Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1912-04-18
BIG PLANTATIONS
A MENACE TO SOUTH
Editor Clarence Poe Advocates Reducing
Taxes on Small Land Holdings and H.
CTeaSing Them on Larger Ones.

farmers, and that taxes should be re-
duced on small land holdings and in
creased on large ones and on inheri-
tances, was the argument presented in
an address before the Souther Com
mercial Congress in Nashville, Tenn,
on the 9th, by Editor Clarence Poe, of
The Progressive Farmer.
MIR. Poe was one of the two principal
speakers in the Seaman A. Knapp me-
mortal meeting and declared that Dr.
Knapp's great aim was to make the
rural south vast democracy of small
home owners. To this end Mr.. Poe ad-
vocated the English graduated tax on
the unearned increment in rural or urban
land holdings of 81, ,0O0or less wholly ex-
empted, and a heavy tax on inheritances
of 1000 or over, likewise graduated.
1--WE must tax small holdings less,
great holdings MORE" he declared, "the
gains of thrift and industry less, the
gains of chance or inheritance more"
He also urged the immigration of thirty
Northern and Western white farmers,
declaring this the only sure plan to rem
edy our excessively large proportion
of negro population and solve the prob
lem of an adequate social life in the
country.
In the first part of his speech Mr..
Poe dealt with the increase of agricult-
ural incomes in the south and declared
that they could be doubled by the ad-
equate use of machinery and grester
horse power. Satisfies show" be
said, "that farm workers in three typi-
cal South Central States average less
than one horse per capita, earning Sl89
a year, whereas the farm workers in
three typical North Central states aver
age between three and four horses per
capita and cultivate sixty-three acres g.
piece, earning 1868 year.
Coming directly to what he pronounc-
ed the more important part of DR..
Knapp's work, Mr.. Poe said:
''Put in single sentence, DR.. Knapp's
to make the South vast democracy of
thrifty, HOMECOMING farmers, every
man sitting under his own vine and fig
tree. / wish every farmer in the South
could get and read his bulletin. The
Causes of Southern Rural Conditions and
the Small Farm as an Important Rem
edy.' To break up our great plantations
into the smaller holdings and to encour-
fn uni
home: this he regarded as the most i'm
portant task ahead of the leaders of
Southern agriculture. To use DR..
Knapp's own language:
"'A prosperous, intelligent and con-
tented rural population is essential to
our national perpetuity. The worlds
experience has shown that the best
way to secure this is to encourage the
division of all the lands small farms each
owned and operated by one family
''My own conviction, ladies and gen.
tlemen, is that in this statement DR..
Knapp showed the vision of prophet
and a seer. 1t will be we'll indeed for
the South if we do not come too late to
listen to the warnings of England two
centuries ago against the Fastening ills
to which any land is subject where
wealth sccumulates and men decay,
and where princes and lords flourish at
the expense of bold peassntry. Even
now the duty of the hour as l conceive
it, is to tighten the Burdens of the small
home-owner.
1.-The methods 1 suggest are new in
the South, / know, but do not hesitate
to say that believe we must Tighten
the taxes on the poor man and the small
home-owner and land holder, and in
crease the taxes on others-principally
by levying heavy graduated taxes on in
herritance of $5, 900 or over, and grad
uated tax on the unearned increment in
urban or rural land values, after the
English policy, but exempting from the
latter provision all who own less than
1000 or $1,000 worth of land. We
must tax small holdings less, great hold
ing more, the gains of thrift and indust-
ry less, the gains of chance or inheri-
tance more. Into our state laws here ir
the south as in our National laws al
Washington, we must write the deter
mination of the people that the birth
right of every man to the liberty anC
happiness Of homecoming shall be pro
perry safeguarded, and that the veal
shall not be forced to bear the burden.
of the strong, or the many improverish
ed that q few may enriched. A great
democracy of thrifty, prosperous home
owning small farmers is the hope of tn,
South and should be the goal of all oul
striving. Vast areas held for specula
tive purposes or bought by corporation
merely for financial profit and cultivat
ed by men who are nothing more thai
factory machines to their owners-al
such holdings are a menace to progress
and prosperity in the south, as indee,
are all great plantations were q back
ward tenantry is exploited when b.
cutting them up, thrifty and progressiv