The Labor enquirer., 1886-04-24

not yet prepared to take up the land ques-
ton just where Great Britain is trying to let
it drop
According to Shaw Lefeyre, of the 76, 600,
600 acres of land in the occupation of indi-
viduals in Great Britain and Ireland, over
1000, 900 are owned by 5000 people-that is
to say. they own on an average 10000 acres
each; and 81, ,OO0. 900 acres, or fye-sixths of
the whole, are owned by 1900 people. If
we call the population of Great Britain and
Ireland 1000, 900 souls, and the acreage 49,
0OO, 900 acres, there are little over two acres
for every man, woman and child in the king
dom. But, in fact, the distribution is: 15,-
900 people have 64,OOO,OOO acres; &c. 900
people have Il, ,OOO, 900 acres.
Theformer class average 1926 acres each,
the latter class might have one-third of an
acre each, if the land were all divided up
ratably, But, in fact, all the owners and
leaseholders of land in England only num-
Der l,050, 900, leaving nearly So 600, 900 people
absolutely landless. This is the underlying
cause of the present fermentation in Eng
land. So long as land is held in private
ownership the landowner rules the country
other citizens are his yassals. The vassals
are realizing their position, and they revolt
accordingly. Enduring peace is impossible
in a country where five-sixths of the land is
owned by one twenty five hundredth part of
the population.
How rapidly are we drifting into the situa-
ton of Great Britain the transactions of the
last decade reveal. In the last congress
Love of Delaware gave the names of twenty
nine foreigners and foreign syndicates who
hold 81, 900 900 acres of land formerly belong
ing to the public domain. The list was far
from perfect, and it did not include the large
estates held by Americans and American
syndicates, though there is nothing to choose
between a native land grabber and foreign
land grabber. Since Love made his list the
process has been steadily going on; the re-
cent sale by the Northern Pacific is only one
of many which have been lately c6nSumated.
1t is obvious that within the next few years
all the land given to railways IN tne shape OF
land grants will be either patented or res
tored to the public domain, and stockholders
in prosperous companies will demand new
departure in their land policy, to-Wlt, the
substitution of the plan of leasing for the
plan of selling outrig ht; Such concerns as
the southern Pacific of Kentucky, the Union
Pacific and the Northern Pacific will lease
their lands to tenants instead of selling the m
to settlers, and will thus build up great es-
tates which will earn dividends for their
stockholders. By the natural working OF the
attraction of cohesion these estates and the
other estates held by capitalists and by syn
dicates will increase year by year; the small
freehol Ter will find it impossible to compete
with his great neighbor, who, through the
magnitude of his transactions, will get his
transportation at wholesale price; he will
sell out and rent his own land back from the
party to whom he sold. In this way we may
also come to see five-siXths of the soil of the
United States in the hands Of fractional
part of the people.
What is best, to rest supinely and watch
the evolution of the process or to grapple
with it in its initial stage and take such order
as may stop it before it becomes too fOrlnid-
able to be aSSailed?