The Colfax chronicle., 1892-01-16

bers who SECURE better sites, and in
proportion to their advantage in this
respect 1t is mode of equalizing
common rights, adapted to civiliza-
tion in which. possession in common Is
impossible.
There is nothing in this to suggest
any analogy with the idea of common
ownership of machinery. Whatever
advantages man may acquire merely
by his ownership of machinery are
justly his. He takes nothing from 9th.
are, directly or indirectly, due to the
private ownership of natural resources;
and there are no common rights to be
equalized, as in the case of land.
The communication of Evacustes A.
Phipson. published along with that of
Mr.. Chancellor. illustrates the absurd.
ity of confusing the single tax with
socialism. Even Mr.. Chancellor will
be apt to smile when he reads it 1t is
due to Mr.. Phipson. however. to re-
mind the reader that he writes from
England, where socialism, thanks to
the activity of its advocates has ''made
propaganda" in the land restoration
bodies, after the manner in which it
operates upon trade unions, both there
and here; and where the single tax. as
that term is understood in this country.
has but slight organized support, ex-
cept from the financial reform associa-
ton. body of free traders. When he
writes of the single tax. therefore, he
may really refer not to the single tax,
but TO the socialistic programme of
substituting the government as. q land
lord in place of private landlords. and
making everybody tenant whether or
no. OF the essential principle of the
single tax, that there shall be no land
owners, neither the state nor individu-
ala. and that land shall fall into two
classes. occupied or private, and unoc-
cupied or common. Mr.. Phipson evil
IDENTIFY has no conception.
The conditions in England, where
the tories are. taxing Englishmen to
buy out Irish landlords for the benefit
OF Irish tenants, regardless of the suf-
ferings of Irish peasants that are not
tenants, may nationally account for Mr..
Phipson's idea that the buying out of
landowners, with full compensation,
payable in bond that is ultimately to
lose its interest-paying quality, is a
plan that would come at once within
the domain OF practical politics; but to
Americans It will read like the craziest
kind of political small talk
But the most significant of Mr.. Phip-
sons ill-considered criticisms is his as
sumption that capital as well as land
can be taxed to the point of extinction
of value. Land may be so taxed as to
extinguish its value, but not to extin-
guish the land; and, conversely, it is
supposable that capital may be so taxed
as to extinguish 1t, but not to extinguish
its value so long a. the capital itself
exists As IL is obvious that Mr.. Phip-
son does not contemplate the extinction
of the value Of capital by extinguishing
capital, his consideration of land and
capital in this manner proves his inca.
pacity for the criticism he undertakes.
1t is this ignorant and needless disre.
gard of elementary truths-so simple
that they need but to be mentioned to
be accepted-that makes discussion
with most socialists exasperating and
profitless- 1t is like discussing prob.
lens in long division with q boy who
has no appreciation of the vsiue Of
numbers. The Standard.