The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-07-04

this country doubtless had its effect on
the selection of the society's officers for
the year. III. +. Dessau was elected presl-
dent F. W. Lynch vice-president, H. M.
Welcome secretary, James S. Reynolds
treasurer and an executive committee
composed of C. Barbour, James H. Barry,
Joseph Leggett, Arthur McEwen, S. Il,
Moffett, II. L. Please and c. G. Terrill.
Most of these are young men. enthusiast
tic in the movement. They are also,
mostly, men of marked ability, and they
will lead a vigorous policy in the coming
campaign, "On to Delaware" This So
ciety will furnish funds, literature, speak
ers and enthusiasm for the fight, and If
every city in the Union will be able to con-
tribute as much of all of these as will San
Francisco the victory in Delaware is fore
gone conclusion, and the majority at the
election is likely to be SO large that some
of the victory may slop over bit into
Pennsylvania and Maryland.
However, Maryland is a hard nut for the
single takers to crack. They have discov-
cred this by experience. Indeed, 1t was
Maryland man. the very one who inaugur-
ated the Hyattsville (Md.) single-tax fight
about four years ago, who first proposed
the concentration upon Delaware.
His name is Jackson H. Ralston. He
was Sacramento boy, was born and
schooled there. But in after years he
found himself a practicing attorney in the
District of Columbia with little home in
the village of Hyattsville, eleven miles
outside of Washington. Now it occurred
to Mr.. Rals.on, who was devout single
taxer, that it would be a clever stroke of
work to make Hyattsville a single-tax
town. He had made his converts, and
these succeeded in electing three members
of the Town Board of five Trustees. Then
the three framed single-tax law, simply
dropping the taxes on improvements and
industries and taxing the land values. A
couple of land speculators-those who held
valuable land idle while the Improvements
of other people increase its selling price
objected to the land tax and carried the
matter to the Supreme Court. Then
Hyattsville gained National fame, but
upon a constitutional technicality the Su-
preme Court of Maryland overruled the
efforts of Mr.. Ralston and his friends.
1t appears now that there are 10 such
constitutional provisions existing in Della
ware, and the best lawyers in the party
have declared their belief that there is not
line in the Delaware constitution that
could possibly be construed as restricting
the Legislature in any manner in the mat
ter of choosing this or that method of tax
alton.
The campaign will begin at once and
will last for about fifteen months. The
election does not take place until 1896, and
the fact of the matter Is that single-taXerS,
though they would like to reap victory in
Delaware and will work hard to that end,
will be satisfied with their labors if they
but make hot fight and attract attention
to their principles. In recent letter to
the Single-tax Courier, Mr. Ralston, in
moving the attack on Delaware, thus sums
up the advantages offered by that State:
Zone advantage Delaware possesses for
practical work is smallness of population.
Within limited area are gathered 100 900
people-less than the average population
OF this number, or about 60, 900 persons, are
to be found within the limits of one city
Wilmington. The State contains other
smaller cities, leaving the purely rural
population in minority. These condi-
lions render q possible canvass of the State
not an expensive undertaking.
Another favorable feature consists of
the character of the population. The
manufactures are largely of SUCH nature as
to call for the service OF mechanics of in
telligence-men to whom the single-tax
should peculiarly appeal The colored
population of Delaware is considerable,
and, speaking from personal experience,
l venture to say that the African race is
peculiarly amenable to the single-tax doc
trine.
GA third reason why the State of Della
ware offers an excellent field is, that GER
tain amount of education has already been
carried on within her borders, notably in
New Castle. and favorable impression
created in many quarters. The State thus
possesses nucleus from which growth will
naturally proceed"