
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