Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-07-07
Selected by Tavenner

fr>ss, as defined by r. e. Lenhuscher,
pr esident of the Society 20 Lower
Rerts and Reduce Taxes on Homes,
were:
The cost of government must ne
more equitably distributed; access TO
! the land must be afforded: prohts
from monopoly of natural resources
must be eliminated from the cost OF
living.
| "All taxes, except those on land
values, incomes and inheritances can
be shifted, so that the tax payer is
not the tax bearer. Out of the annual
| current governmental expenditures OF
about $4,000, 100000, taxes on land
values, incomes and inheritances yield
approximately 1886, 900 ,000-about one
fourth of the total government expen-
ditures.
Our indirect tax system costs a
large proportion of the poorest work
ers of the country from one-fifth to
one-sixth of their earnings, while very
few of the richest people pay over a
tenth of their incomes in taxes, and
many pay less.
| Because of constitutional limita-
tons a rapidly progressive tax on
| large incomes is the most equitable
way for the federal government to Sc
cure its revenue, while a heavy inheri-
lance tax is feasible to pay for federal
and state permanent improvements.
1.-The high selling price of land or
| the high rental demanded for It's use
| is a stone wall effectively keeping peo-
| pie from access to the land.
| 1.-THE United States commission on
| industrial relations states that unem-
| ployment is due to the denial of &C
cess to land and natural resources,
even when they are unused and
under conditions which are practically
prohibitive'
Monopoly of natural resources is
utterly incompatible with real Ameri-
canism and real preparedness. Profits
from such monopoly are equally so.
Workers are entitled to get what they
produce, and until they do so, we are
un-American and unprepared.'
when | say that child labor and
preparedness are irreconcilable; and
| that we may as well realize that we
kill more people every year by poison
ed milk, impure food, bad air, lghtless
tenements, overwork, unemployment,
child labor, and the whole miserable
brood of grinding poverty, in New
York City alone, than have been muir
dered on either side of the Mexican
border / hope l may lay claim to
patriotism which is permanent and
spasmodic," was the keynote of an
address on Child Labor and Real
Preparedness given by Owen R. Love
joy, general secretary of the national
child labor committee.
The conference in which Lincoln
Steffens, Professor Slaughter, Mrs.
Mary Fels, Professor Irving Fisher,
Albert J. Mock and others in addition
to those quoted took part, adopted
resolutions to ask each of the presi-
Dental candidates to favor these
propositions.
THE untaxing of improvements and
all other products of labor, and heav-
Ter taxation of land values to maintain
local and state governments.
"A rapidly progressive tax on large
incomes-es on unearned in
comes-for the federal government,
and reducing taxes on consumption
such as tariffs on the necessities of
life.
"A rapidly progressive tax on in
heritance for the state and federal
governments.
Federal acquisition Of natural
monopolies-since privileged monOp-
oily is un-American-the present own
ers to be paid only the value they have
given to those monopolies, plus the
present value of improvements there
in and thereon made by them.
Termination of perpetual fran
chises and municipal ownership and
operation of public utilities, the pres
ent owners to be paid only the value
they have given such utilities plus the
present value of improvements there
in and thereon made by them
Social insurance against sickness
and accidents.
The enactment of the Heating Owen
child labor bill by congress and of
uniform child labor bills by all the
states"
A resolution also was adopted COM
mending President Wilson for what he
has done to avert war, and urging
him 'at the earliest possible moment
mpatible with the rights of the
United States to withdraw American
troops from Mexico, so that friction
due to the presence of our troops on
Mexican soil may be eliminated, and
normal relations between the two
great republics of this continent may
be restored; and to take the neces-
Sary steps to convince the Mexican
republic tina tour purpose is merely to
prevent raids from Mexico into our
country, of our citizens in Mexico, and
not to annex any Mexican territory
whatsoever, either permanently or
temporarily"