The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1911-04-22
OUR PRESENT SYSTEM OF
TAXATION IS AT FAULT
High Rents Drive Business Into
Upper Floors Of Unsafe
Buildings.

should be held responsible and pun
ished, that existing factory laws
should be more stringently enforced
and that stricter laws should be
passed. AS time goes by these de-
mands will become less urgent and
finally die away altogether until the
next calamity. Even If some one
should be punished, even If factory in
spectors should begin to impartially
exercise their authority and even If
new batch Of laws should be placed
on the already over-burdened statute
books the result will be the same. -:
Hard Alternative.
AS long as human beings must
choose between starvation and taking
employment under circumstances that
involve great risk, the latter alterna-
tive will certainly be chosen.
AS long as some business men are
unable to secure quarters suitable for
to enable them to do business except
.ngs that is the kind of quarters they
will continue to select.
As long as system Of taxation
exists which fines property owners
who make Improvements and deals
lightly with those who hold land out
of use. thousands Of employers and
their employees will have no better
choice open to them, than locations
In old and. dangerous buildings In
which to carry on their vacations.
Where Blame Belongs. go
While factory laws continue to de-
mands requirements Of Ilahorers, sen1-
kployers and building owners which
other laws make difficult or impos-
sible of fulfillment, the blame for
nom reinforcement should be placed on
the shoulders of our incompetent or
venal legislators rather than upon
factory inspectors or on owners and
renters of Inspected property.
There is room enough, even in New
York city. for building of reasonable
height to accommodate all manu-
facturers. Skyscrapers would not be
In such demand If all the land were
properly improved. But because
many land owners do not put their
land to its best use skyscrapers are
necessary to accommodate the busi-
ness that is forced to crowd onto the
land that is allowed to be put to all
the use of which it is capable.
The True Remedy.
The remedy for this state Of at
fairs is to force unused land into use.
That does not mean that laws must
be passed arbitrarily limiting the
heighth of buildings, a suggestion
sometimes made by we'll meaning but
unthinking persons. To do that would
only be to force tenants and other
land users to pay heigher prices than
now to speculative holders of idle
lands. A regulation of that kind
would not force a single owner Of
idle land who did not want to build
to do so while it would prevent some
who did want to build from build
ing as much as they would like. The
real remedy is to penalize the with
holding of land from use and abolish
the penalties we now inflict in tho
form OF takers on land users.
Change of Policy.
That means a complete reversal Of
our present taxation policy. By abol-
ishing all take on buildings and other
products of industry and by raising
all public revenue through q single
~,~A VII AoAAu VdlUCS Tie WlIHnOl0ln&
Of valuable land from use can be
made so expensive that the owner
will find 1t to his interest to make
all improvements possible under such,
conditions it will be possible for all
manufacturers to secure. quarters at
reasonable rentals where they can
carry on business without subjecting
employees to Unnecessary risks. In fact
employees will be better protected
than they can be under existing con-
dltfons with the strictest enforcement
OF the most drastic kind Of factory
law for the forcing of unused land
into use must create such an increased
demand for labor that an involuntar-
lily unemployed able-bodied, man, or
woman will be a thing Of the past.
Laborers in position to make their
own terms Of employment can be
their own factory inspectors and can
enforce all necessary precautions. for
their safety without the help of DOS
sihly well meant but unintelligent and
n1eddlesome legislation. -,