Feliciana sentinel. [volume] (St. Francisville, La.) 1877-1892, 1891-09-12
!, ''....,....

q n, 80 = 5 srfbx4. xsf WEIR. =
Il n dces ipAeeAk ,Art1AiGhtse seem pos
~ for the earth ~ t8dbme the exclu-
No poesession Of Individuals BY some i
%'fSs1ss q cqmt6AAe ssadiskrisutibn.
syNhv." It may be asked, .should not
nen agree 70 . fair sti6divisfdh? II all ,
- .co-heirr, Why may mot the estate be
,rrailv anpovtioned, and each be after;
1911 serfect MASTER u Nh own shate?"
70 this question it may In the first
Mo- be replied that ,s6ch, Z division is
setoed by 'ht tho dihfcnfty Of fix
~ tho value Of respective tracts OF
land. Variations in productiveness, Diff
fcrent degrees of accessibility, advan-
taRes of climate, proximity to the CEN
tiers Of civilization-these, and other
such considerations, remove the PROB
lem out of the sphere OF mere mensura-
zion into the region of impossibilty.
But. waving this, let US inquire who
are to he the allotccs. Shall adult males
And all who have reAched twenty -one
ON = specified day be the fortunate in
diyiduals? If SO, what is to be done
with those who come of age on to-mor-
row? Is it proposed that each man,
woman and child shall have a section:
II SO. what is to become of those VINO
arc to he born hext year? And what
will be the fate Of those whose fathers
.cll their estatas and squander the pro-
ceeds? These portionless ones must
constitute a class already described as
having no right to resting place on
carth-as living by the sufferance OF
their fellow men-as being practically
serfs. And the existence of such class
is wholly at variance with the law OF
equal freedom
Until, therefore, we can produce
valid commission authorizing us to
make this distribution-until it can be
proved that God has given one charter OF
privileges to one generation and anoth-
er to the next-until we can demon
strate that men born after a certain
date are doomed to, slavery, we must
consider that no such; allotment is per-
missible.
Rpobsbay SOME will regatd the dit.
ficnltfes anssparaAe from yidual
ownership Of the soil, as-eaused by
pushing to excess doctrine applicable
only within rational limits This is
yery favorite style of thinking with
some, There are people VINO hate any
thing in the shape of exact conclusions
and these are of them -Accortilng &c
such the right is never in either eS
treme, but always half way between
the extremes They are continually
trying TO reconcile yss and no rs ant
butts and. excerpts. are their delight
They have so great u faith IN 'ule ~
dicious mean" that they would ssareea!
believe an oracle if it uttered full
length principle. Were you to inquire
of them whether the earth turns on 1t
axis from east to west or from west t
east.-you might almost expect the re
plv: "a little of both, or Not exact
iv either" 1t is doubtful whether the
would assent to the axiom that tn
whole-is greater than tts part, withou
making some qualification. They hav
passion for compromises To NEE
their taste, truth must akvays,be spice
with a LITTLE error. fThey &n not eoI
ceive of a pnre, de finfte, entire and u,
limited law, And hence. in-discussios
like the present, they alssagnstant
petitioning for limitations-T alwal
wishing to abate, and d dify. and mo
erateEever protestings gainst doctrin
being pursued TO their ultimate cons
Quencess.
But Il behooyes such TO recollec% Il
ethicals truth. is "a exsct and as pe
emptory. asphysical truth; and that
this matter of land tenure the verdi
of morality must be distinctly yea
nav. Either men have right to IA
the soil private property or they ha
not. There is no medium. We m Y
choose one of the two positions. Ihe
can be no half-and- half opinion. In t
nature of things the fact must be eth
one way or the other. d
If men have not such a right, we
at once delivered from the severe p
dicaments already pointed out If tn
have such right, then is. that right
solutely sacred, not on any pretense
be violated. If they have suck
right then is his grace of Lex
justified in warning off touri
from-Ben Mac Duhi, the duke OF Ath
in closing Glen Tilt, the duke OF u
cleugh in denying sites to ting r
church and the duke of sutherland
banishing the Highlanders to ms
room for sheep walks. ] + they n;
such a right then it would be pro
for the sole proprietor. of any khgd
"a Jersey or Guernsey. for esampl
to impose just what regulations
might choose on its inha bitants.to
them that they should not live on
property unless they protested cert
religion, spoke a particular langus
and paid him a specified revere'
adopted an authorized dress and
formed to all other conditions he M
see fit to make. If they have SUI
~ight, then is there truth in that t.
of the ultra tory school, that the
owners are the only legitimate ru
of a country-that the people at !;
remain in it only by the land owr
permission and ought consequent
submit to the land owners rule,
respect whatever institutions the
owners set up Theresis no Fes'
from these differences. They are ne
sary corollsrice to the theory that
earth can become individual proP'
And they can only be repudiated b.
nying that theory.