The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-10-30

gust 1877, aEd March, 1879 but. Of course,
| embodied the results OF observation read
| ing and reflection for many previous years.
| After Offering the manuscript in vain to
/ publishers Mr.. George succeeded in making
| tho plates in San Francisco. and published
| q small authors edition at SO copy. A
| New York house then agreed to assume
| publication, bringing it out in January 1880,
at 81 a copy. Unnoticed at first. the book
| soon began 10 force it's way and a second
edition was called for, and early in 1881 its
/ growing popularity warranted a cheaper
/ edition at 81. Soon after 1t was published
IN LONDON, and TRANSACTIONS followed. the
4 first OF Which-a translation into German
BY g. ID. F. Gutschow-was published in
| Berlin in 1881. When first published in
| England. such was the prejudice against a
! book on political economy by an American
that among all the booksellers i'll the three
! Kingdoms only twenty copies were taken
! Before the next year had closed it was be-
! Ing printed in editions of 10000
ARRESTED IN IRELAND.
| In the autumn of 1850 Mr.. George went to
New York. and. concluding to remain.
brought on his family In the spring of 1881
ne published a remarkable pamphlet,
which, though entitled THE Irish Land
Question was in reality an arraignment
of the existing land system all over the
| civilized world. and which was extensively
circulated on the other side of the Atlantic.
In the summer of 1881 Mr.. George revisited
California, and then. coming back went to
land agitation, corresponding with the
Irish World, and making a number of
speeches on the land question in all three
of the kingdoms. He was arrested as a
suspect at .Athenry and Loughrea, Coun-
~ Galway, but was imprisoned only a few
hours in each case.
continued his literary work Late in 1888
he received an invitation from the Land
that Union Of England again to visit
meeting in ST James's Hall, Henry Labou-
chere presiding. Then relates Mr.
George Il spoke in the principal towns in
England, and had large audiences, always
hostile at first. but / conquered them all
easily with the exception of that at Ok
the stage and could not hear myself think.
The Oxford students were determined to
disturb the Zen meeting. although Max Ken Muller
George again went abroad and made
speeches in Scotland.
In 1886 Mr.. George was nominated by the
United Labor party for mayor of New
YORK, polling g. 600 votes, against $4,000 for
Abram 8. Hewitt, the Democratic nominee,
and $1,000 for Theodore Roosevelt, now as
sistant secretary of the navy, Republican.
Mr. George was in the publishing business
IN IN 1880. when he received the nomination.
Members of various labor organizations
were dissatisfied with both the other candi-
dates, They had heard George talk and
they had read his book, They became en-
thusiastic about his single-tax theory and
wondered why he would not make a good
mayor for New York. committee of
labor men called on him and told him he
ought to run for mayor. Nonsense" he
replied. Il have no money. [ can't afford
III 1T Besides. the people don't want me.
The men argued, and George listened but
was not convinced. He had a wife and
three children to support. A mayoralty
campaign was a luxury beyond his means.
"I'll do it on one condition." he said with
the air of one who names an impossible
feat IF you bring me a petition signed
I'll do it."
AGREED TO RUN.
The labor men put forth their petitions.
Signatures began to flow in in fair num-
bers Politicians and political organs jeered
at the cranks running around with petit
lions much as they have jeered at other
petitions since. Suddenly signersfof the pc
tition increased to thousands. Abuse of the
single-tax cranks grew in volume and be-
came very bitter. The number of sigma
lures grew with amazing rapidity. The
10000 mark was soon reached and passed.
All right, I'll rum" said Henry George
when the news was brought to him.
The campaign was. one of the hottest ever
known in New York. The politicians re-
Georges candidacy as serious. But they
soon began to see that the enthusiasm of
the labor men meant votes
Mr.. George seemed to be everywhere at
once. In one night he addressed twenty
Hve meetings. On many other nights he
addressed almost as many. He had able as
SiStance from the Rev. Dr. Edward Me-
Glynn, the Rev. DIR. Kramer, Louis V. Post
the Rev. Father Huntington, Prof Daniel
u. dc Leon and many other speakers. 1t
seemed as if Henry George never slept
When he was not out making speeches he
was in his headquarters in the Colonnade
Hotel, Broadway. He was never excited,
never weary. If he felt any great personal
ambition to be mayor of New York he
never showed it by word or act. He seemed
to regard the campaign as fight for prin-
ciple, not a struggle for place.
After his defeat Mr.. George started his
history and the McGlynn controversy peo-
pie are generally familiar. Tw, sits to
England, in 1888 and in 1889, foil and
in 1880 he made a tour. of Austrah way
or San Francisco, which city of early
struggles rose to meet him. At SN. ey he
was received by the mayor and other pub
lie ofnc1alS, at o'clock in the morning. in
pouring rain. He made over a hundred
addresses in Australia. His progress was a
quently blockaded Sir George GRAY. of
New Zealand, wished him to repeat his
speeches in that colony, but Mr.. George
longed for home and returned by way of
the Suez canal getting a remarkably cor
dial reception in New York. Last year
Mr.. George took an active part in the cam
paign in support of Mr.. Bryan.
MIR. GEORGES WRITINGS.
Mr.. George was best known to the world
at large through his writings on economic
questions, notably his work entitled Prog
ress and Poverty" published in 1871. His
other works are: Our Land and Land Pol
icy" 1871; Irish Land Question: 1881; so
cial Problems" 1883; Property in Land
controversy with the Duke Of Argyll
1884; THE Condition of Labor" an open
letter to Pope Leo XIII, 1891, and a Per
picked Philosopher (Herbert Spencer.
1882 -
Progress and Poverty" was a protest
against existing social and economic condi-
tons: In it Mr.. George argued against un-
restricted individual ownership of land and
enjoyment of unearned increase of value by
one who had done nothing for the lands
improvements, for example where the
growth of city had made land valuable
He urged that all taxation be levied upon
lana alone 1t was the first exposition of
his single-tax theory. The book received a
great deal OF attention, and Mr.. George re-
about telling that under our civilization the
strong have seized that which belongs to
the weak, and he also advocated free-trade
doctrines
In an interview a few weeks ago Mr..
george himself gave the following account
OF his book, and his reasons for writing ii:
But what had most aroused me in nv
visit TO the East was the growth of now
erty, which always accompanies industrial
progress While editing a paper in Oak
land, and after long thought the reason of
1t all came upon me like a revelation. /
had taken horse and gone for a ride and
ABSORBED In my own thoughts had driven
him into the hills until he painted for
breath. Stopping for rest, l asked a pass
ing teamSter, FOR want of something else to
say, what land was worth there He pointed
to some cows grazing off so far that they
looked like mice, and said: j don't know
exactly but there is q man over there who
will sell some land for a thousand dollars
that there was the reason. With the growth
OF population land grows in value, and the