The herald., 1895-03-19

Vcoiioh that ne ana MS properly geJS. A
single tax on land or anything else is
prac ical impossiblity. 1t will of neces-
sity result in an indirect tax on every
thing else. To illustrate, a farmer cult
Yates thousand acres of wheat,
barley and corn. 1t costs him say
$4,000 per year, and he sells his
crop for say $4,000 per year. He has net
accrued pro rata for the wheat, barley and
corn. A new idea strikes him. He
charges all of his costs to the wheat crop
and claims that his corn and barley crop
mas cost him nothing to raise. Another
idea strikes him. Since it cost nothing
TO- raise barley and corn and cost
all his wheat was worth to run
bookkeeping he decides to raise no more
wheat but he will raise barley and corn
as it is all clear profit. So he does accord
ingly. But new idea is knocked into
his head. He finds that it costs to raise
each article separately and that the cost
OF running the whole farm cannot be
charged to any one article.
So a single tax on land to raise the en-
tire revenue for national, state, county
and city expenses would force the posses
sor of or producer from land to add that
amount to prices of products.
No one will for a moment contend that
present land products could be sold at
picocuI PRICES WIN bHe duueu COSJ Vi bHt
entire expenses of the government,
Suppose a horizontal tax was levied
upon every square foot of private land in
the United States. The land cannot walk
up and pay taxes at the Tax Collectors
office. The owner cannot annually drive
up so many cubic yards OF soil and pay
the tax. How can he pay it? Only by
expanding labor on the land to raise
crops, and from thu sale of crops he must
pay cost of raising the crops, cost of his
living, reasonable profit and the amount
of the tax. But the farmer must sell
these products to the other people in the
United States for price high enough to
realize the aggregate of the above.
Now it must be clear to. any unaddled
brain under the foregoing facts that it is
not the farmer who is paying the tax. 1t
is the people who consume his products,
and this is indirect taxation. This is the
principle of the taxation by tariff duties
on imports. The importer first pays the
tax, and then adds 1T to the selling price
of the goods, and the consumer in the end
pays the tax. So single tax on land
must be paid out of the produce of the
land, whether agricultural products or
money products in the form of rent for
city property.
The theory that the Creator has given
to every man the inherent right to own
or use piece of land is an absurdity,
sustained by no evidence in possession OF
the human race.
The first man was placed in highly
improved ranch by the Creator, and told
to help himself, except as to the fruit of
one tree. Well, he stole the fruit on that
tree one day in the absence of the owner.
The owner, seeing that he could not trust
the man, and that there was no t'lling
what damage he might do, drove him out
into the underbrush and brambles.
how fu rtcht tr 1ov =, avn
given to anyone. The ri hit to work is
given and nothing else.
The fact is the people who talk so much
against land ownership do not want land,
unless they can get it for little or nothing
to sell again at profit.
Any man in the United States that
wants a city lot or farm land, can get it
face.
Any man, by the sweat of his face,
can buy lot and have home. saw all
these hill lots west of Hill street sell at
auction in 1868 for $50 to $75 lot. Hun
dreds of people refused to buy at those
enormous figures and are homeless today,
and the same lots are worth thousands of
dollars each.
Such has been the history of the race,
and such 1t will continue to be. Every
homeless man in Los Angeles could own
a home lot in less than three years. but
he will not simply because he won't,
Single tax will never give men homes or
farms. 1t is the sweat of the face alone
that secures home lot or farm.
The crouble is most people object to the
perspiraton and want an orange grove CT
a residence on Fifth avenue.
And now as to the money question. 1t
is repetition of common phrase to
state that money enters into all civilized
transactions in one form or another. 1t
Sc fN,,p dot r,f oil hItct
change, above limited barter or exchange
of products in kind.
All eminent writers on money unite in
the assertion that without money civil
ization is not possible.
Money is a representative of all values.
1t is power greater than nations or
rulers.
The nations of the earth today are bow
ing at the feet of the money kings of the
world. The Rothschlds recently shut
the money markets of the world against
the Gar Of Russia until he removed the
restrictions from the Jews.
Secretary Carlisle stated to the commit
tee in Congress that one of the reasons
for the last bond contract was that the
syndicate of European bankers had agreed
to protect the United States treasury gold
reserve. Think of it! The great Ameri-
can nation, the most powerful and intel
lgent on earth, held up! This nation
paying nearly $40, 0OO 600 to be protected
by half dozen men against robbery
The gold in the United States Treasury
is Systematically robbed. And now $780,
600. 600 indemnity is to be paid by China
to Japan. Recent dispatches say the only
gold in the world open to be raided for
this indemnity is in the United States
Treasury. What does all this mean? Sim
ply that the financial system of the United
States is so defective that it is only a
choice in the methods OF robbery.
The details of financial disasters domes
tic and foreign, fill the columns of every
paper.
The financial system of the United
Stales should be remodeled on sound prin-
ciples of finance, and should be broad
enough and strong enough to carry our
business. And until it is so remodeled
other and no one can foretell the results.
Judge Widney here excused himself
owing to severe cold he had contracted,
and Mr.. Post rose and closed the debate :
II certainly have no reply to make
to that part of Judge Widney's adj
dress in which he says we have no money
system in this country, nor will l quarrel
with him on the corrupt contract for
bonds lately made by the government.
1.-THE main point to which object is
that when he says it is for lack of money
that labor is going to waste, l say it is
not for lack OF money; it is lack of land
II feel satisfied that for the first time
have met man on the platform who has
made his objections in such an intelligent
way that they can be answered.
First, Judge Widney says that the
Government should tax men in proportion