The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1898-06-27
Taxation of Lnnd.
TO the Editor OF The Post.

To the Editor OF The Post.
Waco, Texas, June 23.--In a recent ad-
dress delivered by the Hon. a. W. Ter
following words:
If it were possible to put in force
the theory that all land should be con-
fstated and held Tor the use OF all men.
regardless of individual ownership the
! chief incentive to industry would cease
| and civilization. relieved of its main re-
lance, would disappear.
| Equally disastrous would be the
| scheme of Henry George, which would
| tax the homestead out of existence by
compelling the owner TO pay rent on 1t
for the benefit OF the good and the bad
the Industrious and the indolent alike
Such scheme would reverse the order
of progressive civilization and make
man a tenant at Will in his own home
The right of property once vested
represents human labor and whether 1t
becomes more or less valuable should
not concern those who did not work
for it.
In the above words we find the very cu-
rious anomaly of man pleading for the
peoples right to own homes-the safe
guard of our Nation-and at the same time
bursting his veins in defense OF landlord
ism, which has ever denied people this
natural right. To paraphrase his first sem
tence, using the word air instead OF land
1t would read thus: III 1t were possible
to put in force the theory that all air
should be conf seated and held for the use
of all men, regardless Of individual own
ership the chief incentive to industry
would cease. etc. % Certainly the chief in
centive in this case TO the air industry
or he vacant lot industry would cease and
the sooner the better for those who use
such Injuries dc air or land. neither of
which could ever have a speculative value
unless some one could forcibly be restrained
from their use. If spectator from the
planet Mars had been present on this oc-
caslon when the Hon. Mr.. Terrell said
equally disastrous would be the scheme
OF Henry George. which would tax the
homestead out of existence by compelling
the owner TO pay rent on it, he would
have thought himself in the midst of a
home owning people, whose peace had been
disturbed by strange invaders; but far
from It, Those words rang out in land
whose toling millions are being driven
from pillar to post by an Internal system
which mas permitted the preceding genera
tlon to corner the earth and hold 1t at a
price beyond the reach of nearly all wealth
producers.
we would here refer the readers to the
ofhcial report Of Consul John D. Connolly
upon the change in incidence of taxation in
New Zealand, where the scheme of Henry
George had the reverse effect to that
claimed by our ex-minister to Turkey.
Every citizen of the United States who
acquires piece of land under this system
does it under the fair warning of the high
est tribunal in the land which reads as
follows: THE reserved right of the people
to the rental value Of the land must be
tan
All deeds are now held subject to this
change and are not valid now unless the
tax Of an ad valorem assessment is paid ia |
the government
Mr.. Terrells chief objection to Henry
Georges scheme" Is that cit would make
a man tenant at will in his own home "
This Is but another way of saving that
Henry Georges scheme would take the
peoples land away from them. The people |
have no land. In 1860 So per cent of the
American people owned their own homes |
In 1890 rs per cent owned their homes. |
with IA per cent encountered. A recent |
bulletin issued Mt Washington disclosed tho |
startling fact that % per cent only own |
their homes now. with per cent encum
bered
The few survivors It seems do not own
their own homes because of this system |
but in spite of ii.
Here is the last. but not the least OF
Mr. Terrell's comments: 1.-The rights of
property once vested represent human |
labor and whether II becomes more or less |
valuable should not concern those who |
did not work for 1t
1t is almost invariably the case that |
property once vested" represents the |
other fellows labor and especially is |
this true II he means land as vested rights |
and II ut should not concern those who
did not work for it. then the landlord as |
such would be left out Of the question for |
they are certainly the class who contribute |
To this value least OF all, because land |
ownership enables them 10 shift the hur
dens of existence on TO those whose right |
to the use OF the soil has been abrideed. |
This is n very unienable position for a |
man of Mr.. Terrell's rank to occurv and !
II he can provide an anxious world with
n scheme that will respect the so-calIed |
rights Of land monopolists and at the Same
time furnish ihn reonle with material for
homes hn will thus furnish the eoonomic
genius OF tbs age problem to solve that
will leave the 'rdelible mnress Of many
forehead wrinkle, A. W. Fol~om,
1l2 Webster Street
District Court.
Seitlng OF cases for the third Jury week.