Wheeling majority. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1907-192?, 1916-08-03
Triple Tax And confsGatl0nn With Compensation
Advocated For M6nOp0ieS By Mofxpert Marsh


| COMMITTEE ON Industrial ReIatiOns.)
Washington, D. c., Aug. 81 Monop
| olyfof natural resources held at mon
opoly prices inevitably means poverty
for the many writes Benjamin q.
Marsh to the Committee on Industrial
Relations a.s .sssxs3sss.@
Mr.. Marsh Is taxatfon 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 con-
ferences in New York said: 1.-THE great
fault Of Industrial justice and social
welfare is monopoly - monopoly Of
land, monopoly of natural resources
monopoly Of power to control other
mems Lives. The great evil in the
monopoly of land is shown in the SIMS
ter increase of tenant farmers and
1andless men in the Cities who would
be- farmers If they could. The mono
poly Of natural RESOURCES other than
Of land is shown in the brutally low
wages paid to, those who, dig, coal fp
the bottom of the mine. for. the epTichr
tment of, those who take the profit at
the top Of the mine. 1t is shown I'M 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, bankers and concession
grabbeEs.A1 III LTygaS q
Giving some specific figures Of the
I-eopeentrati of wealth in the ShaRds
Eef4tAes few and the growing monopoly
in private hands of natural resources.
which naturally belongs to all, Mr..
Marsh, who was quoted Nabove, writes
to this Committee: X
I'm 1914, our national income was
approximately twenty billions of doll
lars. This included interest on invest
ments and loans, profits from business,
and wages and salaries.
"Seventy-fve hundred and nine pert
sons each Of whom had net taxable
income Of $500 or over, received9 in
1914, an aggregate income. Of about
one billion dollars. approximately one+
twentieth of the total national income.
"Three hundred and fifty seven thou+
sand, five hundred and ffAeen persons
subject to the Federal Income Tax, rel
ceived that year an aggregate income
of about -four billion dollars nearly
one-fifth {of the total national income.
TwolPer Cent own Most I.ahd.
"One or two per cent of the city's
population own the major Dartof the
value OF land in large cities.
Thirteen families own about oRe7
twentieth of the total assessed mHa1ue
of land in Greater New York One
hundred. families own one-nfnth T9f
these values, and five Thousand cfamil-
iestown about one half of these valnes;
although the population Of theo city is
approximately $500, ooe. comprising
about LOO 900 families s!iD' 1nlQ
"In4 Chicago. the site value toff bne
hundred. and five properties in the loop
district amounts to- nearly yd49fsAv+
enth of the land values Of the city
Similar concentration of land values
exists in most large American cities.
I'm 1910, nearly one-fifth of the acref
age of farm lands in the country was
held in tracts Of one thousand acres
or more. while over onethird of the
farms were less than fifty acres.
1.-The official governmental bulletins
show that 17.7 per cent of the number
of farms in the country represent over
so per cent of the value of farm lands.
The farm lands in Illinois, with only
about one twenty seventh Of the total
acreage in the country and one twenty
fifth ofethe farms. is worth nearly onef
ninth Of the total value Of farm lands
in the United States.
Nearly Ave per cent Of the popu1
lation own nearly all theyalue of land
and nearly all the acreage.
Commissioner Davies: of the late
Bureau OF Corporations reported IN
1914, that. 1854 timber owners hold In
fee over. one twentieth of the land
area of. the United States. from the
Canadian to the Mexican borders "a
total 81 1O5.600, geo acresz-while six