Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1907-08-19
THEIR RELATION To EACH OTHER
and TO THE POPULACE.
The Social Phenomenon and its Ef-
feels Upon Rents. Homes, the
Safeguard Against Want. Whv
All Thrifty People Should Strive
for Homes.

There are at least three seperate ele-
ments in everyApiece of improved real
estate. They are the land, the improve
ments, and the land value. The i'm.
provements are wholly artificial, the
land is wholly natural, and the land val.
ues are wholly social. The improvements
owe their existence to the brain and
Drawn OF individual members of society
the land would have existed if no man
had ever trod the earth the value OF the
land is a phenomenon of social life.
10 the amount OF the latter every one
contributes-the lame. the halt, the
blind, the young, the old. Even the ba-
bes who come wailing into the world
every minute of the day, may be credited
with contributing to the value of land;
and certain it is that for long time af.
ter birth, they contribute to little else,
except mayhap to the aggregate OF noise
and trouble and jov. Imagine what a
slump there would be in land values if
"stork" were to 90 on strike.
The value OF land is pre.eminently
social phenomenon. You cannot see it,
feel it, taste it, hear or smell it; it has
neither form. weight, color. dimensions,
substance nor any of the physical char
acteristics Of the earth or its products.
And while the value of improvement al.
30 lacks those characteristics, still it diff
fers from land values in that it measures
ia terms of the market the individual
labor OF builders, whereas land values
measure in terms of the market the So
cial advances Of the community.
The value of land is the measure Of
social differences between today and yes.
tevday, between this century and last,
between now and thousand years ago.
1t ia the economic mirror in which all
social progress is reflected as accurately
as your face in IA looking glass.
Every invention and discovery, every
labor-savlng machine. every new meth.
Cd, scheme or device for increasing the
production OF wealth has at once, as if
by magic, an automatic and correspond.
inglv upward effect upon the value of
land. 1t represents the net marketable
gain OF civilized as against savage
state.
Art, music. poetry, literature, educa.
ton, good looks, proper department, So
briefly, good manners, even good clothes
have definite effect upon the value of
land. If you doubt this, compare part
Of a city where the people have those
arts and graces, with one where they
have them not. What vast difference
there is in the two places in the price of
land.
The rent fund is determined by the
difference between the best and the poor
est land in use. Any one can see this
who will think about it little while. 1t
follows that as invention goes on and
production increases, rent also wilt in.
crease.
II the above be true, the thrifty man
will take advantage OF the opportunity
that comes to him in the way Of securing
home. Not necessarily one already
supplied with all the modern appliances,
but a piece OF land and shelter. which
| as time passes he improves as his abili-
ties permit.
The truth growing ont of the above
consideration is further shown to be a
blessing that comes to the man OF small
means who secures a home. Not only is
he secured against the natural rise in
rents, because OF advanced civilization
in his neighboihood, but the advantage
of competency is often forced upon him
in old age, because OF the fact of his pos
sessions.