The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1883-08-23
HENRY GEORGE.
Inequality bf The Distribution Of Wealth
Effect Of Labor.saying Inventions
on Labor.
from Lcslie's Illustrated Ncwspaper.

from Lcslies Illustrated Newspaper
In the articles which this concludes,
have endcavorcd merely to call atten-
tion to the imminence and general
character Of the problems that confront
rs. 10 systematically treat Of their
solution, wouAl require more space than
is at my disposal. But whoever is once
aroused to tho gravity Of these prob.
lens, will pursue the subj iect further.
And to appreciate their character is to
sec the nature of their solution.
The main source of the difficulties
that menance us is in the growing in
equality Of the distribution Of wealth.
To this oil modern inventions seem to
contribute, and the movement is
hastened by political corruption, and
by special monopolics established by
abuse Of legislative power. But the
primary cause lies evidently in the
fundamental social adiustments--.in the
relations which We have established be-
tween labor and the natural material
and means OF labor-between man and
the planet which is his dwelling-place,
workshop and storehouse. As the
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material structure, so institutions which
regulate the use Of land constitute the
foundation of every social organization,
and must affect the whole character
and development Of that organization.
In society where an inalienable equal
share of the soil is allotted to every
individual, it il manifest that
there can be no great disparity
in fortunes. None except the physically
incapacitated will he dependent on
others; none will be forced to sell their
labor to others. There will be differ
ences III wealth, for there are differ
ences among men as to energy, skill,
prudence, foresight and industry; but
there can be no very rich class, and no
very poor class; and, rs each generation
becomes possessed of equal natural
opportunities, whatever differences in
fortune grow up in one generation will
not tend to perpetuate themselves. In
such community, whatever may be its
form, the political organization must be
essentially Democratic.
But in community where the soil is
treated as the property of but portion
of these people some Of these people
from the very day of their birth must
be at q disadvantage, and some will have
an enormous advantage. Those who
have no rights in the land will be forced
to sell their labor to the landholdcrs,
for what they can get; and, in fact,
cannot live without their permission.
Such a community must inevitably
develop class Of masters and a class Of
serfs--a class possessing great wealth,
and class having nothing; and its
pei ltical organization, no matter what
its form. must become virtual despot-
ism.
Our Fundamental mistake is in treat
ing land as private property. On this
false basis modern civilization every.
where rests, and hence, as material
progress gees on, is everywhere devel-
oping such monstrous inequalities in
addition rs must ultimately destroy it.
As without land man cannot exist; as
his very physical substance, and all
that he can acquire or make, must be
drawn from the land, the ownership of
the land Of a country is necessarily the
ownership of the people of that country
involving their industrial, social and
political subsection. Here is the great
reason why the labor-saying inventions.
of which our century has been so strik.
ingly prolific, have signally failed to
improve the condition of laborers. La
boring-saying inventions primarily in
crease the power of labor, and should,
therefore, increase wages and improve
the condition Of the laboring classes.
But this only where land is free to
labor. For labor cannot exert itself
without land. No labor-saving inven-
tion can enable us to make something
out of nothing, or in any wise lessen our
dependence upon land. They can
merely add to the efficiency Of labor in
working up the raw material drawn
from land. Therefore, wherever land
has been subjected to private owner
ship, tho ultimate effect of labor-saying
inventions, and of all improved pro-
cesses and discoveries is to enable land
owners to demand, and labor to pay,
more for the use of land. Land be-
comes more valuable, but the wages of
labor do not increase; OH the contrary,
if there is any margin for possible re-
ductions, they may be absolutely re-
duced.
This we already see, and that in spite
of the fact that very important part of
the effect Of modern invention has been
by the improvement of transportation
to open up new land. What will be
the effect of continued Improvement in
industrial processes when the land OF
this country is all fenced in" as in a
few more years it will be, VIC may i'm
agine if we consider what would have
been the effect of labor-saving inven-
tions upon Europe had no new world
been opened.
But it may be said that in asserting
that, where land is private property, all
the benefit of industrial improvements
must go to landowners, am ignoring
facts, and attributing to one principle
more importance than is its due,
since it is clear that great deal of the
increased wealth arising from modern
improvements has not gone to the
owners OF land, but TO capitalists, man
ufacturers, spectators, railroad
owners, and the holders of other mon
opolies than that of land. / may be
pointed to the fact thAt the richest fam
lily in Europe are the Rothschilds, who
are more stockholders and bankers
than landowners; that the richest in
America are the Vanderbilts and not
the Astors; that Jay Gould got his
money not by securing land but by
bulling and bearing the market, by
robhing people with hired lawyers and
purchased Judges and corrupted Leg
islatures. may he asked if ! attach
no importance to the jobbery and rob.
| berry Of the tariff, under pretense OF
protecting American labor" to the
jugglery with the monetary system,
from the wildcat State banks and the
national-banking system down to the
! trade-dollar swindle.
My reply is that / do not ignore any
of these things, but they in no wise in
/. validate the self-evident principle that
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