The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1916-07-29
RICHES FOR few:
POVERTY FOR MANY
Taxation Expert Says Great
Fault Of Industrial Justice
Is Monopoly.
I TAXATION URGED TO
BREAK UP MONOPOLIES
Country Will Be Prepared When
Resources Are Properly
Distributed He Says.

WASHINGTON. July 27.-"Monop-
oily OF natural resources held at mo-
nopoly prices inevitable means pow
erty for many" writes BENJAMIN c..
Marsh to the committee on industrial
relations.
Mr.. Marsh is taxation expert and
economist Of New York, and is pro-
noting the series of conferences on
real preparedness throughout the
country.
Frank P. Walsh at one of those
conferences in New York said: 'The
great fault of industrial justice and
social welfare is monopoly-monopoly
of land, monopoly Of natural re-
sources, monopoly of power to control
other mems lives. The great evil in
the monopoly Of land is shown in the
lslnlster increase Of tenant farmers
and landless men in the cities, who
would be farmers if they could. The
monopoly of natural resources other
than Of land is shown in the brutally
low wages paid to those who dig coal
in the bottom of the mine for the en-
richment of those who take the profit
at the top of the mine. It is shown
lin the concentration of farm land, Of
mineral lands, Of oil lands and of
(water powers in the hands of giant
corporations and in the hands of an
exploiting class of spectators, bank
iers and concession grabbers.'
Wealth In Few Hands.
Giving some specific figures of the
concentration Of wealth in the hands
of the few and the growing monopoly
in private hands of natural resources
which naturally belong to all. Mr..
Marsh, who was quoted above, writes
to this committee.
''In 1914, our natural income was
approximately twenty billions of dol
lars. This included interest on in
Ivestm ents and loans, profits from
bue einess.. and wages and salaries
2teeventy-hive& hundred and nine per-
soI1s, each of whom had net taxable
nncome of $4,000, or over, received,
in 1914, an aggregate income of about
one billion dollars, approximately
one-twentieth Of the total national in
come.
'Three hundred and fifty-seven
thousand, five hundred and fifteen
persons subject to the Federal income
tax, received that year an aggregate
Income of about four billion dollars
nearly one-fifth of the total national
income.
lone or two per cert of the city's
population own the major part of the
Ivalue Of land in large cities.
Thirteen families own about one
twentieth of tie total assessed value
Iof land in Greater New York. On"
hundred families own one-ninth OF
these values; and five thousand fami-
lies own about one-half Of these val
,ues; although the population Of the
city Is approximately 100000, COM
prising about 100000 families.
''In Chicago, the site value Of one
hundred and five properties in the
loop district amounts to nearly one
seventh of the land valueG of the city
Similar concentration Of land values
exists in most large American cities.
Farms In Large Tracts.
''1n 1910, nearly one-fifth Of the
:acreage of farm lands in the country
was held in tracts of one thousand
acres or more, while over one-third
of the farms were less than 50 acres
1.-THE official governmental bulle-
tins show that 17.7 per cent of the
number Of farms in the country repre-.
sent over so per cent Of the value o1
farm lands. The farm lands in Him.