The Louisiana Democrat., 1890-07-02
Mr.. BROWN ON PROPERTY.

He States the Attitude Of the Single Taxer
Toward Private Ownership of Wealth.
Edward Osgood Brown made five
minutes speech on single tax before the
Sunset Club of Chicago on the night OF
April "a, the occasion being discussion
of taxation. Many persons present, un-
acquainted with the single tax theory,
were interested to learn that it is not at
war with the right of private property.
Mr.. Brown said:
A personal property tax is not only
impolitic, because it can not be collect
ed and will always be evaded, but it is
wrong in ethical principle, and this is
the case with every other tax on the
product of mans industry and energy
applied to natural opportunities or upon
the free exchange of such products. 1t
is wrong because it interferes with the
sacred right of property, which is a di-
vine right, and can be no more Justly
interfered with by king or an aristoc-
racy, or majority in q democracy than
by any other superior force. That which
man produces or gets in exchange for
what he produces is absolutely his own
against all the world. 1t is wrong to
take it by superior force for purposes
which he does not approve.
But this does not entail anarchy or
lack of government, because there are
other things which the community col
lectively owns, and revenue coming
from them which the community has
right to dispose of by any properly
authorized expression of its will. just
as corporation has the moral right by
the action of a majority Of its stock
holders to dispose of its corporate prop
erty, but no right to dispose of the indi-
vidual fortunes of it's members, so the
community or the State, by a majority
vote in democracy has the right to
settle the disposition of tho revenues
which belong to it.
And those revenues which do belong
to it are sufficient to pay all the ex-
penses OF government without levying
any tax upon what properly belongs to
the individual. Those revenues are not
only the profits of those things which,
being in their nature monopolies and in
capable therefore of being subject to
FREQ competition, should either be done
by the State for its own account or be
given as franchise to the highest bid
der for a yearly rental, but the price
which should be paid to the State for all
special privileges granted by it. Special
privileges are sometimes necessary upon
grounds OF expediency, but the only just
method of granting them is in exchange
for proper compensation to be paid to
the community. The greatest of these
special privileges is the individal posses.
sion and so-called ownership ofland. Itis
necessary as matter of expediency, but
it is based upon no natural right Of
property. No such thing as absolute
ownership of land is recognized by the
human law or the divine law BY the
human law land is held from the State
in return for services rendered to it.
That service in these days should be
the payment of the economic rent of the
land to the State. BY the divine law
the earth belongs to all men: every man
has an interest in every piece of land.
Therefore justice requires that the pos
session being parceled out to individu-
ais should be paid for to the State ac-
cording to the relative advantages en-
joyed. Thus economic rent would 20 to
the State.
From these sources of revenue which
belong to it, the State will receive all
that it needs. The true solution of the
problem of taxation is not to tax at all,
but to render unto Caesar the things that
are Caesars, and to God the things thatar
Gods is to allow every man his natu-
raj, inalienable and divine right of in
dividual property in those things which
are the proper subject of individual
property; ''to render unto Caesar the
things that are Casar's," is to pay to the
State all that belongs to the community
collectively-first and chief of which
things is economic rent.