LAND TENURE AND LAND POLICY 679 



than he can cultivate; and our great object should be to give every- 

 one an opportunity of employing his own labor, and to give no oppor- 

 tunity to anyone to appropriate the labor of others. We cannot 

 afford to give so much in view of the extent of the public domain and 

 the demand for homes yet to be made upon it. While we are calling 

 upon all the world to come in and take our land, let us save a little 

 for our own children. Nor can we afford to give so much in view of the 

 economic loss consequent upon the dispersion of population. Four 

 families are not enough to secure the greatest return to labor and the 

 least waste in exchanges. Eighty acres is quite enough for anyone 

 and I am inclined to think forty acres still nearer the proper 

 amount. 



But still the adoption of such a policy would affect only the land 

 that is left us. It would be preventive, not remedial. I hardly think, 

 agitate as we may, that we can secure the adoption of such a preventive 

 policy until we can do something to make the monopolization of land 

 unprofitable. What we want, therefore, is something which shall 

 destroy the tendency to the aggregation of land, which shall break 

 up present monopolization, and which shall prevent future monopo- 

 lization. We cannot have any difficulty in discovering such a remedy 

 in the adjustment of taxation. 



(Accordingly, Mr. George proposed that the government should 

 collect the whole of the economic rent of all land, as a single tax, 

 abandoning all other forms of taxation. EDITOR.) 



217. TAXATION AS A MEANS OF DISCOURAGING LARGE 

 HOLDINGS 1 



Title: "AN ACT to provide for a graduated tax on land holdings. in excess of six 

 hundred and forty acres of average taxable lands, and a graduated tax upon 

 the income, rents and profits of lands held by lease or rental contract in 

 excess of 640 acres " 



Graduated land tax: 



"All persons owning land in this state of taxable value equivalent 

 to 640 acres of average taxable value, or less, shall pay the same ad 

 valorem tax rate as is levied and charged for all purposes of govern- 

 ment against personal or other property in this state ; and any person 

 owning land of equivalent taxable value in excess of 640 acres of land 



1 Synder, Laws of Oklahoma, 1909, p. 1558; Laws of igo7~8, p. 724 (declared 

 unconstitutional) . 



