CHAPTER VII. 



"LAND LORD IS M." 



" Landlordism ' insists upon being discussed 

 in any consideration of the land question in 

 England, though in reality it is only a word, 

 a political shibboleth, and does not describe any 

 actually existing principle of conduct, or state 

 of mind, or condition of affairs. If " landlord- 

 ism " — which word presumes that there is a 

 certain inevitable set of actions incumbent upon 

 men when they become landlords — could be 

 eliminated from the lexicon of the politicians in 

 this country, there would be a better chance of 

 discussing reasonably the various problems of 

 the land. But when discussion of these prob- 

 lems in many minds is founded on a ' first 

 principle," that there is an actively poisonous 

 disease known as landlordism, the existence of 

 which is proved by the presence of the bacillus 



