The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1897-09-08
LIVE QUESTIONS.
A Series Of Articles Contributed by
Advanced Thinkers.
TAxATloN-THE FUNDAMENTAL
QUESTION.

IAfA lON-lfC fONOHMGN Al
QUESTION.
BY Frederick NJ. Crunden, Public Libra
rian. st. Louis.
III.
To simplify the case, let us suppose
that ten men are shipwrecked on fer
tile island capable Of supporting pop
ulation Of 100, 600. They divide the
land among themselves and agree to rec
ognize each others titles. Later 500
people are cast ashore from an enigrant
ship The ten men meet these on the
beach and tell them they can come
ashore only on condition that they be-
come the slaves of the owners of the is
land. The wet and hungry castaways
declare they will die FIRST. They come
from the United States, where people
don't believe in slavery "Well, they
believe in owning land, don't they"
eyes. % Every well, yoa just agree
that this island is ours, and you may
come ashore free men. - 'sBut how does
this island happen to be yours? Did ycu
make it??'' ''No, we didn't make it. -
'sHave you title from its maker?'
ssNo.'' "Well, what is your title any
how??'' "Oh, our title is good enough,
We got here first. - ''Well, that's good
United States title, SO We II recognize it.
But mind, we're free men. . Certainly
you are.
But when it comes tc the business adj
iustment the 500 find that before they
are permitted to geta living off the land
they must agree to pay to the 10 a Ger
tain part Of the products of their labor.
The 10 confne their activities to in-
specting the growing crops of their ten
ants and seeing chat the stipulated rent
is promptly paid. The 10 who do 'h
ing live luxuriously, while with the 20
it is just as hard times as the landown-
ers choose to make. Their absolute title
to the land being recognized, all present
and future inhabitants Of the island are
practically their slaves.
We need not confne ourselves to sup
posititious cases. Here are two actual is
lands, one settled centuries ago, the 9TH
er within the memory of men now liv
ing.
Few People Own the Land In Britain.
In the United Kingdom more than
one-6ftb, probably one-fourth, OF all the
land is owned by 525 mobiles. The united
possessions of three Of these gentlemen
amount to nearly 2,000,0 900 acres, one
thirty-sixt Of the whole land of Eng
land, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
Four-ffths of all the land of the king
dom is owned by about 5000 persons.
The owners Of four -ffths of the soil On
wh.ch live $4,000, 900 people "could
meet within the compass Of a single
voice in one Of the great public halls OF
the country, (" and out of the whole pop
ulation less than 800, 900 own any land
at ell In q general way you knew these
facts before. But did you ever think Of
their full significance? Thirty-eight mil
lion people must pay tribute to 5000
for permission to live and labor on
British soil! Their only alternative is
to take ship for some distant country.
The Evils of the Land Shark.
And whittier shall they go? Where
can they find a place within the boun-
daries Of civilization that is without tie
iandshark waiting for some one to come
and fatten him? To this country? Oh,
the landshark is here, both the foreign
and the native variety-(fortune's fig
ures) over 20, 900, 900 acres owned BIZ
English "acrecrats. To New Zealand
perhaps? Yes, that is as good a place as
they can tind, for there the people have
begun to suspect the cause Of the com
mercial crisis from which they suffered
a few years ago and to apply the rem
edy.
With delightful climate, a fe1tilo
soil abouuding in all natural resources,
settled by the most intelligent and ener-
getic race in the world, why should this
colony within the lifetime Of it's found
ers, suffer from hard times? Was it tar
if or free trade, monometallism OF BIZ
metallism, intemperance or municipal
corruption? None of these. It was land
grabbing. It was the attempt of few
enterprising men to make themselves
the landed gentry Of the country and
thus live OF the labor Of others. But
this is the nineteenth century instead OF
the eleventh, and laws made by the peo-
pie may be changed by the same power.
These modern "conquerors, however.
SO far succeeded that more than half OF
the freehold area of the island is owned
by 5S4 persons, and three-fourths Of it
is held by little over 1900 people
This 5000, 900 acres out Of the total Of
$4,000, 900 includes most Of the desira-
BILE land. It follows, therefore, of reces-
sity that the great majority Of the 600,-
900 Of white population must pay these
1900 men for the privilege of living on
productive land (including all the cities
and towns) or go off and try to make
living On unproductive land and away
from the advantages Of civilization.
What does this mean? Simply that they
are not free men. They live by permis-
sion of the 1900. They have the alter