The independent. [volume] (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907, 1905-02-02
the sale Of the product of labor (the
protective tariff

This last monopoly given by law
enables the wire trust 10 sell barbed
wire and wire nails to the American
farmer at about double the price they
are sold to the Mexican farmer. All
great fortunes in the history or the
world have had their rise and continu-
ance in monopoly of some sort.
Pillage, plumber, considerations and
slave labor are monopolies by force
and belong, happily, to past history.
The great fortunes of Rome lay in
special privilege in the land, given to
favored few. Special privilege to
tax the people, granted to tax farmers
by the government, or special privilege
to make and deal in certain goods.
English kings also granted monopolies
in the sale OF certain goods but the
great English fortunes lay in the mo-
nopoly in the use of land. France and
Germany had their tax farmers and
monopoliste in goods by royal grant,
but the great factor was monopoly in
land.
Today we have no king, but we have
government just the same which
grants monopolies in goods in the form
of tariff duties monopoly in money, In
the form of a specially restricted cur
rency-and monopoly in land in the
| form of the old feudal title, precisely
as it was granted a thousand years
ago by the monGrchs OF Europe. This
title arose because of the necessity OF
the overload or lord of the domain to
have absolute power over his subjects
to compel them to follow him to war
and fight his battles.
It's theory, essentially, was that the
overload owned all the land. He al
lowed his followers the use of part of
it and they became his tenants on
condition that they would help him
in his wars-fnally the title in fee
simple arose in which the tenant be-
came the actual owner OF the land,
taking from his overlor his overlords
full title This title was conveyed by
grant or deed, and thus arose that idea
so wholly opposed to the real spirit Of
our own times that government can,
by grant or deed, give to any man
or set of men Of railroad or wagon
road, miles and miles of land which
neither the government nor the gran
tee ever saw. A theory in our gov
eminent fruitful in corruption and
monopoly There has never been one
land law of the United States which
has not been turned to corrupt uses
and many of them as the railroad and
wagon road grants, timber land acts
and swamp land acts originated in a
corrupt lobby. A system which in prac-
tice always ends in monopoly and cor
ruption, is bad system Therefore I
am opposed to the idea that title to
!. vacant land is in any government to
give away-but | agree with those who
, believe that title should essentially de-
. pend on the use and occupation of the
!, land, in good faith and to an extent
reasonable under the different circum-
stances. Every institution must be a
: gradual growth and were the old feu-
dial title abolished which gives the
ownership of miles and miles of va
cant forest lar !, coal land, iron land
agricultural land to mere spectators
and schemers who hold the paper deed
, am sure, out of experiment. and ex-
! perience, would arise a successful
9 system which, for its foundation, would
! have the actual use and possession OF
: the land reasonably and in good faith
Under such a system Mr.. Baer today
would have to work in good faith every
, acre of anthracite coal land or leave
it open to some one who would My
own preference is for this absolute
freedom in land and the abolishment
0 of the feudal paper title. But under
:, the single tax system, as evolved by
r Henry George and his followers, it i.
f hoped this same result would b.
e reached-namely, all tariffs would b.
/; abolished and trade would in fact b,
free and this form If monopoly wouis
be gone. The tax for all purpose,
!, would be laid upon land values only
: These values would be estimated OF
= land in its raw state thus no labor O
= man, be it building or harvester O
. crop, would be taxed. But the valu
would be the actual value, thus 10
= in Wal street would be assessed a
y it's actual rental value and no MAJ
could afford long to hold it idle an.
unimproved. "A railroad right of wa,
!; or street railway franchise would b