The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1889-03-28
THE HAND WHITING ON THE
WALL.


somo Observations on the Industrial Sit.
uAtion by ono Who Has uivon tho
subject Lifo Timo study
fwrtttcn Tor tho NEWS DxHooHArl
Why 10 IL that manufacturers, mer'
chants, farmers and mechanicS fail 10
lind remuneratiye employment Why
ts II that our courts arc over crowded
Crime, immortality, irreligion and poy-
erty on the increase In this country,
There Is a seeming conflict arising be-
tween labor and capital, that II not sat
isfactorily settled or explained by pollt.
lcal ecoEOmy must In time destroy our
civil institutions
Allow me here 10 repeat that the
prosperity Of society depends on the
amount of wealth society has, Wealth
is what oil toll for strive Tor, aud tlght
lOr, II necessary Witness the reyOu.
tion0ry proceedings among the anarch'
lists OF Chicago, last Sunday. In the
division Of the wealth, the part falling
tO land IL rent, the part falling 10 CAPT
tai Is interest, and ~ labor is wages
Now wages Is the reward OF sOcety for
its toll, as every useful member OF
society rs q laborer, Of some kind. In.
terest is the reward Of capital.
Now natural law, if not interfered
with by Legislation, will enable labor and
capital 10 get their respective shares In
equitable proportions, Then II there 10
plenty OF land and natural resources,
! the prosperity OF society depends on
the eXertlon Of labor aud capital In the
production Of wealth, and the retnrns
they receive. Now there Ia certainly
nothing more consistent with reason,
than the fact that the land and natural
resources were created for the benefit
Of the whole human race, and that
society ls entitled only TO the wealth II
produces tlerelr0m, and not the owners
of the land to dispose Of at will. There.
fore The share or economic rent that
falls TO land IN production aud growth
Of society, rightly belongs to society, as
the reward Of labor and capital
Socially We are living on burning
volcano, Small eruptions are breaking
out from time 10 time. The llaymar.
ket iiot in Chicago was one, aud the
hanging of u few Anarchists, was only
q smothering over the surface 10 cause
the lava to burn more lercely within.
The various strikes over the country,
are small eruptions and their defeat iB
only covering over the surface 70 cause
the lava TO burn more tlorcely within.
How long society will be able 10 pre-.
vent q general eruption remains 10 be
seen. This is not sensational theory,
II is practical common sense. But II Is
said our institutions, and our laws, are
built that way, and how are we going 10
remedy 1t. Simply by taxing land
values and removing all other taxes
from capital and labor or the products
of labor and capital This would re.
move the landlord and give TO the legit-
innate children the economic rent
derived from the use of land.
But would this ruin farmers and
owners Of land. IL would destroy
monopoly, and such as would live NJ
their ease on the wealth produced by
the labor and capital OF others. With
our present system, the tendency is TO
migrate towards the Centers, because IL
pays better This is claimed to be one
of the evils Of the times. The rural
districts and small towns are being
and larger centers over.
Then the tendency would
be to migrate from the centers to the
rural districts, because II costs less to live
and labor could lind plenty Of employ
ment anywhere, aud this would even up
Land Ya.uea Certainly those Interested