TAXATION AND LAND 



raised. A land tax or a house tax is spe- 

 cially ill fitted for this. Income taxes per- 

 form the service very neatly; and, as is well 

 known, Great Britain has long resorted to 

 them for this purpose. However, Mr. 

 Goschen's budget of April, 1889, substituted 

 for the usual increased levy on incomes a 

 death or succession tax on estates of $50,000 

 or more, which has thus far worked well. 

 A tax on liquors has usually been considered 

 the ideal "buffer"; yet even this served Mr. 

 Gladstone ill, ousting him from office by its 

 unpopularity. Obviously, none of the im- 

 posts mentioned would serve happily as the 

 substantive tax; but these, or some of them, 

 or others similar, are necessary as ancillary 

 taxes, to render a system supple and safe. 



It may be rejoined that this objection 

 is valid only against those who wish the 

 state to take no more rent than is necessary, 

 but not against H. George, who was going 

 to draw all rent into the public treasury, 

 making a deficit impossible. 



I reply that inelasticity will balk the 

 single tax plan about equally whether all 



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