The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-09-15

the State. They are told that the con-
stitution of California, as it stands at
present, prevents the adoption of the SIN
/ gle tax. oh. but they say, with man
| ernor a change in the constitution would
| be very simple matter to secure; that
If he should be elected Governor some
how he would at once convince q major
| ityt of the people of California that they
ought Immediately to adopt the single
tax. I wish 1 could feel that l would
California. (Renewed applause.)
Now let me tell you, my friends, why
1t is that the single tax is not and can
not be an issue in the present campaign.
First. because 1t cannot be adopted until
the people adopt constitutional amend
ment; and when the people are ready
to adopt such a constitutional amend.
ment the man who says that they should
be prevented from doing 1t is not an
American. (Applause.) Not only is he
not a Democrat but he Is not an Ameri-
can. The people of this State have right
to adopt such constitutional amendments
as a majority of the people may desire to
adopt. But no such change in our sys-
tenn of taxation can be made until the
people do adopt a constitutional amend
ment providing for or authorizing 1t.
But they forget another obstacle that
I would run up against In trying to SUBJ
NIT such a constitutional amendment to
nv own power as they have conceded 1t
to me-, It rather f1atters me to think
that they are SO much afraid of me, but
/ must out of Difference to the truth
state what the situation is. I would en-
counter the obstruction that would re-
suit from the fact that my own party
has not declared in favor of the propo-
Stion.
So that you see the danger-the boyle
man-that the gentlemen OF the platform
committee of the Republican State Con-
little substantial existence, and that the
reason why single tax men are not press
ing for such an amendment to the con-
stitution or to make their proposition an
issue in the campaign is that in the pres
ent state of education on the subject it
would be a waste OF effort to DO any
really believe that the single tax would
be likely to be adopted If l were elected?
Do they really fear that? Or are they
doing as they did in the Tilden campaign,
when they went over the. country with
their hands raised in holy horror and their
faces drawn in imitation OF piety and
elected the Confederate debt would be as
sumed by the Federal Government, and
they actually secured the electoral votes ,,
assurance. Are they doing as they did
in the last campaign, trying to frighten
and bully people into ,t suppoir sa, the
claiming that the horrors or financial ruin
and various evils would fall upon the
poorer classes OF the country II they
not support the monopoly interests rep,
resented by. that party? They can fool
the people that way sometimes, put they
can't fool them that way twice, or In two
successive elections.
The Republican Convention did not
know what the, single tax was, and most
know yet. They say that 1t Is socialisttc
and anarchistic. Now, it cannot be both.
Anarchy is the abolition of government;
Socialism is the concentration or all
power in the Government, of all indus
tries, of all enterprises in the. Govern
ment Applaasse The one is the opp o.
tax is both Both! They didn't know
what 1t was at all. They thought it was
what it Was ' The San Francisco Chron-
icle comes to their relief in the matter
and attempts to save them from public
ridicule. 1t says that it is true that in
the Republican platform a grave, mistake
was made in this matter; that the single
tax is not socialistic, is not anarchistic;
the Republican platform didn't mean that
1t twas. They just put in those two words
because they were words; just words.
ade np their A padr hay preg g t9
in the same way. They liked certain
words and put them in in connection with
what they proposed to do. and they dis
In condemnation Of their opponents. Why,
in their declaration on the money ques-
ton they declare, for the gold standard,
tional monetary agreement. Now what
is an international monetary agreement?
Why 1t is an agreement about money,
they say. But what kind of an agree
ment about money? What is it to be for?
Not for bimetallism. They have dropped
that out. They were abandoning the BIZ
metallic theory in sections; they. were
withdrawing from it; they were clipping
off the tail of the animal by inches SO as
not to cause the animal too much pain;
clipped 1t off an inch at time. and so
they retained the old International BIZ
metallic agreement plank in their plat
form and clipped off the. words for BIZ
words and left the thing absolutely
without meaning-just words.
Now, my friends, although the single
tax is not and cannot be an issue in this
campaign, for the Republican party by
declaring negatively against principle
cannot commit the, other party to the
am not willing that my personal opinions
on the question of taxation should be
misrepresented in this campaign for the
purpose of creating prejudice. They say
burden of taxation from the wealthy peo-
pie to the farmers. Their sympathy for
the farmers may be questioned, but
shall not stop to question it now II
shall attribute the statement to ignor-
ance., Let us see about that. The farm
ers of this State now pay more than 80
per cent of the taxes for the support of
the State in their direct taxes upon their
homes and personal property, and indi-
rectly upon the commodities on which the
taxes paid by merchants and others are
passed to them. If the farmers could have
their share of the State taxes reduced to
Is per cent of the whole they would be
doing well. Let us see how they would
fare under the single tax system. Land
values are now assessed separately from