East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1912-11-02
THE EVILS OF SINGLE TAN.
IN Charles III. shleldsN

In just as few words as possible |
want to sum up the case against
Single Tax, Graduated Single Tax, or
whatever 1t may be called for the
nonce.
And, first of all would express To
the East Oregonian my appreciation
of the courtesy which allows me to
present, with my friend, Mr.. U'Ren,
in verbal debate, the Single Tax
question.
| want TO say that Single Tax is
not in existence anywhere on the
globe; that a partial application of II
has been so ruinous in Alberta that
20 cities are bankrupt and land taxes
amount to 10 per cent on farm lands.
This from the Calgary Herald and
other newspapers.
Think OF that East Oregonians with
your wheat farms-lO per cent ad
valorem. and an assessment to full
value, too.
Although much touted. British CO.
lumbia has not the Single Tax. In
fact. II has everything but Single
Tax The only thing 1t has along that
line is partial building exemption
In the city OF Vancouver. But in the
provinces there is decidedly healthy
poll tax, taxes on all incomes. taxes
on banks, canneries and on every
thing else that could he taxed. Single
Tax? Why oregon has more Single
Tax today than Vancouver will ever
have.
In England Mr.. Lloyd George has
declared against Single Tax: so, too.
has Premier Asquith
So now we come to Oregon and its
Graduated Tax measure, although II
must not he forgotten that in Multi
nomah. ClIckamas and Coos straight
Single Tax measure are also offered.
First of all We should never have
heard of Single Tax but for Henry
George who invented it as he wrote
book known as Progress and Pow
erty"
Just what this altruistic scheme
means. | will let Mr.. Georges own
Wo"ds tell:
The truth is and from this truth
there can be no escape. that there is
and can be no just title to an exclu
sive possession of the soil. and that
private property in land is bold.
bare. enormous wrong. like that of
chattel slavery"
Every Single Taxes believes along
those lines.
Here is another quotation:
IF the land belongs to the people.
why continue to perm : land owners
TO take the rent, or compensate them
ir any way for the loss of rent?"
The Graduated Single Tax will. If
take from Umatilla county
farmers and Pendleton lot owners the
full rental value of land, thus con-
iiScating all land to the state.
Henry George proves this too. Lis
ten To him:
The selling price of land would |
fall; land speculation would receive
Is death blow"
This means all who have homes. |
farms or Sts.
/ notice that now and again Mr. |
| Rem says that the Graduated Single |
Tax is not Single Tax. He told me
so in debate the other night. OF
course. Mr.. U'Ren tells us himself |
hat when he read Progress and |
Poverty" he went crazy-"just as |
'razy as any man could well be-" But |
surely tnat is no explanation for his |
,andid letter to the Oregonian in |
which he said that the graduated |
Single Tax was a "flatfooted Single
Tax measure"
But there's loads more proof.
Mr.. U'Ren admits that the nam.
moth funds. amounting this year to |
100000, have been subscribed by the |
Joseph Fels Fund and by Joseph Fels |
In person.
The Fels Fund Commission by its |
charter was formed to establish the |
Henry George Single Tax-and we
have already read just what the Hen