The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-01-09
THINKS Il. d." "ISDAFT.
POINTS MADE AND ANSWERED
Another Single Taxer Replies.
MINNEAPOLIs, Dec. 80, 1894

MINNEAPOLIS, Dec. 80, 1894.
To the Editor
In the name common sense and all
that is reasonable, what is the matter
with your Especial contributor" l.
| D.? Has he gone daft? They do say,
that the Single Tax makes people
crazy sometimes, and the way 81. d."
talks ON that subject in the last REP
REsENTATIvE seems to indicate
that there may be some foundation
for the belief, for he certainly has not
shown any alterations Of mind here
tofore.
| One form of dementia which anti
Single Takers suffer from is the idea
that Single Tax was in operation in
France before and up to the French
revolution. This hallucination seems
to have taken possession of II. D."
with unusual virulence; and a Singu-
lar peculiarity of the hallucination in
this case is that IL. D." kindly and
obligingly furnishes the proof to re-
! fute his own assertions, and makes it
unnecessary to quote authorities to
disprove it. when the French revO-
luton broke out the farmers Of
France had the Single Tax" says II.
D." 1.-The peasants footed the entire
bills, and they became reduced to such
depths Of wretchedness that when
they had nothing else to tax the
aristocracy taxed their salt" Think
of it! Taxing everything until there
is nothing left but salt, and then tax
ing that, and calling that the Single
Tax! A stranger reading Il. D 50
article would simply say that he
hasn't the slightest idea what the
Single Tax is; but that can hardly be
possible: still, taking that view of it
land l don't know what other view
can be taken( | will state for II d. IS"
benefit, that the Single tax, as adyO-
Gated by Henry George, if in opera
tion, would not tax any product of hui
man labor one cent-nOt even salt.
All taxes would be levied on all land
according to it's value, and if France
had the Single Tax before the revolu-
tion, then the peasants. ''whO footed
the entire bill,' owned every foot of
land in France that had any value.
Is that so, Mr.. D.? Did :he aristoc-
racy of France-the priests, barons,
bishops, cardinals, princes" etc.
own no land? My reading Of French
history tells me that Mr.. d. is sub
stantially correct when he says that
'thc peasants footed the entire bill, -
but, on the other hand, the aristoc-
racy owned all the land. Now, either
the peasants, who footed the entire
bill, "owned all the land, or the Single
when the Revolution broke out.
Which horn, Mr.. D.?
Mr.. D. says, that, under the Single
Tax, the workingmen in cities could
only have homes ''by paying the taxes
of the rich men in the community
1t is pretty hard to know what tC
think of such an assertion as that.
Think of 1.-THE Single Tax would taN
all land according to it's value, and yet
Mr.. D. says, that the beautiful ano
valuable grounds surrounding the
residences or the Washburns, Lowrys
Pillsburys. ETC.. would not be taxed!
Another hallucination that anti-Sin
] gle-taXers labor under is. that the
rich would escape from all taxes, ant
quotes as an illustration the state
ment of Banker Williams, OF New
York. showing the amount of wealth
possessed by a single institution, anC
which. of course. would not be taxed
;. Mr.. Williams belongs to a class O
men who have the reputation of bei6e
shrewd enough to know a good thing
:, when they see it, and also of not beinl
averse to any law that would put mon
ey in their pockets and keep it there
and if the Single Tax would be such
snap for them why are they not work
, ing for it as hard as they are for The
Carlisle bill. for instance? And VIII,
!, are not such people as Rockefeller
Carnegie, the Astors, the Wander
bilts. etc, Single Takers?
7 If Mr.. d. will consult the last census
: he will find that the farmers o
this country own about 10 per cent Gin
value) of the land, and consequently
under the Single Tax, would paw onl
10 per cent of the taxes. Does not MI
D., claim or believe that they pay les
, than that now? The general opinion
+ seems to be that they pay most of tn
y taxes; and Il that opinion is correct
!. then the best service Mr.. d. can rer
: der the farmers is to help abolish a
: have all taxes collected from the reI
> tai value of land-to establish tn
: Single Tax. E. &. ERICKSON.
q COMMENTS FROM THE SPECIAL con
q TRIBUTOR.
/. We are gratified to note the az
Acknowledgement that the Single Ia
r makes men crazy. 1t produces un
# versal lunacy. That is the reason W
f are opposed to it. Our friend shoul
drop it. The sensible men are all a
4 rayed against it.
d 2. What is the difference betwee
i owning all the land of country ar
n paying all the taxes; or not ownir
IS any of the land and paying all til
y taxes. Is not the former case as .ba
as the latter, under the Single Tia
j. scheme? The Single Takers Say to l
d B.-"Here; you shall own this lam
=. but we will make the taxes SO hig
e that you can only get bare living OF
of it by the hardest struggles" tt
French aristocrat said to the peasan
before the Great Revolutions: "Her
- YOU take this land and cultivate
you shall pay all the taxes Of the n
" tion, and if there is anything left, b
re yond bare living, for you and your
u l will take it," But, says some one,
!. in the latter case the peasant had
- support the state and the landlo
y both. True; but the Single Tax til
p ory is to take the "unearned incr
y = ment," as they call it, or all abo
=, * the mere support of the occupier.