THE PEOPLE'S INHERITANCE.

Evening Star, Issue 17087, 4 July 1919, Page 2

THE PEOPLE'S INHERITANCE.

The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.—Psalm xxiv., 1. ... the earth hath He given to th« children of men.—Pfahn civ.. 16. TO TIIE EDITOB. Sir,—My plea in defence of such an unusual heading is that I have there stated | correctly what vour correspondent, .Mr hj. >, T. Evans, quoted somewhat loosely m his j letter in vour issue of June 2-1. It is unusual to find an advocate of industrial re- j form seeking support to his position on the j authority ot the Bible. Apparently Labor i in the mass bus turned its bark upon this j source of strength and guidance in its j tause, Tory much to its own loss. | Occasionally, however, a Labor sympa- j Ibiser will u.*o a. .Scripture text as a vantage Mint in order to indulge, in the practice of I throwing mud at the Churches, rlvidence i of the- injustice of this practice is supplied | in the final sentence of Mr K vans's loiter, -which prompts the inquiry whether Labor | credits the Churches with ;i monopoly of brain power. Your correspondent "J.U."' follows up in support of Mr Evans's position that the "fulness of the earth" is represented by economic rent, which is estimated at If million sterling annually. And the champion who would challenge this position ! will essay a difficult task. ' But progress demands a fuller and more explicit statement of the position. If it were clearly stated who are the children of men, and whether* this " fulness'' is given to them in the mass, or seetionally, or individually, and in what, manner this gift- is to be honorably appropriated, that would mean some definite indication of the way out. The method proposed is to put what is termed a "tax" on economic rent. But how does this proposal look in the light of-honor and justice'/ "The State sells in an individual a piece of land at the ciirrci't market value, in the full knowledge that this market value- is determined by the economic rent of the land, present and prospective. The buyer .sells to a third party, nominally with improvement, at a market value which is derived mainly from the economic rent. , Tins man sells again to a buyer who als<> sells : and so on indefinitely, but. always at the market vaLie which continues to ho in tjreat measure dependent upon that economic rent which the State in the first instance sold, and afterwards not only legalised the sale, j just as any other property might be sold, but gives to each transaction a special endorsement in the form of a deed of transfer. Now it is proposed that the- Stateshall go back upon its bargain, and rake back the thing it sold—economic rent — and no word of compensation.—l am. etc., PROGRESSIVE Labok. July 3.