The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1901-10-26

ClU4lvely. Vi UCCupylu4 &Lu6I V4TllCul4E
lot. That A is not longer making any
private profit out of the transaction
Is none Of his affair. He was not
paying the land rent with the view Of
enriching "A. Why was he doing It.
then? Because It was worth $1,500
per year in addition to the tax on his
building, to him sto be permitted to
carry on business at that particular
spot. It is worth that much still, and
he is just as willing to pay the land
rent to tho city as to A. Please note
particularly, he willingly pays the
land rent Ono matter to whom), be-
cause the business opportunity. ts
worth it. A tax Of $500 upon the le-
gal right of holding this lot, then, is
fair because it is no more than the
value of the special privilege involved.
Having now shown that the taxation
of natural rights is unjust, and the
privileges) is just. and assuming that
human society must be based upon
justice, it only remains to inquire
whether the taxation Of legal rights
exclusively would afford an adequate
revenue.
Without hesitation I reply in the
affirmative, for the simple reason
that the expenses Of community
and the worth of living in that COM
munity are convertible terms-the
one must precisely balance and meas
ure the other.
A town that has no streets beyond
casual goose-paths, no lights, no >po-
lice, no waterworks, in short no i'm
provements, would be a poor place
to do business in. It would cost lit
tie to live there, but that little would
be all it was worth.
And on the other hand, the advan-
tages of living in a town or city in
which all services and conveniences
were provided by the government
would be the measure of the value of
such improvements-in other words,
their cost. If the value Of street
railway to the people of city were
not always equal to or greater than
it's cost, such lines would not be built
as private enterprises. 1t Is motor
ious that they are in most places
nightly profitable to their owners.
And the same is true Of steam rail-
ways, telephones, telegraphs and other
public services. While these remain In
private hands they are proper subjects
of taxation as legal rights. Being, how
ever, based on public franchises, and
involving the sovereignty of the state,
they should properly be conducted as a
function Of government, without the
thought of profit.
The legal right of private land
ownership is in reality the one su-
premely suitable subject Of taxation,
and, indeed, all franchise values are
in the last analysis, land values.
It is upon land and nowhere else that
the advantages Of living in a. communi-
ty register themselves. Every step in
advancement, whether in material,
scientific, intellectual or any other re-
spect, by raising the community, auto
matically raises land rent. Where there
are few people there little or no land
value; it raises and accompanies popu-
lation from zero up to: such cases as
those to be found in the largest cities,
where an acre Of land is estimated to
be worth many millions Of dollars
Land rent is always and everywhere
the measure Of 1.-The value Of the op-
portunity," and natural conse-
quence of the gathering together OF
people. Being a thing created by the
necessities of the people, what could
be more fitting than that it should
be taken in taxation to pay for those
necessities? A land holder who is
using his legal right as q means OF
enriching himself on ground rent will
Gas in the supposed case of AZ griev-
ously mourn over the stoppage of his
TOLL but at least he cannot Justly
complain that any wrong is really
done him, even if the whole of the
land value is taken from him in tax
alton. He retains his legal right ia
the legitimate use Of the land as g
form or a site for home or place
Of business; and he suffers by such g
tax is none of his natural rights.
The taxation system at present In
operation affects both natural and
legal rights. Both the products Of
individual industry and the commun.
ity-created value Of land are taxed
the former, however, more heavily thar
the latter. repeat my contention thai
the taxation Of houses. etc.,-involvina
an interference with natural rights
should cease until the taxation Of lesa
rights (now merely nominaD has beer
carried to the utmost possible extent
1t will be time enough to resort to thu
taxation of natural rights when that O,
legal rights has been shown to be in.
sufficient. But that time would neve,
come.-John Wilson Bengough.