The morning times., 1896-04-05

A recent number or the Minneap polls Cour-
Ter conta ins communication from one
John Roberts, in which he imagines a
case OF a farmer to whom the applica-
tion OF the singletaX would be disadvI ut
age. He imagines this:
"A farmer buys a farm for $1,000. He
spends $4,000 i'll making Improvements
His tax is two per cent on So 600, or 81 40,
under the present system OF taxation.
The single tax Is adopted; the renta value
OF the land is taken for taxation, and all
other taxes abolished. The rental value
OF $4,000, at five per cent per anuum, is
S25O-or an increase or S11O in the farm
er's taxation 3u,~jt
The reader will at once observe graft
tying difference Detween.a MinneapOiis OBJ
JecIIon and Il WashingionCoDJection To tGe
single tax. The iormer instead OF de-
nouncing single takers as socialists, com
niHnlStS, aiIarchiSts, aUupisIs auu Iiars,
presents something wHieh at first glance
does look litlIe ike an objection 10 the
single tax, anu is wofthy OF respectful
reply. ii'-1
A QUEER SORT OF FARMER.
l can imagine Il mau paying 30 for an
opera seat, and then psiug IL only TO de
post his coat and hal upon it, when "a
nook on the wall would serve the purpose
gust as we'll. But the fact tIlu the uIdu
made such poor use OF the seat would not
OF itself prove that the seat ought to be
10 his neighbOrs.
Que immurc,l and sixty acres OF land at
$4,000 Is II little over $3l an acre. a
mau who would pay for IA quarter section
OF land at that rate, ana rest satisfied
with pIacIng upon II Il house, barn, OIncr
buildings, fencing, blowing, orchard, horses
cattle, hogs, tanning ln.plcInents, crops
eIc., to the aggregate OF only $4,000, be-
longs in the same category.
| am happy 10 bellt We this is only an
maginary farmer. The typical farmer,
suCn as my lie has been passed among, Is
much more likely to reverse the figures
above giVcn, ana nave a farm Of when the
naked soil is worth 1000, while The I'M
prOVeincnJS, his personal property, ana his
moneys and crcuits, anIount 10 So,uOO.
InGer the present system, such Il farmer :
tax, at per ccnt, would bt 81 40; under the
sinEie-JaA plan AZ per Ceut, II would
be 500, lhus saving INN $40 year.
So the single tax, while disCouraglng sloth
ani shirties>ness, encourages diligence and
enterprise.
ARGUMENTS NOT ALWAYS NEEDED.
The Times correspondent "H' COM
planned that, in Il certain article in this
column. its statements were Lot Sustained
by aTguments-''not solitary argument
OF course not. There are cases where
argument is not only unnecessary, but
IL ~ mcreIricIously SUperlluous. The TILES
containing his communication contained
also the statement that II tIhe 1Inesl Was
pUDlisnri in Tnc Tines DuIlIing. southwest
corner Pennsylvania avenue ANA Tenth
street" But Lo argument was advanced
10 sustain this statement. Logic is not
called for TO sustain the credib1Ity of the
multiplication table, ana ] have never
made practice or arguing with man
upon the advlSablllty OF sitting down upon
a tack II the tack IS not OF itself sufficiently
convincing. let hIm sit there as long as II
is mutually satisfactory 10 INN and the
tack.
The plain. unvarnished facts relative to
our present land system, presented in due
lahtg hT
sufficient 10 Convin Ce him OF / Is un-
righteousness, and OF The propriety Of It's
Improvement. II be has no brains. no
amount of argument will make single
taXer of him.
MISTAKEN AS TO THE EMOTION.
The correspondent H further asserts
that the articles III this column are "brm-
ming with cGotism.'
He is ml>iakcn IN the emotion that
prompts ana aniHdtCS these articles. Wntn
a man makes tho direct, emphatic asscr-
ton that three tunes GOur arr twelve. ms
assurance on that point II not egOtIsTn, il
is confluence iii the truth OF the mutt
piCation table. II somebody comes forward
with the assertion that the statement Is
false, the spirit which prompts the mathe-
matICian 10 request his assaiiapt to ex-
PLAIN just wherein the statement is false
Is not tgotism, but simply confidence III tie
validity of science.
THE SALVATION ARMY.
comparison between these Single tax ar
tiCles and one III TIE Times descriptive
OF The operations or the Salvailuu Army,
the former being animated solely by
haired Tor the rich, the latter breathing
spirit OF love, charity and true hu-
mantY. gu,
HearRcn to parable. There was a vast,
gloomy wilderness through which it was
..cCcS>5ry tGHi inaiIiuIutS IL persons Shuuuu
pass. 1t was found Chat many OF these
yc.i ga =, e.. II on BiIS forest pennut.>S
ana naked. a time passed the number of
these unIortunales llqreasgd. Thereupon.
among the inhabitants or The plain at the
exit OF the forest Il reiie. society was
organized for the purpose OF furnishing
fool and clothing to those who came
form from the forest piunGercd ana M Kr,i.
Among the rcIIcI corps there ChanCeG 10
bc one MAI VINO WaslIOt only phiianthrouist
but Philosopher HI began TO wonder
and inquire how II happened that so many
persons came out OF liiU Wilderness i'll sucn
condition 10 need relieving. Thus Won
dcrngand meditating, he journeycd through
the wilderness himseT, ana finally made a
starting discovery. he came upon a band
of maraudcrs, whose re Eular business it was
to take the money and strip the clothing
from travellers passing that way. II was
an easier method OF getting living than 10
earn money and make clothing Tor them
selves.
a REVOLUTIONARY PROP OSITION-
He returned TO his Compa Mons and re-
suggested that il tie marauders could be
Induced or compelled TO earn their own
money and cioGning like other folks. and
leave travellers go through the wilderness
unpundered ana unstripped. ii would be
much better than the present plan of reScu-
ing and reha biiltatInE their victims arter
they had been ptundrred and stripped.
1T may easily be imagined that this sug-
gcstion, when il reached the ears OF the ma
rauIing band, awakened great consterna-
a among
them and their satellites and parasites.
They declared unanimously that the
proposition 10 put stop 10 their opera
tOus-and that without compensation :
would bc ''confisCatiOn' OF their vested
rights They called the man who had
made the proposition crank, socialist,
sounded awful, and made him feel real
bad.
They asserted that his proposition that
il would be better to cease the work OF
plundermg and stripping people, than to let
that work go on, ana then 10 organize
societies to recIothc and TeSupply tbenlafter
having been piundered aud stripped, wasnot
sustained by arsument,ms solitary
wecnIng cgutisn IN assuming that be knew
better than they did what would be for
the good OF society. They pierced the pro-
fouudeSt depths OF his inner consciousness,
and announced their discovery that he was
animated solciyby an intense and unfounded
hatred of the maraudcrs, and not by
sympathy for their victims.
To any person of ordinary moral sense
and intellectual acumen any explanation
OF this little parable would be superfluous.
But for the benefit Of our friend H we
will point out the fact that the sole object
OF the single tax movement is to prevent
persons from falling into The cOnOltiOn of
wreichedness and aepravity that calls for
the existence of the Salvation Army. The
two occupy no attitude of hostility. The
principles, purposes and operations of both
are based upon faith in the fathcrhoud of
God and the brotherhood OF man-not with
standing that expression smaCks some what
"paternalism' and communism"
AnacOstia Lodge, Good Templars.
AT the meeting of Anacostia Lodge, No. 4.
independent Order ofGood Templars, several
evenings since arrangements were made 10