Pomeroy weekly telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy, Meigs County, Ohio) 1860-1866, 1860-11-30

soil. :: :: * Finding 1t (the soii
vacant, God had told him to enter into
the possession thereof, and by applying
his labor TO it to procure the means OF
satisfying his material wants, once i'll
possession under Gods law, he is en-
titled to remain there until some one can
show Il right to it, right founded upon
some provision of the same law. No
such right can be found; because this
right is not to any particular parcel, but
! to land generally; and each has as good
right to any particular parcel, as an
other, and hence, the first oc .upant,
who is in under divine appointment, is
entitled to remain there for the
purpose for which the grant was
made; but he has no right to occupy
more than is necessary for his support,
to the exclusion Of others. No human
being is bound to remain idle and starve;
he has a right to apply his labor for his
own subsistence, and this can only be
applied to land: hence he is entitled to
a portion of the soil for this purpose;
nor has another right to occupy sur
plus to his exclusion; If he does, he is
bound to supply the wants Of this idler
by compu!sion. Page $50.
This covers the whole ground of Land
Reform. The laws of the Nation and
the State are in contravention of these
views. They forbid to half our people
the enjoyment of this natural right, and
as consequence, we have great wealth
On one hand that has been legally plum
dered from the hard toll of others, while,
on the other hand, half our people are
poor, and doomed to heavier burdens
than are imposed upon slaves, for merely
enough to keep their families from star
vation. Those who are robbed of those
things which God gave them for we'll
doing, cannot do we'll. Their children
are brought up in ignorance. Some of
them are so humiliated, discouraged and
imbruted, that they dissipate, steal and
kill And while an incalculable amount
of wretchedness is thus inflicted upon
half of our own people, the few who get
rich out of these wrongs to SO many, are
in no wise benefited by their wealth, but,
on the contrary, are seriously injured,
without an exception.
To undo this wrong, the people must
select the right men to represent them
in the Legislature-men who will pro-
vide for the gradual extinction of land
monopoly, by limiting the quantity
which one shall thereafter be permitted
to acquire. In this way only can the
people rid themselves of the response
bility for this stuFendous wrong.
In this discussion no offense is intend
ed to any one who is now land monopo-
list because the laws have permitted il
strictly s2,cskjn@ however. no one rnn
oe iuftifiei III doing wrong simply be-
cause the laws sanction it. But when
one does legal wrong thinking it to
i,e ri9ltt, and under the sanction of the
public sentiment, it is no part of sound
ll4.r4-44-+ ta4,I-anr- renroach
.ma;nst him All that is aimed at is to
how the system is grossly unjust. and
when aland monopsiist becomes con
yinced that he has been doing wrong, ii
IS for him to place himself right by as
listing in carrying out these changes by
lis influence and vote, as we'll as to vol
untarily sell off his unused lands to actua
settlers, and thus build up the popula-
ton, schools, society, and independence
Of; she region in which his surplus lands
are situated L. A. HINE