The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1890-07-25
THE Farm.
Land Monopoly.

ed States that mparatively few people
seem to realize the extent to which it
has been carried. And only few
appreciate the magnitude of this ter
rible incubus. 1t is best. however, that
everybody should look the facts square.
ly in the face, and then inquire whittier
we are drifting. 1t was recently stated :,
on presumably good authority, that the
railroad companies of the United States
and four other corporations or syndi-
Gates own land aggregating $1,000, 600
acres. Of course only trifing per
centage of this immense area is used by
the owners. They never got control Of
the land for the purpose of cultivating
it. They are simply holding it out of
use until surrounding Improvements
shall have made it many times more
valuable. They have "got good
thing and they propose to hold on to
it while the enterprise of their fellow
men makes it still better.
Land monopoly is the great curse of
the age. 1t has no foundation in JUS
toe. 1t is contrary to every rule Of
right, every principle of fairness, every
intelligent conception of human equal
;ty. Land is as truly the natural in
heritance of every human being as is
light or water. Man created neither of
these elements, and, as they are actual
necessities, all have an equal right to
as much Of them as they can utilize
What would be thought and said if
announcements like the following
should appear in the newspapers:
Articles Of incorporation have been
filed by the American sunshine supply
company! The chief object Of this cor
poration is to supply families and in
dividuals with pure, unadulterated
sunlight at prices within the reach Of
all who are willing to pay for the lux
ury. Physicians say (and it is the
general belieD that a reasonable amount
of sunshine is essential to animal as
we'll as vegetable life; hence the Sup
ply company will have powerful
leverage on the pockets of the people.
The new company is incorporated for
fifty years. 1t starts out with sufficient
capita. to corral all the sunshine within
radius of one hundred miles of this
city, establish immense storehouses and
construct suitable machinery for filing
orders as fast as received. The process
by which sunshine will be appropriated
by corporation and sold to needy Gus
toners is very ingenious, and of course
it has been patented. 1t furnishes
another proof that this is an age OF
progress such as the world never before
saw. And no other country prospers
like the Uni4ed States.
And the following:
A somewhat melancholy affair was
reported at police headquarters to-day,
A family of five persons who lived on
Blank street died from lack of air for
breathing purposes. 1t seems that the
family were receiving their daily sup
ply of air from the Graball oxygen
company, the tenement being furnished
with small service pipe for that pur-
pose. Recently the head of the family
was thrown out of work, and having
paid out his last dollar to the owner OF
the house for rent, was behind on his
air tax, which is payable monthly in
advance. Two days having passed
without payment, the company, III
order to protect itself against further
loss, ordered the supply of air shut off,
and the result proved fatal to the en-
tire family. This case is another warn
ing against allowing bills for the neces-
sites of life to become delinquent. We
learn that the company will probably
make up its loss by levying upon some
furniture left by The deceased family
1t may seem absurd to suppose such
things as these; and in one sense it is
absurd, because nature has interposed
barriers against monopoly of air
and sunshine. But for such insur-
mountable barriers, however, human
greed would soon reach point where
the air we breathe and the sunshine
that warns and Eliminates the earth
would have to be bought from steel.
plated, brass mounted, law-protected
corporations or individuals. And why
not? If land monopoly is right, how
could monopoly of sunshine and air be
wrong? Both kinds of monopoly would
rest on the same bass-which is basis
of cruel wrong and rank injustice.
1t is time for the American people
those who love justice and believe in
equal rights-to unite on one broad
platform of opposition to monopoly in
anything that God has given to be used
freely by the whole human family,
Equal rights for all, special privileges
for none, should be our motto and our
rule of action-The Standard.