The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-12-25
The Single Tax.
Written for THE CALL
By JOSEPH LEGGETT.

Written for THE CALL
By JOSEPH LEGGETT.
Already the City of San Francisco has
| peculiar interest for earnest and faithful
single-taxers all over the world. And this
interest must continue to grow as the COM
ing years roll by. until, by the adoption of
the single tax, the reign of justice is
ushered in and poverty, with its horrid
train of vice and misery, shall disappear
from the earth, leaving behind it only the
| monstrous memories of night forever
past. Then will hosts of happy pilgrims
| from earth's remotest bounds wend their
way to the City by the Golden Gate to see
the place where the single-tax cause had
its origin, where progress and Poverty"
was written and first published to the
world, and where the prophet of San
Francisco" and his earliest disciples
formed the first organization to spread the
light which he had revealed to them.
On the 9th of July, 1871, Henry George
published at San Francisco pamphlet of
forty-eight pages, entitled "Our Land and
Land Policy, National and State" In
this pamphlet Mr.. George forcibly pointed
out the criminal folly of our National and
Ctdte III tuc
public lands and clearly foretold the
| evils that have since followed the practi-
cal exhaustion of those lands. Re also
presented the germ of the idea which
he has since worked out and more
| fully developed in his subsequent works.
| The same year, 1871, Mr.. George estab-
| lished the Evening Post of San Francisco
as penny paper, and during the whole
course of his connection with the paper
actively promulgated his views on the
land question in its columns.
On the Fourth of July, 1877, Mr.. George
was the orator, and at the California
Theater delivered mastery Grafton on
s'The American Republic, It's Dangers
and It's Possibilities, +" in which he clearly
and eloquently presented his views upon
the same subject. Toward the end of that
year few earnest men to whom Mr..
George had from time to time, explained
his doctrines, and who had read his
pamphlets, his editorials in the Post, and
his Fourth of July Grafton, and who had
become convinced of the truth of his teach
ings, met in an office on Clay street, above
Montgomery street, for the purpose of
forming an organization for the propaga-
ton of their views. They organized under
the name of "The Land Reform League of
California of which Joseph Leggett was
elected president and P. J. Murphy Sec
rotary. This was the first society ever
organized on the basis of the single-tax
principle It numbered about dozen
members, among whom were Henry
George, James G. Mcguire, William NJ.
Hinton. John M. Days, A. L. Mann, John
| SWEET and few others whose names / am
now unable to recall. The league held
meetings during the following two or three
years, endeavored unsuccessfully to secure
| the nomination of MIR. George as a dele
gate to the constitutional convention by
the Workingmen's party, held several
public meetings throughout the City,
which were addressed by Mr.. George and
others, arranged for lecture by him,
which was delivered in Metropolitan
Temple on the Goth OF March, 1878, on the
subject, "Why is Work Scarce, Wages
Low and Labor Restless?' and published
and distributed several thousand copies
of this lecture.
Prior to the election for delegates to the
cons .itutional convention in June, 1878,
the league printed series OF four ques-
tons, which it sent to each of the candi-
dates at that election and decided to sup
port those who returned satisfactory an
swers to the questions. Mr.. George was
candidate for delegate on the Democratic
ticket at that election and received 1888
votes, which was a little over 500 votes
more than the next highest candidate on
that ticket received.
The year following, 1879, Mr.. George
completed his great work, Progress and
Poverty" He was unable to find pub
Usher in the East, whereupon his old part
ner in the Post, William M. Hinton, I'M
dertook to print an edition of 500 copies.
This edition, which was got out in man
ner most creditable to the publisher, met
with a ready sale and was widely reviewed
both in this country and in England. This
edition is known as the authors edition,
and is now highly priced by all who are
fortunate enough to possess copy and is
eagerly sought after by those not so fortu-
nate. After this Mr.. George experienced
no difficulty in finding a publisher.
The next organization formed on single
tax lines in this City was called the "Cali-
forDia Tax Reform League" which was
organized in Lower Metropolitan Hall
about the year 1885. Its board of directors
were: James G.. Mcguire, P. J. HeaIy,
Herman Roger, Kate Kennedy, George
Cumming. K. M. Smith and E. w. Thur
man. This league held public meetings
for discussion and reprinted and distrib-
uted an edition of 10000 copies of Mr..
Georges Metropolitan Temple lecture. II
did a very valuable work of education on
economic questions.
The next organization of single takers in
this City was formed about the close of the