The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1913-12-22

To the Editor of The Times Dispatch:
A, !,iT,--4io nday,s editorial Unlock
sons message TO Congress,
You say that the natural God given
n %ealth OF Alaska has been unex-
mate that II ought to have something
! lone to It.
Nov, why should Woodrow Wilson
tor, opportunities 10 unlock natural,
| God given wealth? Alaska is about
1000 miles from Virginia Right here
~ natural resources. the main factor
IN the production of that thing which
Us called wealth" by the professor OF
l. mean ',.;.l that Virginia, has a lot OF
Hlhd lying iulc Cor partly uscd): q lot
Vi mineral land and timber land held
Just for the community increase in
value. lot of water power. and a
Tot of public service franchises that
ure undeVelopcd, and all because tho
encourage land monopoly." and specu-
latIoh IN tho natural God-giyen re-
sources OF the community.
also; another public asset which is
up to every ono but the privileged
iew( is being discovered in the enor-
Oh the ground rents In our cities
ana towns Ccven the cross-roada) Our
people do not know the facts about
the, great increase in land values"
VI Virginia. Those who do know are
Weeping II quiet and Saving wood
! M IN every city and town the men Of
loo per cent on their capital invested
IN speculation in city lots and So
called farms" CD lying around the
NJ the same time the Legislature
arpcars TO be- blind TO the fact that a
single tax on these growing land
values Ialso public service franchiscs)
VIII yield all the money needed for the
cNnthscS or government.
Nhy are the members so blind? Why
can't they see the key that will un-
lock for the use OF the people the re-
sources thnt God provided for them?
Every child that is born in the popu-
iation Is AUTOMATICALLY capitalized In
increase OF land values, and even fu.
ture children yet to be born.
rms community value IN tho land is
irnd that automatically increases
as the population increases 1t Is not
charity TO educate children! 1t is not
charity TO give State aid to mothers
so that they can keep their children
at home ana send them to school Ii
is natural right that Is inherent
ana inalicnablc in every chiid--thc
right TO a mothers care and the right
The means 10 pay for It Is provided
by natural law, that makes the ground
the people tread on increase In value
aS the children are born. This Is no
ilnc-spun theory; IL is plain fact
which men can see when they have the
binders OF sclf-interest removed from
Read the wonderful books OF the
New Democracy" To those good pco-
PIE who are trying to right the wrongs
81 the world, lighting saloons prosti-
tuition, tubcrculosis poverty, etc. | viii
say mat behind all these evils. ana
deeper down, Is a cause Gntcnpcr:tncc
is effect" not causc). Deeper down.
ana so deep that few can see it. in ::
cause. THIS cause may appear To
some TO be too insignificant to ac-
count for the terrible evils that we
see and hear Of but to the student OF
social science" the reason and cause
why our public institutions fail in
their object IS that land Is monopolized
and scltishly held out Of use" SO that
man with . tight shoe may be
thus tortured By small matter. and
even so our civilization may be brought
TO The verge of destruction by the
torture Of land monopoly"
How shall we unlock the natural
wealth OF Virginia?
How shall we attain that thing
ple:--thc right TO have access to the
means of production. the right to
labor
By means OF tax reform, And I
mean real tax reform. that VIII take
all the burden OF taxation of OF labor
and capita! and OFF of the improve
mcnts on land, ana tax land values"
our Assistant Secretary of Labor in
Woodro" Wilson'S Cabinet is preach
Ing this great iiscal reform. the gospel
Of Henry George
Louis f.. Post has written many
books on land value taxation" It is
the key to unlock the wonderful pos
sibilitiea OF Christian democracy.
4 N IL