New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-11-14
HOW To yATIoNALIZE THE LAND.

Nov any individual owner has the power of
diycrtng the transmission OF land lnto another
direction than that desired by the preVirus owner.
He may do this in accordance with MS personal
wishes. his necessities. or even as lmpeiied by ms
vices and no person has right to claim conp'hSa-
ton for any supposed injury or Injustice IN the
lands not coming TO such person. The state, then,
NAV properly clam and cXtrclse Ike power Tor
imporiaut public purposes; but in order that Just
expcotations' may not he intcTfcrcd with, nothing
Sonld be done To prevent au estate from d' seeming
in due course, at least as lar As the grandchhhlch
of any existing owner; and, II we 20 Que step
further and say that the law shall not lie altered so
as to affect even his grcat-grandchildren, we GER
tainly extend the principle as far as any one can
reasonably clam on the ground that his " sentl-
mental interests ought TO hc rcspe ted. 10 avoid
all possibility ot objection on this point, We VIII
however. 90 yet one step iurther ana TX me lHit
az the direct succession To landed property at the
oraudchld of the grandchlld % any cXislng owner.
II is. Therefore. proposed that law snail be en-;
acted by which all landed property ~ ireland snail
legally descend for four generations beyond the eA-
listing owner and then pass to the state. IL mas
been already shown that this will not ringe any
individual night on privilege that Ought to be per
mIttcd to landowners, OF even any sentimental m
teIest that they really possess neither aS Will lie
shown further on. Will H. III all pro3ahlilty apple
ciauly diminish the maTktt valnc of Their properly
during the lifetime OF any existing owner or heir
at-iaw.
from father to daughter, but cOIlatcrally to
brothcrS ucles cousins, or other PERSONS as well
"a in all cases in which il Is sold or gVcn away, each
sepaIate transfer is to lie counted rs equivalent To
one succession in the direct line of dcsccnt,-thc
general statement of the new law beng. that land
will be allowed to pass 10 four successive owners
other than the actual owner at the time OF the
passing of tina Act aud VIII. on the deccasc OF the
ias owner. become the property OF the state.
MY proposal will best toe understood, and its
numerous advantages explained, by taking an
Illustrative case. and showing exactly how 1t would
work. Let suruo-e, then, that owing to a rapid
succession of deaths gentleman has come in uneX-
pectcdly the fourth successor to an estate, ana
therefore having only life interest IN tie land.
The estate consists, perhaps of house bud extern
sve pleasure grounds, of home farm, and oi; say.
"A dozen surrounding farms. Ihis gentleman has a
family OF and daughters and he wishes MS
eldest to continue 10 live OH the estate. winch,
we will suppose has been long connected with his
family At the death of this last freebooter the
whole land of the estate becomes public property
but anything on the land or which has been added
10 its vain, 10y the preceding four owners. remains
the property of the heirs and every future holder
of the land will have an indcieaslhlc tenant-rlght
to everything they may acquire, besides the land
itself. and a to every addition or iinproV ement
OF whatever kind they themselves make 10 IT.
Soon after the passing of the law we have here
advocated, general valuation OF All the lana OF
Ire land will have been made, every separate hcld
plot, or holding being estimated according I" rs
inherent comparative value ~ dependent on SOIL,
subsoIl, aspect, climate, elevation above the sea,
vicinity TO toWDs or narhets means 81 communities
ton and ali other facts ana cond tons, not gwen
to IL by any preceding owner. hut dependent either
an natural qualities and sure und ms on the gen
cral development OF the country. The annual
value thus estimated Will be the state ground
rent - or "qut-Tent"; and, as nay DC decided ON
IRON Time 10 lle' 'll ncI wv VI o"ipV nay"
portion OF tins ground rent Will be payable by
every holder Of lana which has ceased To be pr-
vatc property. This pound-rent" VIII, OF course;
be very much 10 Ner IMAM the lowest rent ever pau
by "a tenant to a landlord on INC oIu SNsteh' uVt
even this Will probably never nave 10 ne paiu III
full. except IN the carrier stage Vi Tue .Iisllion
IRON pubic 10 Pr'Ea'u "T M hP t,h ~ 1',,
proportion OF II Is decided on 10y the OUNcillm'ht
TO be payable VIII DC UNIFORM Over inc "hVIc
country, and Will 0nly be RAISED OF IoWefcd lor
State purposes, OF as substitute Ior PPIcHsNv or
lnJudlcious TAXATION so tEat IL VIII p' lhposNIple
that any iaYOrliiSin should nc SHOWN 10 particular
individuals OF particular LOCALITIES. -,
So much beng promised, we WI return TO our
illustrative case 81 thc estate WnoNe ii'I plNntnn
cWher mas Just uIcu. III "'o 'I 80 ','T I oi 49,
come INTO poSSeSs"H VI 50 i.i' va ~ ma S VIZ
last owhef personally occuplcu' II. VIZ RIouiiI
rent determined NV thc Pci'eI''i Nhu"'loi, "hl'I
VIII he open To ihspcc''on J" cNcI} f','"h. ana
the heir Ii he decide 10 continue To reside In the
house and occupy the nome larn he may DO so WIN
the same certainty ana secnf'y AZ u ne were sun