Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-02-09
Ideas wise and otherwise.

EDITORS HERALD: 1 read with inter-
est your article of the 9TH, 1.-The Need of
the Hour" Pardon me if I cay We
have many men in this city whose
brains are large enough for any and all
purposes. They are like locomotive
going the wrong way. They need turn
ing around and their brains used to push
forward legitimate enterprise; things
more solid than wildcat speculation. 1t
is true there are land and climate, but
the land is held in large tracts at such
high figures that those who mipht cult
vate it cannot buy. 1t takes a fortune
to get land near Los Angeles, and if a
man has fortune in coin, he thinks he
can use it some other way to better ad-
vantage. If the landowners would cut
up their land into five, ten and twenty
acre tracts, cut the prices down to cor
respond with the times, offer it for sale
to American citizens in small payments,
with reasonable interest, on five and ten
years. time, instead of holding it sky
high and letting it lie idle or rent.
ing to Cinnamon for all it is worth
each year. They could find buyers.
Another thing, if the land is worth what
they hold it at, and will produce all they
claim, there is millions in it to cultivate
it or have it done. They should go for
it, push the work, make it 20, and build
up the country. Build tenant house
on every five, ten or twenty acres. Fur
nish teams, farm implements and seed,
and let some of the idle men now in the
city, who are without means to buy
land, work on shares for a year or two,
with the privilege of purchasing as soon
as they have money to make payment.
We are annually paying thousands of
dollars for things produced and manu-.
factured elsewhere, when We should
keep the money at home and pay it out
to our own citizens. There should be in.
ducements held out to manufacturers Of
all kinds. They should have lands
donated to them, or sold at very low
figure, their Improvements, machinery
and productions exempted from taxes
for long time, say, at least, fifty
years. Capitalists are not disposed
to pay the high prices asked
for land here and submit to heavy taxes
and take all the chances for success OF
failure, without some inducements OF
some guarantees. Our streets should
as far as possible, all be put in good
saape before another rainy season, and
the sewerage pushed as fast as possible
TO the sea. Put the idle men to work
and pay them for it every week and
times will improve. see in your paper
there is to be "a mass meeting on the
22d on the 8-hour movement. That il
a move in the right direction. The
shortening Of hours will give more men
IN thai
eight hours is enough for any to work
That it means more employment Tor 9
greater number and more rest for every
body; for those who toll with theii
hands, for the professional, business mer
and merchants. They could all close
their places of business earlier, have
more rest. more pleasure, more enjoy
ment. If our city would push all its I'M
provements and make eight hours
a days work, it would help t
make better times. When the people
are all at work, times are good. Wher
they are idle, with no money to live on, tt
spend, to pay rents, etc., times get harde
mind the high rents in Los Angeles
Landlords should soften their hearts
little, and reduce the rents, 60 that pso
in the last six months on account of higl
rents and no work. Divide up the LAM
into small tracts, reduce the prices, Gu
down rents, start manufactures. Pusl
public improvements. Make eigh
hours days work. Patronize your owl
citizens, who live and spend their none,
here. Then good times would come
and come to stay. We have boss eli
mate, but We cannot all get fat on that
nor live to be hundred years old
when the land and the money is in tn
hands Of few; when they won't use
nor let others use it, without three 0
four times the value. 1t seems to m