St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-05-21

| price on it he pleased, and the user
would be obliged to pay his demand.
| q Here we see the kernel of the case.
| Men hold land idle in order to get the
| difference between the value which the
public gives and the taxes which the
public takes. For the same reason they
own land which they do not want for
| themselves, but which they let others
use for price.
Landlordism. must be DESTROYED be-
fore industry can hope for constant
prosperity.
g. How can landordism be destroyed?
The case is very simple. Make it Gust
more to monopoiize land for speculative
purposes. Lessen the burden on the
actual user. Put more taxes on the
land speculator-iess on the|user. Make
land speculation Improbable. and it
will soon come to an end
See what we do at present. Here are
two quarter sections OF land. One is
owned by monopolizer who is after
the increase Ill value which is sure to
come with increase of population. He
doesn't use the land at all. So far as
| any good to the world is concerned, he
and his land might as we'll be in 'rophet.
All he does is to keep his fellow men
from applying their labor 10 the earth
to produce the good things they need
and must have if they are to live like
civilized human beings. And for this
we reward him by making his taxes
low.
The other quarter-section is taken up
by an Industrious farmer who buys u
pillow and a PAIR of horses-tax him
turns over the prairie sod-tax him
builds little hut to shelter his wife
and children-taX him-puts up barn in
which to keep his horses and plow-tax
hlm-gets some furniture for his house
tax him-buyS more farm machinery
tax HIM raises il crop of wheat or corn
tax him-swaps his grain for clothing
and food-taX him several times OH this
by tariffs. licenses and state and local
taXes-works hard. builds more COM
Portable home. puts carpet on the
floor and couch in the best roOm-taX
him merciieSsly for such economical
conduct. Turn where he will. do what
he will, for every good and noble act,
for every effort TO make his home more
cheerful, TO surround his loved ones
with greater comforts. to ease down the
rough places in life, he Is followed by
the tax-gatherer as If he were a criml-
nal to be punished rather than an i'll
dustrlous citizen 10 be ENCOURAGED
Meanwhile one shrewd Spectator
smllingly hangs on TO the adjoining
quarter, aEd each time the farmer makes
an improvement Nor which he is duly
tined( our Spectator griDs and asks
more for his land.
Nice way ~ encourage industry, isn't
it!
In the cities it is the same. Wherever
man takes lot, and on it tries to
make Tor himself aud his home, he is
prosecuted in the same way. Every
move he makes brings a new fine ill the
torn of tax.
SO with the merchant. the manufact-
urer, the wholesaler and every other
business man. No one can make move
to start an industry TO furnish the peo-
pie with any good thing but down on
him for his enterprise.
And still we wonder that industry
lays! that business becomes stagnant!
How could it be otherwise when our
whole system is based Oh the principle
that every industrial effort should he
discouraged and only those favored who
m0nopollZe the earth and prevent their
fellow men from engaging in business
enterprises.
THIS will be the case so long as we
follow the present policy.
The system must he reversed. Men
must not he taxed because they are in
dustrious. No man should be taxed
more for taking up land and using it for
farm hOfnta mr. Inn inc
terprise than the Spectator is taxed for
holding an equally valuable piece OF
land idle. Tax out the spectators and
industry Will take care of itself.
lax out the spectators, and no longer
will it be possible for lard monopoly to
exact a constantly increasing tribute
from industry. No longer could the in.
creasing tribute to land monopoly leave
industry with SO small return that it
must periodically 90 into bankruptcy
until the price OF land comes down and
allows business 10 move on again.
We have remarkable practical Illus
tratlon of the truth of the foregoing in
the experience Of New Zealand. About
three years ago the people of that colony
Ceased 10 tax The homes and industries
OF the people. Since then no man has
been taxed because he opened up
farm, Dullt home or started bust
ness. In short, for the past three years
men have been taxed in New Zealand in
proportion to the value OF the land thev
use. and not cent because of improve
ments or personal belongings.
Those three years have been years of
great prosperity. Land has become
cheap 10 the user, but high-priced to
the Spectator. Land monopoly has had
hard row to hoe, but industry has
been wonderfully stimulated. The
enormous wealth that formerly went to
swell the Golfers OF land monopoly now
stays in the hands OF the producers.
Borrowing has SO largely fallen off that
the New Zealand Loan company, of
London, has recently failed Tor want of
(-business.
The case of New Zealand is worthy of
our study. Perhaps we can learn other
lessons from the lands beneath the
Southern Cross, besides that of the
Australian ballot q 7 RrrII1