The Taney County republican. (Forsyth, Mo.) 1895-1992, 1912-09-19
The Single Tax Amendment.

ne Sngle ! AK hNtUuIDGH- WI4~H
will be submitted to the voters Of
Missouri at the November election is
the most dangerous and revolutionary
economic measure ever proposed in
the history OF the state. Should il be
enacted into law it means that hence
forth the farmers and other landowners
Of Missouri will have to bear the en-
tire cost OF state, county and municipal
government, for the passage of this
amendment will wipe out all taxes on
personaliy-compellin land to bear
the entire burden. II means that
hrnceforth the hundreds Of millions Of
dollars invested in bonds, stocks, notes
and other corporation securities-the
millions invested in our great manu-
featuring enterprises es--that all these in
terests will not hereafter contribute
penny Of local or state revenue. In
round figures this added burden upon
land owners will amount to approx
mately ten million dollars per annum
for the whole state.
To give the reader an idea Of what
this means to farmers Of the average
county l will take Boone county as an
example: in this county the remission
Of all personal taxes means that the
owners Of farms will have to pay an in
crease Of $50, 106 on the basis Of taxes
paid in 1911. That the farmers own
personal taxes will be remitted is
soft soap argument which doesn't get
anywhere. The cold fact remains that
under the single tax system the farm
ers OF Roone county will have to pay
$50, 106 more than they are paying at
the present time and in varying de-
grees this will hold good fer every
county in the state.
To begin with, the promoters Of this
propaganda are not honest. Their or
ganizatioaasails under the deceptive
title OF the Equitable Taxation
League"-a lie on its face. What
they are striving to accomplish is not
equitable taxation but to lasten upon
this state the single tax system as ad'
vocated by Henry George, who held
that private ownership in land is wrong
that land should belong to the peo
pie in common and that the quickest
and easiest way to accomplish these
ends is to destroy the rental or earning
value in the land itself. In short, what
these agi,ators are trying to do is to
confscate land values in Mssouri-and
all the specious excuses. they make in
the meantime are merely intended to
throw the general public off the scent
to wheedle and fool them into voting
for this amendment on the specious
theory OF "equalizing taxes" If they
came out and honestly confessed to
the people Of Missouri what they are
really trying to do-that the success OF
their plans means the confiscatton OF
the private ownership Of land that
this is the socialistic propaganda which
they are trying to fasten upon US, they
would be hopelessly defeated at the
polls-and hence the subteriuge and
hypocrisy-hence the Equitable Tax
alton League"--the wolf in sleeps
clothing!
The astounding thing 10 me is that
the farmers Of this state are not up in
arms in every school district against
this outrageous proposition never
was a greater blow aimed at their home:
than this one. Many TO whom l have
talked either do not understand it o.
profess to have no fear Of its passage
and it is 10 the latter whom l wish es
pecially to warn against their loolisl
over'confdence. Take the citizen
OF this state as they come, and for ev
cry man who owns land there are twt
who do not, and the passage Of thi
act means that every non land owne
will be exempt from the payment Of al
taxes. Was there more selfish appes
made to men1 Can we afford TO tax
any chances in such premisesI Shoul,
we not see to it that every land owne
is aroused and the instinct OF commo
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