Show THE E SINGLE TAX I I Why Poverty Increases With the Progrees Made THE CONCENTRATION OF WEALTH The Causes That Produce It and How Many of the Attendant Evils MayBe May-Be Avoided To tho Editor of THE HERALD There is a perfect unanamity of opinion among all scientific social reformers that the rich are growing steadily richer and the poor relatively poorer One writer states that the tendency of socalled material progress is as though an immense wedge were being forced not underneath society but through society and that those whore who-re above the point of separation are elevated ele-vated while those below are crushed down k Another who likens our social institutions J to a great coach on which a few ride and the many pull points out that those who are doomed to forever pull the coach are increasing in-creasing in number I This is no mere speculatiQn but is based 1 upon solid and incontrovertible facts and figures The latest reliable statistics on the subject sub-ject state that in 1S17 there was but ONE MAX IX THIS CODXTRT reputed to be worth over 5000000 The wealth of his lineal descendents is estimated at 55250000000 or 50000000 each In 1S65 the wealthiest railroad manager was worth not more than fW000000 His heir died recently leaving an estate of 200000000 and there arc now several gentlemen living worth 100000000 In 1S67 in the Now J York constitutional conention a prominent promi-nent delegate stated that he could name 4 thirty men in New York whose wealth averaged 515000000 At the lowest possible possi-ble reasonable estimate there are now in L the United States 250 persons whose wealth averages over 20000000 each The total national wealth held as private property 41000000000 Of this at least u I njreujuui tun are uivuuu uy uuuut ouuuuu persons the balance being distributed among the 20000000 workers including men women and childrenwhile the fact that less than 2 per cent of the working force of the nation contwl per cent of Its wealth is sufficient proof of the asser tion of INCREASING POVERTY WITH PROGRESS It is still farther demonstrated by the decrease de-crease in number of small farms and the great increase in that number of large farms For example the statistics furnished fur-nished concerning the sizo of farms in certain cer-tain cottongrowing states showed that be tween 1S70 and 18SO the increase in tho num ber of farms between fifty and one hundred acres was about 100 per cent the increase in the number of e farms over 1000 acres was about 1100 per cent In Conneticut the increase in-crease In farms under 100 acres for the same period was 1242 and for those over 100 acres 3S4S In New York there was a decrease de-crease of 16571 in number of farms under 9 100 acres and an increase of 41076 in num ber of farms over 100 acres Tile statistics up to 1890 are not yet complete on this subject sub-ject A HERALD editorial of the 21st inst V says Another fact burdened with portents por-tents of evil for the good of our country is the growth of large farms ranging from 500 to 500000 acres While in 1S70 there were only 15873 farms between 500 and 1000 acres there were in 188075972 and of farms over 1000 acres in 1870 3720 and 28578 in 1SSO ACCORDING TO THE FIGURES of 1SSO there were 322357 tenant farmers paying rent and 702244 farmers farming on shares occupying a position not unlike that of the despised villiens of feudal times This makes a grand total of 1024601 tenant farmers In the United States These facts tell a sad tale for American agriculture Statistics clearly prove that at the present day less than 1000 persons constituting less than onetwo hundredth of our working population are possessed of increases that enable them to save threefifths of all the wealth that is annually saved in this coun try And as all wealth is reproduced with in less than thirty years 100000 persons are destined to own threefifths of the entire wcalth of the United States within the next i thirty years In tho face of these figures can it be ques tion that the position of Henry GeorgeEd ward Bellamy et al That tho rich are growing richer and the poor poorer is correct cor-rect That the poorest may enjoy some things today that the richest could not a century ago DOES NOT SHOW IMPROVEMENT < co long as the ability to obtain the necessaries neces-saries is not increased The question then arises What are the causes that produce this enormous concen tration of wealth and can they be reme died 1 diedThe The population of the United States has increased from 35000000 to 60000000 dur ing the last twentytire years or at ver age population for this period of 45000000 The average annual burden of taxation borne by the people during this twentyfive years is Sl3S4t00000 Of this amount all save 5100000000 has been imposed by indirect indi-rect taxation leaving the average annual burden imposed by indirect taxation at 51280000000 This amount of taxation d must be paid out of what is expended FOR PRACTICAL PURPOSES we may consider the population of the United States divided into 15000000 fami lIes Of these 14000000 have incomes less j1Jan 350 per year 700000 less than 51000 and the other 300000 have larger incomes The average annual earnings of the United States during the past twentyfive years are 57500000000 Of this 5100000000 is expended in supportof the people On this amount indirect taxation has averaged 25 per cent The average poor man may sup port his family on SSOO a year Their bur den of taxation is then 25 per cent on this amount or 75 a year Contrast this with the case of a man whose income is 1000000 per year which a fortune of 15000000 easily assures 100000 will enable him to live in modest style On this the tax is 25 per cent or 25000 Thus the tax on the rich is less than 2 per cent and on the property of the masses more than 75 percent per-cent At this rate SOO rich men would save 137500000 per year while 14000000 laborers labor-ers could not exceed 25 eachor3r But if indirect taxation had been abolished these poor men wouU have saved 1400 000000 and TilE EIGUT HUNDRED RICH MEN would not have exceeded 450000000 What then is the remedy rl It is three fold First the abolition of indirect taxa tion Secondly the substitution of a single tax on ground rent Thirdly the gradual increase of this direct tax sufficient to absorb ab-sorb ground rents Every form of taxationupon the products of human labor is an indirect tax and is always al-ways shifted from the original tax payer to the final consumer Thus a duty of 1 cent on matches caused an increase in price of 2 cents All taxes on houses have but one tendency to raise the rent of houses So if a house is valued at 1500 and a tax of foO a year is levied the tenant pays the tax Duties on imports have entailed an average increase in prices of thrice the value of the goods All taxes which increase prices are monopoly taxes since the more capital it requires to go into any business the fewer the number of those who can enter it If we trace to their cause a majority of fortunes we shall FIND IT IN MONOPOLIES of some kind The tax on land values or rent will dif fuse itself equally throughout the commun ity compelling each one to pay in proportion to the advantages he derives from society and according to his ability The tax on ground rent is the only tax that cannot be shifted It falls directly on the landlord It does not affect the value or price of any of the products of the land It merely takes so much from the landlord and transfers it to the state A tax on houses may lead to the tearing down of houses as lax on fig trees once led to a cutting down of fig tree in Arabia and in this way may increase the rent of houses or the price of figs but land cannot be increased in-creased no lessened in quantity no matter how high the taxes may become I THE LI MIT OF RENTs is the maximum which anyone will give for the use of a certain piece of land The moment mo-ment an attempt is made to raise the rent beyond this amount the holder relinquishes it To suppose that landlords can add the land tax to tenants rent is to suppose that landlords do not now get all their land will bring the mere supposition of which is absurd ab-surd surdWhile While all forms of taxation on the pro ducts of labor tend to lessen production and discourage industry the single tax on land alues tends to increase production by forc ing land now held for speculation into the market and to encourage industry by not fining a man for what he produces The first great relorm then necessary to make our social adjustments conform to the supreme law of justice is i to abolish our 1 present form of taxation which generates inequality in social conditions and leads to I pauperism and low wages and the many dif ficulties that aflLct modern society I F H MONROE |