Please note: this text may be incomplete. For more information about this OCR, view
About OCR text.
AND
(Copyright, 1917, by The Record and Guide Co.)
NEW YORK, JANUARY 26, 1918
>OME EFFECTS OF "SINGLE TAX" ON REAL ESTATE
Psychological Composition of Our People Partly Re¬
sponsible for the Widespread Influence of the Doctrine
HE "Single Taxers" and their first
cousins, the "Half Taxers," are re-
5onsible for much of the antagonism
) landlords. The spread of the single
ix doctrine is one of the most astonish-
ig phenomena of our times, and when
'e examine this doctrine we are still
lore amazed that a theory built upon
uch impractical ideas and illogical con-
iusions should gather to its standard
0 many devout believers.
The reason for this, however, is to be
Dund in the psychological composition
f our people. We must remember that
â– om the beginning and up to recent
mes this country was settled by peo-
le eager for the millennium. Here
athered the nations in search of the
romised land. These settlers, under
Te hypnotic spell of orators, preachers
nd demagogues, came to this country
D find relief from the ills they had
uffered in their own lands.
Considering that these men left their
ative land to face the terrors of the
nknown American wilderness, took
leir families with them, and that even
ntire communities emigrated, all
allowing the call of their supposedly
rophetic leaders, then we are struck
y the fact that the leaders were men
f great personal magnetism, and their
)nowers impressionable. From these
^o types of leaders and followers the
Licceeding generations inherited their
lental capacities. But, alas, the sheep
'ere many and the bell-weathers few!
Most of us have the inherited hunger
5r perfection, a hysterical longing for
le ideal. We lack poise, calm judg-
lent. and we are impatient for the
lillennium.
The susceptibility of our people to
Liggestion was well illustrated by the
Sixteen to One" fizzle, which had
ypnotized almost one-third of our
opulation. The dancing craze is
nother instance of "psychic infection,"
nd the "Single Tax" outburst belongs
> the same class with these.
Let a prophet but claim to know the
'ay out of darkness or suggest a
anacea and in a short time he will be
jrrounded by an army of followers.
1 fact, if a thing is said loud enough
nd often enough a lot of people will
elieve it, no matter what it may be.
his accounts for the great variety of
olitical faiths, and the infinite multi-
ide of industrial reform groups.
So we see that it is easy to win the
laudits of the mob, but thoughtful peo-
le will not be misled by the amount
f clamor for the "Single Tax" without
ivestigating its merits.
I would like to ask the "Single and
[alf Taxers" if they consider it ethical
Dr the State to establish and encourage
3r centuries the "private ownership"
f lands and then suddenly confiscate
le land. The "Single Tax" proposition
lust, first of all, be judged as an ethical
uestion. Let us consider the equities
f the case. The State or the "People"
annot seize directly or indirectly that
'hich belongs to the individual. The
People" as a community may not rob
r steal with more impunity than the
idividual, and taxation to the point of
Dnfiscation is plain "robbery." The
roper way then for the "People" to
egain the land they have knowingly
By FREDERICK C. ZOBEL
turned over to individuals is to "buy it
back" from these individuals at a fair
market value. Are the people prepared
to act righteously and acquire the land
by purchase and are they able to meet
the expense involved ?
"Single Taxers" claim they are not
going to confiscate the land, only tax
the land so that it will be unprofitable
to hold without improvement. Now it
does not matter whether you shut out
a man from his land or rob him of his
property by unjust taxation. In either
case you are violating his rights, and
any defense of such action is based on
ignorance or malice.
State Right to Condemn.
The right of the State to condemn
land for public purposes is established;
and, in fact, since the State always re¬
tained that right its ownership never
ceased, and what is commonly called
"ownership" really is not more than
ordinary "occupancy," the obligations
on the part of the occupant being the
payment of taxes, and on the part of
the State to protect the individual in the
quiet possession of the land. This is
the essence of the implied contract now
existing between the State and private
owners, and this contract cannot be
broken by either side without proper
compensation. If the owner fails to pay
taxes his land is sold to satisfy the
State's claims against him. What re¬
dress should be given the owner when
the State abrogates the contract by
confiscating his property?
And now let me point out some of
the fallacies of the "Single Taxers."
Their first error is that "all land is God-
made and that all other things are
man-made" and that the "supply of
land is limited." This is only a half
truth, but the whole truth is that
"some" land is God-made and "some"
is man-made.
Reclamation by Irrigation.
Our Federal Government is reclaim¬
ing millions of acres in the Western
States by irrigation, making fruitful
land which God had left unfit for the
habitation of men. Recently the Gov¬
ernment built thirty-two acres of land,
extending Governors Island in New
York Harbor, and New York City itself
has built hundreds of acres of land
along its waterfronts, which formerly
were completely submerged and un¬
available. And what about the land
manufactured by men in the construc¬
tion of houses? Every time a ten-
story building is erected on a city lot
approximately nine additional lots are
manufactured by the builder. So we
see that all land is not God-made, and
that furthermore land can be produced
in absolutely unlimited quantity.
Now it may be argued that while the
manufacture of lots may apply to space
that is habitable by men it does not
apply to the cultivable soil.
I venture a prophecy: Just as soon
as men discover how to grow plants
under artificial light (and experiments
with electricity have been fairly suc¬
cessful) we shall see five and ten story
farms within cities just as there now
arc one-story green-houses, where crops
will be raised all the year round. Land
in its natural state is not fit for man's
use. His labor must go into it just as
labor goes into the production of
clothes or food.
If I have no right to own land, then
you. friend "Single Taxer," have no
right to the coat on your back, for the
title to the coat is as obscure as that
of my land. You bought the coat from
a man who robbed a sheep of its wool;
the sheep was stolen from its dam, and
the dam was restrained against its will,
as was its original ancestor by some
cave man.
If it is not moral to own an inanimate
clod of earth, how much more immoral
is it to deprive living creatures of its
protection, its liberty and even its life?
The right to real property lies in its
use, but as to what and when that use
shall be is too delicate a matter for any
one to decide, and if some one could
be found with omniscience to desig¬
nate the proper use of each thing we
would all violently resent such dicta¬
tion as an invasion of our personal
rights.
One of the pet themes of "Single
Taxers" is the "unearned increment."
Now there is not the slightest differ¬
ence between the man who buys real
estate, hoping for a rise in value, and
the man who buys bales of wool and
stores them in his warehouse in hopes
of a better market.
The "unearned increment" comes to
everything that is in demand, whether
it be real estate, potatoes, sugar or
ships. It is the result of supply and
demand.
If I buy railroad stocks or ships or
dye stuffs and sell them at big profits
I'm a good business man, but if I buy
land and sell it at a profit Fm a
"grafter" because I'm getting "unearned
increment."
Curious reasoning these "Single
Taxers" have! They never mention
"unearned depreciation" of real estate.
Think of lower Fifth avenue!
"Single Taxers" claim that increased
values of land are produced by popula¬
tion, and this again is only a half truth,
for up to a certain point population
does enhance the value, but as soon as
congestion goes beyond this point
values begin to recede again. Think of
lower Fifth avenue again I
Rather is it true that the character
of the improvement upon the land
attracts people to that particular
locality, and the improvement is deter¬
mined by the geographical advantage
of the land. Population and high land
values do go hand in hand, but they
are coincident symptoms, not cause and
effect. New York City would not have
become the home of millions if it had
not the advantage of a magnificent
harbor, giving it unrivalled shipping
facilities and making it practically the
largest market or distributing center
of our country. The nearer you get to
the market or distributing center the
better and cheaper you can buy, and
if millions congregate in the City of
New York it is solely for reasons of
economy, the market advantage.
It is amusing to contemplate the
strenuous efforts of "Uplifters" trying
to drive the people from the large cities
into the open country. They would
actually have us believe that there are
seven million fools living in the Metro¬
politan district! If so many people live