Mexico weekly ledger., 1899-02-16
DI0K DALFoN's ANSWER.
A Query From Bob cauthorn Elicits
Information According to Tie
Ideas Of Single Taxer.

To Mr. R. H. Cauthorn, Mexico, No.
sAvERToN, Mo-, February 7.---My
Dear Sir: / have your favor Of the
s1st Of last month In which you ask
me SHOW the single tax would pre-
vent the railroad monopolies from
Ievying and collecting tribute from
labor and its products2" In answer /
beg to Say that, in my opinion, the
way is very plain. Under the single
tax all monopoly values would be
taken by the State for public revenue.
The very essence Of the single tax
is that it appropriates nothing but
values that are or may become mon-
opolies, and hence under that system
no monopolles Of any kind could exist.
As an illustration OF what mean per-
NIT me to call your attention to one
of the railways that runs through
Audrain County. Irefer to the Cni-
cago & Alton. From 1891 to 1896 in
elusive the net earnings per mile OF
this railway was as,770. Allowing s
per cent as fair interest on large
Investments Of this kind, this would
grve . this road value per mile OF
over e75,000. venture the 1tatemant
that the road can be built and equipped
in its present condition for $4,000 per
mile. Allowing still per cent on the
Investment, this would only entitle
them to receive $1,000 per mile. At
present the remaining e2,77O per mile
is appropriated by the railway COM
pany, this being the product OF the
monopoly IL holds. Under the single
tax system no part OF the actual value
Of the railroad or its equipment would
be taxed, but every dollar of monopoly
value would be taken as rent for pub
lie revenue. Hence, the $2,770 that
now goes to the railway company
would 60 into the public treasury to
defray public expenses. Thus you
see that the railroads, under the single
tax system, would never charge mon
opoly rates, as to do 90 would be to
increase the rental value Of their
road, all of which would bo taken by
the state for revenue purposes.
II we had the single tax system
instead OF charging the public freight
and passenger rates on the basis of
value of $4,000 per mile, as they do
now, they would only charge on the
basis of their actual value, which
would be from 85k to times less than
1t now is. To add TO the evils of the
present system our present freight
and passenger rates In Missouri we're
tixed By the Legislature In 1875 and,
although the price OF the material
used In the construction OF railways
has since fallen in value from one-half
to two-thirds of what it then was, the
rate has never been changed, notwith-
standing the further fact that agri-
cultural and manufactured products
have fallen in value from 80 to 70 per
cent. know 1t is claimed that rates
have fallen since 1875, but this, in my
opinion, is not true. In order to show
thesnormity Of the injustice upon labor
and production, call your attention
to the fact that this company has
so So miles of railroad In Audrain
county. II you viii multiply the
s2,770, the monopoly earnings per
mile alluded to above, by the num-
Der of miles In the county, you will
see that 1t gives the enormous sum OF
etSo, ,ss5. Assuming that the earnings
were collected in proportion to its
mileage, this company would take,
upon lie monopoly, annually from the
people OF Audrain county the above
cum of ef39, 9,ss5. As the population
of that county, according to the CEN
sus of 1890, was q, 2,074, 1t would follow
that each person In the county was
taxed annually e6.ss, for which no
consideration was given, and for
which no service was rendered, and
which was nothing more than confis-
cation against the plain die
tates of natural justice and the decla-
rations of positive law, both consti-
tutional and statutory. During all
the time from 1891 to 1895 this COM
pany was only assessed in this State
at e15.Se4 per mile annually, not one
fourth of the value on the basis ot
which It was collecting tolls from the
people. No protective tariff was eyel
more unjust or Ubiquitous than thiI
and one can scarcely conceive thai
this is the kind Of practice that mol
only the Chicago s. Alton, but the
entire railway system Of the State
hss been perpetrating In Democratic
Missouri for the last twenty years
Missouri Democrats shoAld eithel
stop this robbery or hold their peace
about protective tariffs and the crime
of 1878 denonetizing silver.
a =.