The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-04-21
LAND MONOPOLY.

ME- ,. e. WILSON, of New York. in p
very able article in tho STANDARD. ? weekly
review Of public affairs, under the caption.
Tho Farmers Folly" publishes some
very startling facts According 10 his fiy-
ures' In 1851 there were 322, 357 tenant
farmers paying rent; and 7O2, 244 farmers
farming On shares, occupying position not
unlike That OF the despised yilleins of fem
Gal times. This makes a grand total of
1,oS4oOl tenant farmers in the United
states. This is only 1926 less than the
tenantry of England, Ireland, Scotland and
wales, there being in those countries l,O69,-
I2f tenant farmers and gardeners. "If the
of4:223 Irish tenant farmers should be COM
peIieo to share their crops equally with
tneir landlords" says Mr.. Wilson. Gas
Io2,244 American farmers must, such an
outcry would go up to heaven as was never
before heard in the world. If the Ala. SO4
Engilsh tenant farmers were required to do
II they would take only from thirty-six to
Iorty eight hours in which to wipe out the
whole system of land tenures. The great
est share ever asked of them was one
fourth
Less than half century ago Americans
could boast that every American owned his
own farm, they were proprietors of all the
Ianos they titled, they were the most pros
porous, the most independent body of citi
zens-the princes of the republic. What
change hath been wrought A change
too, that must bring regret Another fact
burdened with portents of evil for the good
OF our country is the growth of large farms
ranging from 500 to 100000 acres. Mr..
WILSON says that while in 1870 there were
only l5,o73 farms between 500 and 900
acres, there were in 1880, 1892: and of
farms over 1000 acres, 1920 in 1870 and
2S,57S in 1880. These facts tell sad tale in
the history of American agriculture. They
tell US plainly as may be, that the indie
pendant farmer who has hitherto titled
his own broad acres is being replaced by
tenantry, and that our small holdings are
being bought up by syndicates, that one of
the tentacles of the octopus monopoly is
gradually fastening itself upon the in
dustry Of farming, as other tentacles of the
octopus are fastened upon other industries
and is rapidly crushing out its life. Of
these large bonanza farms and the life
they are destroying MIR. WILSON says:
The plutocratic machine owners have invaded
farming. So rapid has been this invasion that
while In 1870 there were only l5,S73 farms be-
tween 500 and l,C00 acres, there were in 1880
1892; and Of farms over 1000 acres, 720 in $50
and q, 57s in 1880.
These bonanza farms range from 800 to 5ooO1o
acres. They have no homes and no home-life-
only barracks. where few hirelings live for a
few months in the year. Machinery and ami
mails do the work, and the only labor is for ma
chine-tenders and herders. When the harvest
is over these machine-tenders are turned adrift.
a dozen OF them not having earned enough to
support one family for year, and new gang
is hired when the next harvest comes. The
land that would support fifty families in COM
fort does not furnish wages to support FIVE and
furnishes employment only for tramps without
families.
There is no sadder spectacle among the
disastrous events occurring in our repub
lie, nothing so sure to breed difficulty for
the generations that will come after US as
this growth Of monopoly in American lands
and the displacement of independent far
mers with a tenantry which in genera
ticn or two-nay il less time, in a few
years--will surely be reduced to a peas
antry as actual as that of Ireland. Germany
or Russia. Such thing would be most
deplorable. it was one of the rocks on
which Rome was wrecked, and on which
Greece was stranded. The evil was pointed
out by DEMosTHENEs, though his country
men needed not. After abiding to the
afiuence Of individuals in Athens-show
ing how the homes of individuals were
grander than the public buildings
even, and others were farming lands of
such an extent that they had never
dreamed of-the great orator pointed out
the evils which sprang from these condi.
tons as follows:
The cause Of this difference is that formerly
the people were lords and masters of all. ANY
individual citizen was GLAD to receive from
them his share OF honor, office or profit Now,
on the contrary, these persons are the disposers
OF emoluments; everything is done by their
agency; the people are treated as underlings
and dependents and you are happy to take
what these men allow you for you portion.
All this servility, this reduction of the
free people OF Athens from masters to serfs, |
to be ruled by plutocrRcy as corrupt as it
was oppressive, was the outgrowth of the
lands and other wealth being seized upon |
by the few and eventually it destroyed the
republic This should warn our own peo-
pie not to walk in the same path lest the |
same fate oyertake them. What is left of !
our public domain should be reserved for
actual settlers; whatever Of the public do |
main has been granted to railroads and |
other corporations who have not fulfilled |
the conditions by which they were ceded, |
should at once revert to the government to |
be held for actual settlers, and some limit |
set to the amount Of land that may be held |
by syndicate. This may not stem the |
tide of evil altogether, but it will at least
arrest its progress to some extent.
IT is a somewhat amusing telegram |
which comes to us from Detroit. saying |