The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1891-07-29
SINGLE TAX DEPARTMENT.
"THE ONLY SOLUTION"


bly, the most outspol1en advocate Of the
single tax to tie found among daily pa
pers. 1t understands the theory per-
fectly, and advocates it without apology
or qualification Under the head, THE
Only Solution" the following editorial
appeared in its issue of May Z:
free agent can always make bet
ter bargain than cen one under con-
straint. This wage-worller, who has
only one occupation in which he is pro-
ticient, is less independent than he who
can turn his hand to variety of trades.
The artisan owning his own homestead,
free from debt, especially when the
area is sufficient to give him employ
ment during the gardening season,
need submit to TO such rate of wages
as he who must provide for the periodic
call of the landl ord. In word, the
laborer who is so situated that he can
employ himself, and from his toll reap
the full benefits, is on such an equality
with the employing class that he is en-
abled to make satisfactory bargain,
both as to wages and hours.
The powrr to employ ones self rests
in the power to get on the land The
occupation of the farmer is the only
one in the World that can occupy all
the people at one time and provide suf-
ficient to sustain life. Given piece of
fertile land. no one need starve. From
its bosom can be obtained every ele-
ment that cor.serves the happiness and
prosperity of the human family.
The very first element, then, neces-
sary to the complete emancipation of
the wage-receiving classes from their
economic bondage, is freedom to en-
ploy themselves. The opportunity
must always be open to exert them
selves for their individual benefit, free
from rules or regulations made by 9TH
ers. Without this they can never be
free. They must submit to such terms
as the owners of land and the owners
of wealth employed productivity choose
| to make.
AS taxation as enforced to-day, COM
bined with the legal monopoly of nat
ural opportunities to labor, cause the
exploitation OF labor, so changes in the
system of taxation may be made the
channel for labor's redemption. Social
lists and nationalist have created elab-
crate schemes of governmentalism
wherein the state will be the parent
and the wealth producer the child, to
be dealt with as the parent conceives
best; whereas all that is necessary to
make laborer independent is to leave
him alone, free to employ himself, free
to exchange his products, free from the
eXactions of the tax gatherer.
Whenever successful labor-saving
machine Is first invented one must be
prepared to see a complicated mechan-
ism. There are wheels, and cogs, and
cams and springs all seemingly inextri-
cably mixed But apply the power,
and 10! the result is surprising. The
machine almost seems to think 1t is a
success. Go back and look at that ma
chine in decade. Its capacity has
been doubled, but instead of multi
tude Of frightfully complicated arms
bolts, cogs, belts, wheels and cams,
there are seen few pieces of steel,
brass and iron with direct and positive
motions 1t is not so pretty machine,
but it is much better one. Simplicity
has brought greater efficiency.
The labor world has for years been
constructing complicated machinery
for its industrial ills. Sometimes the
machines have seemingly worked well
for time; again they have been a bur-
den instead Of benefit. And these
manchines for the emancipation of la
Dor, unlike the successful ones, are be-
ing all the time more complicated, un.
til now, when they get out of order,
such distress follows as to put the
whole commercial world into convul-
sions. The tendency has been away
from simplicity in dealing with the dis
tresses engendered by the concentra-
ton of great masses of humanity into
our commercial ccnters where, hutldled
together in ill ventilated and disease
breeding tenements, they evolve mi
asma and a gangrene perilous alike to
all classes.
To enable labor to come by it's own,
to enable the wealth producer to en-
Joy the fruits of his labor, to enable
enterprise to reap its full reward, it is
only necessary to relieve the people of
their burdens by freeing trade, and by
relieving every species of property the
result of human exertion from the Wis
its of the assessor and tax gatherer,
collecting all the revenue necessary for
those functions that should properly be
exercised by that social organism call
ed government, by tax on land values
only.
A tax on land values is the chief cure
for low wages and long hours eut it
is despised by the masses because of its
simplicity They cling to their COM
plicated schemes for social regulation
and reject that which is the very es-
sence of justice and equity. For tax
on land values will not take one min
utc's worth of labor from the laborer
that is his by right 1t will only take
for community uses the values the com.
munlty itself as whole has brought
into existence.
Why IS land on the corner Of Wood
ward ana Michigan avenues valued at
81, 500 foot front? 1t is not because
of anything the present owner has done
to it. Why is land all along Woodward
avenue from the river front to Grand
Circus park, worth on an average at
least $1,000 a front foot? Not be-
cause of anything the owners have
done to il. This great value is due