The Louisiana Democrat., 1891-09-02
SINGLE TAX DEPARTMENT.
THE right TO THE USE OF THE
EARTH.
Ey Herbert Spencer.

|. Given a race of human beings hav-
ing like claims to pursue the objects OF
their desires-giv a world adapted to
the qualification of those desires--a
world into which such beings are SINH
larly born, and it unavoidably follows
that they have equal rights to the use
of this world. For if each of them
''has freedom to do all that he
wills, provided that he infringes
not the equal freedom of any other.
then each of them is free to use the
earth for the satisfaction of his wants,
provided he allows all others the same
liberty, And conversely, it is manifest |
that no one. or part of them, may use
the earth in such way as to prevent
the rest from similarly using it; seeing
that to do this is to assume greater free
dom than the rest, and consequently to
break the law
o Equity, therefore, does not permit
property in land. For if one portion
of the carth's surface may justly be-
come the possession of an individual,
and may he held by him for his sole use
and benefit, as thing to which he has
an exclusive right, then other portions
of the earth's surface may be SO held;
and eventually the whole of the earth's
surface may be so held; and our planet
may thus lapse altogether into private
hands Observe now the dileWma to
which this leads. Supposing the en-
tire habitable globe to be SO inclosed, it
fo11o,,,e %hok - <ho 1,n5 o,ypo,.c I, n
valid right to its surface, all who are
not land owners have no right at all to
its surface. Hence, such can exist on
the earth by sutferance only. They are
all trespassers. Save by the permission
of the lords of the soil, they can have
no room for the soles of their feet.
| Nay, should the others think fit to deny
them a resting place, these landlcss
men might equitably be expelled from
the earth altogether. If, then, the as
sumption that land can be held as prop
erty, involves that the whole globe may
become the private domain of q part of
its inhabitants: and if, by consequence,
the rest of its inhabitants can then ex-
ercise their faculties-can then exist
even-only by consent of the land own
ers; it is manifest that an exclusive
possession of the soil necessitates an
infringement of the law of equal free
dom. For men who can not 'live and
move and have their being" without
the leave Of others, can not be equally
free with those others.
3. Passing from the consideration of
the possible to that of the actual, we
find yet further reason to deny the rec
titude of property in land. 1t can never
be pretended that the existing titles to
such property are legitimate Should
any one think so, let hirn look in the
chronicles. Violence, fraud, the prerog-
ative of force, the claims of superior
cunning-these are the sources to which
those titles may be traced. The origin
al deeds were written with the sword
rather than with the pen; not lawyers,
but soldiers, wore the convcyancers;
blows were the current coin given in
payment; and for seals, blood was used
in preference to wax. Gould valid
claims be thus constituted? Hardly
And if not, what becomes of the pre-
tensions of all subsequent holders o.
estates thus obtained? Does sale o.
tequest generate right where it die
not previously exist? Would the origin
al claimants be non-suited at the bar o
reason, because the thing stolen from
them had changed hands? Certainl,
J not. And if one act Of transfer cal
give no title, can many? No. Thougl
; nothing be multiplied forever it vii
, not produce one. Even the law recog
, nizes this principle. An existing hold
: er must. if called upon, substantial
, the claims of those from whom he pur
j chased or inherited his property; an
: my flaw in the original parchment
l even though the property should hav
/ had a score of intermediate owners
: quashes his right.
/ "But time," say some, lis O great l.
Q galizer. Immcmorial possession mus
be taken to constitute a legitimat
E claim That which has been held fror
a age to age rs private property, and ha
K been bought and sold as such, mus
h now be considered as irrevocably bt
8 longing to individuals" To whic
o proposition a willing assent shall b
i: given when its propounders can assig
$ it a definite meaning. Todo this, hov
v ever, they must find satisfactory al
swers to such questions as: How Ion
), does it take for what was original
r wrong to grow into right? At wh'
rate per annum do invalid claims b
I come valid? If title gets perfect in
t thousand years, how much more tina
Q perfect in thousand years. how mue
more than perfect will It be in tw
+, thousand years-and SO forth. For Il
e solution of which they will require
II new calculus.
Whether it be expedient to adm
claims of certain standing, is not II
point We have here nothing to
u with considerations of convention
r privilege or legislative convenienc
y we have simply to inquire what is Il
verdict given by pure equity in the ma
"a ter. And this verdict enjoins a prote
ID against every existing pretension to q
IN individual possession of the soil; al
le dictates the assertion, that the right
OF mankind at large to the earth's surfa
a is still valid; all deeds, customs and la,
IN Notwithstanding.
1e 4. Not only have present land tenur
u an lndefensible origin, but It is impt
e sible to discover any mode by whi
IL land can become private property. G.
q tivation is commonly considered to 81
a legitimate title. He who has reclai
| nd a 4,ao4 Of rr,.t,,,rd from ifS raYi m / fi