The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1893-01-14
TAX REFORM DEPARTMENT.
HENRY GEORGE
Addresses the National Real Estate Con.
gress at Buffalo.

mere was KOOQ-SlZeu duulcncc IN
Music hall TO hear Mr.. Henry George,
the boxes containing representative
real estate men like James Mooney and
Alphonse T. Roehner, while there were
good many ladies in the hall.
Henry George is an intellectual look
ing man with high. full, square shaped
head-bald as the head of thoughtful
| men usually are-and with mixture
of geniality and determination in his
countenance betokening man who,
having once taken up a position is not
likely to rcliquish it without strug-
gle. His extemporaneous address was
marked by clearness, force and lack of
conventionality.
LAND AND IMPROVEMENTS.
He said in part, addressing himself to
real estate men who are constantly
dealing in real estate-which includes
two very different elements--the term
real estate" came from the lawyers.
1t was applied both to immovable prop
erty or land and the buildings or i'm
provements made on the land, two ele-
ments which were different as chalk
from cheese.
LAND AND WEALTH.
81 want to speak tonight" said Mr.
George, mot about real estate, the in
elusive term, but about those distinct
ard separate things that are included
in real estate, about improvement upon
land, or rather, to use economic terms
in economic sense-land and wealth"
He said he had listened to the most en-
tertaining and instructive speech of
Judge Hatch, who told them how,
rs their assessments came around, the
amount listed to real estate was
constantly increasing, and how,
in spite of the fact that immov-
able wealth of all kinds is being accu-
INFLATED, the tax levied upon personal
property grows less and less. Figures
had been given to show that in spite of
the very large increase on rents, the
tax on personal property in the state
OF New York was s., 200, 900 less than it
had been the year before. That was
notorious fact. Judge Hatch said it
was a moral wrong as well as penal
crime, that men did not pay their tax
upon other forms of property than
rents, but he did not propose any reme-
dy, and very much doubt whether in
the history of the world no method of
fairly collecting a tax upon personal
property has ever yet been devised"
After reciting Judge Hatch's inter-
csting illustration of how the money
for the magnificent library building was
raised, how the offer of five per cent
bonds led to slow sale because the
publicity given to them in the papers
would bring the tax gatherer after the
buyers; and how after the publicity OBJ
jections were overcome the bond sold
without difficulty. ''What is true
here" said Mr.. George, '.is true every
where, true at least in the large cities
The assessment upon personal prop
crty can't be collected from men of
wealth, it is not collected, and never
will be collected. It is utterly impos-
sible to fairly collect it,
AN oFFENsE AGAINST MORALITY.
''The judge, without assigning any
remedy, declared, in conclusion, that
this is an offense against morality
There is an offense against morality
there-unquestionab there is an of
tense against morality; but where is it?
Is it not generally true that where you
find law can't be enforced, where you
find men who are regarded by their fell
lows as men of honor and men of con-
science who do not obey that law, that,
after all, the immortality is in the law?
II believe in the honesty of the
average man. / believe that most men
would rather do right than wrong, and
where you have a law that is set aside
by good, honest men who have the re-
spect of their fellows, I believe, if you
look closer, you will find that the i'm
morality is in the law. Take this case.
Is it fair, is it just, that men should pay
taxes upon what their exertions have
produced? There is an injustice-a
gross injustice-which comes clearly
home, it seems to me, to body of real
estate men, in our present system of
taxing.
PERSONAL PROPERTY.
Mr.. George asked amid applause:
''What do all the efforts to tax personal
property amount to? / will tell you.
They amount TO increasing the tax upon
those who have very little and letting
rich men escape. The poor farmers,
whose affairs are open to everybody,
paid in all they possessed, and besides
there wasn't enough in it to make them
tamper with their conscience Laugh
ter. How was it with the millionaires?
To attempt to go at their personal
property or even at their improvements.
was utterly idle. You can't do it." said
Mr.. George, ''they know you can't, and
they pay just as Mr.. Vanderbilt does,
little something for the sake of
appearances, that's ALL" Laugh
ter. He asked Judge Hatch
whether the immortality did not lie in
the law, whether it wasn't bad to keep
on the statute books law that couldn't
be enforced? ut is" said he, "a bad,
it is an immoral thing to teach the peo-