Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-12-04

"claim compensation for any supposed
"injury or injustice in the lands not com.
"ing to such person. The State, then,
"may properly claim and exercise like
"power for important public purposes !;
but in order that Just expectations ;
"may not be interfered with, nothing
should be done to prevent an estate from
descending in due course, at least as far
Gas the grand. children of any existing
''owner and if we 60 one step further and
"say that the law shall not be altered 50
"as to affect even his great-grand-children,
"we certainly extend the principle as far
"as anyone can reasonably claim on the
ground that his sentimental interests
Fought to be respected" He therefore
proposes that call landed property in
Ireland shall legally descend for four
generations beyond the existing owner,
and then pass to the State" OF course,
though Mr. Wallace does not say so, his
argument applies with precisely equal force
to the landed property of England, and it
is very certain that if such law was en-
acted for Ireland it would not be many
years before it would have to be extended
to the whole United Kingdom. 1t must
be admitted that Mr. Wallace has pre-
sented his proposition very strongly. That
is absolutely necessary in such case, since
nothing but the most cogent and forcible
presentation could cause such suggestion
to be looked at. In England,
Where Freedom broadens slowly down
From precedent to precedent"
1t is very difficult to introduce any idea
which runs counter to the whole tenden-
cies of the nation. The land system of
England is a part of the country 1t has
grown into the minds of the people, much
as our school system has into the popular
mind of the United States, and no matter
how much in need of reform or revolution
it may be, it will be enormously difficult
to get anything done. Not to speak of the
influence of the aristocracy, which must
necessarily be cast with desperate concert
against all and every manner of change, it
will require the education of years to bring
even the masses of the English Liberals
up to the point of believing that radical
change is necessary. Considering the ex-
tent and nature of the obstacles in the way
of land reform in that country, it is there
fore the more surprising that Mr.. Wallace
should have been permitted to breach SO
radical and extreme plane in one of the
leading agencies OF modern thought. What
effect his proposal will have upon the
British mind we are as yet unable to
say, but it is scarcely possible that he
can escape some fierce attacks from
the defenders of the existing situation.
1t is true that by bringing it forward as a
panacea for ireland he has cunningly
contrived to secure some shelter for him
self, but it is not to be supposed that the
possibility of legislating separately for the
two countries on the land question will be
assumed, and therefore the full significance
of the suggestion must be perceived. The
land question all over the world is indeed
only in its infancy. Neither America MOI
Europe has yet been emancipated from the
letters of feudalism The current notions
of property in land arc both confused and
irrational, and there can be no serious
doubt that national economy on this sub.
ject requires to be entirely reorganized.
That this cannot be done without persist
ent organized agitation and popular educa-
ton is very certain, but as the new views
are the result of clearer perceptions and
fuller knowledge, and as these perceptions
and this knowledge can be disseminated,
we may be sure that when the time is ripe
the revolution will be effected, and we may
also be confident that it will involve
neither violence nor injustice.