The herald., 1894-05-09

audience with great applause, and said:
The necessity for taxation grows out
of the social character of man. Living
together in society, government is
necessary for the protection of the weak
against the strong and for the perform
ance OF public functions. And govern
msnt necessitates q public revenue.
Public revenues do not consist OF
money, but of food. clothing, shelter.
etc., for public services, and structures
for public use. Bread, for example, ia
one part of public revenues. Therefore,
the fret inquiry ia as to how such things
az bread come into being.
Bread is the result of the application
Of labor to land, OF humsn art to the ex-
ternal universe. The same 10 true OF all
things that go to make up public reve.
nues. In other words, labor and labor
alone produces public revenues.
Then 1t may be said that it makes no
difference to labor, since it produces
public revenues anyhow, in what man
ner taxes are collected. But that 10 like
saying OF horse that must transport
load of iron, that it makes NO difference
to the horse whether the iron is put into
wagon or packed upon the horses
back, or tied to his tail. The incidence
of taxation is of the utmost Importance.
There are two general kinds of taxes
indirect and direct. Indirect taxes tend
to interfere with labor in producing
wealth, and to disturb its just distribu-
ton; therefore, indirect taxes should be
rejected.
Direct taxation is of two kinds. One
kind 10 in proportion to ability to pay,
and the other is in proportion TO the
value OF the service the public renders
to the taxpayer. The latter is obviously
the only just tax.
II is said that you cannot measure the
value Of the service that the public rem
ders to the taxpayer, but land value
measures it exactly. The rental value
of land 10 exactly the measure of the
value OF the service that the public per-
forms. Land values rise with public
benefits and decline with their disap-
pearance.
From this it follows that the natural
and just system is to abolish all taxes,
except one tax to be levied upon land
owners alone, in proportion to the value
of their land, regardless of it's improve
ments. That is the single tax.
After listening for two hours to solid,
unimpeachable facts and logic, highly
spiced with cutting irony and fine
humor, the audience wss pleased to hear
the soothing notes OF an artist, Prof.
James A. Clark, who dealt out harmony
of the vocal order. accompanied by him
self on an organ. And after an encore,
promptly responded to, the hearers
were in the best of trim for questions
and answers, which came freely and
were dismissed promptly.
Question-Does not the protective
49, - hi 70 kn ho
pay our taxes?
Mr.. Post answered: Last year 1
crossed the Canadian line, and they
taxed me 81 tariff on my box, which
contained my free trade lecture. Ibsing
the foreigner paid the tax of 81 to sup
port the Canadian government. / then
delivered four lectures In Canada and
charged those people up there 80 cents
extra for each lecture, making $1.20 in
all-$1 to reimburse me for the tariff
tax and 20 cents profit ON the invest
ment of the 81 tax. Now who paid that
tax?
Q.-Would single tax increase or d.
minish land rents, and to what probable
extent?
A.-By economic rent is meant both
actual and potential rent. 1t would
very greatly reduce economic rent.
Holding land out of use would net pay,
and land would be held only for use.
More land being then In the market
rents would be cheaper. There would
be no more potential rent, but only
actual rent.
Q.-Is there any near prospect of
making the single tax an issue at the
polls?
A.-You may be sure the monopoliets
will not bring about the single tax. The
believers In justice must do it. The
Democratic party has jumped half way
across the Niagara fails and they must
20 to the bottom. The party must go to
the logical end. which 10 free trade. In
New Zealand they have already adopted
the single tax, and We are making very
rapid progress all over the Eagish
speaking world.
Q-Such theories as greenbackism,
prohibition, etc., have not been success