Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1917-08-22
SOME RADICAL IDEAS :
Of HIGH COST Of LIVING
Convention at Washington, D. c.,
Is Addressed By Single

IdxeIS.
CONFERENCE ON COST OF LIVING.
At the Conference on the High Cost
of Living at Washington, on July 81,
Frederic c. Howe spoke. in part as
follows:
All over the world peoples and rul.
ers are talking of liberty. EmperQrs,
kings, tories and aristocrats are JUS
tifying war in new terms, terms of
liberty. Never before in the history
OF the world was this true. Liberty
has forced itself into the mouths of
men who heretofore used it only for
their own aggrandizement.- Nov they
are compelled to widen its meaning to
include all people. workers.. peasants,
serfs.
But there can be no liberty under
economic feudalism, whether it be the
feudalism Of the eighteenth century
or the feudalism of the twentieth.
Feudalism has changed its form, it
has not changed its essence. And the
tenant in the country and the worker
in the city pay feudal tribute today,
just as they did three hundred years
ago. Then they gave personal labor,
now they give cash. The earth and
all its fullness is owned. And the
laws of God are set at defiance when
millions are born into the world un-
der economic subsection to those who
own the resources of the earth.
Economic freedom must accompany
political freedom. Otherwise there is
no freedom. And freedom of access
to Gods earth is the frst claim OF
democracy. Mexico discovered it. The
peasants OF Russia found it. And the
peoples are giving the earth to those
who use it under titles similar to
those OF the Jews 5000 years ago.
For the laws OF Moses were the laws
OF equal opportunity to the earth. just
as were the laws OF all early peoples.
And taxation is the agency through
which permanent liberty can come.
or-through taxation, those who hold
the earth but refuse to use it must
pay for their privileges or give them
up to Others Taxation of land values
will release land and mines. It will
enlarge production. 1t will destroy
monopoly. It will free the tenement
worker and the miner, and permit them
to labor for themselves. Taxation has
been used for privilege, for protective
tariffs and in many other ways. The
new democracy which is coming has in
it's hands liberty tax, the taxation
Of land values. It will open a new life
to even the poorest and will, when ap-
piled, insure equal opportunity for ALL
And democracy the world over has
20370-Willmar Trib-Six O'Neill
been inspired for generations by that
phrase of Jeherson's, Equal oppor-
tunity for all, and special privilege for
none," just as it has by the French
Revolution with its Liberty, equality,
fraternity" Taxation of land values
was the rallying cry of the philoso-
piers who preceded the French Rev.
olution. It should be the rallying cry
of democracy in the New World.
AASNA9 - = Wv esNAAV0oOU SA0 (OAl04>
ence, saying in part:
Let me illustrate with coal depos-
it's. Coal is good subject for such
an illustration in these war days. The
labor cost Of mining coal has increased
but little; but the price of coal has
increased enormously. Now If only
some coal deposits were monopolized
and the rest were available and free,
open without let or hindrance to any,
body, coal monopolists could not in
crease the price Of coal. II they tried
to do so, the unused deposits would
be resorted to, and that would keep
coal prices down to the actual cost
of production. This is what is meant
when it is said that increased land
values do not make higher prices for
commodities.
We can hardly avoid a recognition,
however, of the fact that all our coal
land is monopolized. It follows that
users of coal are practically at the
mercy of the monopolizers of that land
for coal prices. And are we not in
pretty much the same situation with
regard to the prices of all the other
necessities of life? They all come
from land just as truly as the coal
does. Well, if all the necessaries of
life come from land, and all land is
monopolized, what is the use of look
ing any further for an explanation of
the high cost of living until we have
rid ourselves Of land monopoly? Re-
move every other cause and if you
will allow monopoly of land to con.
tinue, the people as whole will get
no benefit.
Is there shortage of land? Not at
all. We have an abundance of land
of all kinds, but it is held out of use
How shall we rid ourselves of this
abuse of the privilege of land owner.
ship? Think a moment. Taxation
will do it. Tax the values of those
lands by direct taxation as heavily as
you are taxing the necessaries of life
by indirect taxation. Put as heavy q
burden upon the\ mouopolizers of nat
ural resources by direct taxation, and
our lands would be either abandoned
by their monopolists or put to immed
late use.
The conference adopted resolutions
declaring that one per cent of the PEG
pie draw nearly $4,000. 100000 ne,
ground rent annually, that land spec
ulators pay but trifle of the costs
of the war, while with the exception
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