Wealth and Want: Bengough's Primer, Lessons 13-24

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Bengough's Primer: Lessons 13 to 24

LESSON XIII — May Own Sheep ... They Are Bred ... Not Like Land

See the Sheep. It is a nice Fat Sheep and has long Wool.

Does a Man own the Sheep?

Yes, the Man that owns the Hat owns the Sheep as well.

But how can he own a Sheep? He may own a Hat, for he can make it. But he may not own Land, which he can not Make, you say.

Quite right, my Child.

Then how can he own a Sheep? -- for he can no more make Sheep than Land.

Yes, in a way he can make Sheep. Sheep are Bred by Man. He can so deal with them as to have more Sheep than now. He can, if he see fit, Wipe out all Sheep, so there would be not One left, but he can not make the Land more or less than God made it. And so the Sheep is not like Land, but it is a Thing which Man may own, as is the Ox, the Horse, the Pig, and all the Beasts we see in the World.

Woodcut: A Sheep, standing in a field. Its coat is fairly long.

land different from capital

ownership

LESSON XIV — World Grows Full .... Goods Price Falls .... Land Gets High

Here you see a Sheep and a Hat on one Side, and a Lot of Land next to them. The Worth of such things as Sheep or Hats is a Worth of what we call Trade, and is High or Low as it Costs more or less to make or breed such things.

As Man finds out new Ways to save Toil, or as the Crowd grows, such things grow more Cheap, for they may be made or bred with more ease, and there is more Sale for them.

But the Worth of Land is a Worth not of Trade but of "Take" and is high or low as more or less Land may be thus got and held.

And so it comes that the Worth of Land goes up just as the Crowd grows big, for there is just so much Land in the World and no more.

So a tax on Goods, as it must be paid by those who use the Goods, adds to the Price, but a tax on Land tends to make Land cheap.

Woodcut: the rectangle is divided in two. On the left is a sheep, with a smaller version of the upturned hat from Lesson XII. On the right, the sun is rising, or perhaps setting, behind a small hill. In the foreground appears to be a pasture.

trade

population

technological progress

capitalization

land price

lowering the price of land

sales taxes

LESSON XV — Man May Own ... Earth But Must ... Pay Land Rent

There is but One way by which a Man may be Just to the Race of Men and yet own a bit of the Earth or the Whole of it.

What is that?

It is that he shall give a Fair Price to the Whole Race, for whom God made it.

But what is a Fair Price?

Not a Lump sum paid to any One Man, for that does the Rest no good. Not a Lump sum paid to the State, for though that is Fair to all who now Live, it does no good to the Race soon to be born in the World, and whose Rights are as good as our own.

What, then, is a fair Price?

The Ground Rent, to be paid each Year in to the State Till. That is Just, both to those who now Live, and those yet to be Born; and it is Just, too, to the Man who wants to own the Land. So, you See, the One-tax plan would be Just all round.

Woodcut:

In the center is a man in tophat and spectacles. In one hand he carrieds a globe, on which appears the world "World." On the left is a large open box labeled "Public Till." The box is close to full, and the man is taking some of its contents.

intergenerational justice,

single tax

LESSON XVI — Land Rent Springs ... By God's Law ... Out Of Ground

Was Man made to live a Lone life?

No; God meant Men to live in the Town and each to love and help the Rest. But when Men come to live in a Crowd they need a Purse or Till, out of which to Pay for the Things they need for the use of All, such as Lights, Streets, Cops, Schools, and so on.

Did God think of this when He made Man?

Yes, my Child. So He made a great Law. It Works in this way: When Men come in a Crowd -- such as a Town -- the Land, which had no worth ere they came, gets to be worth so much per Foot.

Why?

It is worth so much for the Chance to do biz there. If the Crowd goes off, this Worth goes with them. It is what we call Ground Rent. This Fund God meant for the Town Till.

Woodcut: A crowd of men, mostly rather well dressed. In one corner, a sign saying "Business Sites for Sale;" in another, a sign "Lots to Rent." In the foreground, a fat man with a large open bag labeled "$ Ground Rent." Between the crowd and the fat man is a fountain or spring labeled "land value" whose flow is arching into the Ground Rent bag.

rent as God's provisioning for all

community

public spending

land value

urban land value relative to rural

LESSON XVII — Wage For Work .... Gold For Rent .... No More Sweat

Here is a Man at work on the Land. See the beads of Sweat on his Brow. He earns his Bread, and it is Sweet to him. It is a fair Wage for his Work. This is the Law as God has made it: No Toil, no Bread; much Toil, much Bread. But see the Man next to him. He has a big Bag and it is full of Gold, but he does not Work at all. And, bless my Heart, Child, look! it is the Same Man! He has quit Work.

What does this Mean? How does he get more Gold now, though he does no Work, than he got when he did hard Toil?

Why, you see, he got a Deed of the Land he used to work on, and a Town is now built on that Land, so now he lives on the Gold which the Folks of that Town have to put in his Bag each Year in the form of Land Rent.

For what?

For the Right to Live, which he is so Kind as to give them.

Woodcut: This is divided into two panels. In the left one, a man digs with a shovel in rural land. In the right panel, which bears a sign saying "Town Site" another man sits under a tree, with a large bag next to him labeled "$ Land Rent." In the background are a number of buildings suggesting a town.

LESSON XVIII — One Tax Plan ... Now In Use ... For House Rent

See the big House.

Does the Man own It?

Yes.

Does he want to make the Most out of it he can with the least Loss?

That is just it, my Child.

Then what is his Plan?

It is a Plan of Good Sense and marks a Wise Man. It is what I may call the One-tax Plan.

What do you Mean?

He makes those who Use the House pay for it just by the Size and Kind of Room they rent, so much per Year. Now, he might get his Gain out of it in more Ways. He might make Folks pay who go in or out; he might Lease the Hoist to a Man, and let him charge Fare up and down; he might put a Tax on the Gas used in each room, and he might Charge for all Goods brought in or sent out, and so much per cent. on the Trade done by each Man in the place. But you see, his One-tax Plan is the best.

Woodcut: A large industrial/retail building, which runs the full width of the panel. It seems to have a retail space on the first floor, and three floors of windows above it, at least 30 windows on each floor. Several small figures are on the sidewalk in front of it, and two people seem to be crossing or walking in the street.

Cross reference to The Apartment Analogy

LESSON XIX — Why Not State ... Have This Plan ... For The Land

What are these Men? They wear Bands on their Hats.

Yes. I will tell you Why. Their work is to rake in the Fund which the State takes in the form of Tax.

Does the Plan of the State show the Good Sense of that of the Man who owns the big House?

No, the State does not just put a Tax on each Man's Land for what it may be Worth, as he does with each Man's space in the House. It does what that wise Man might try to do, as I have said, if he were not Wise. It lets slick Chaps own and run its Hoists (rail roads) for their own Gain; it tries to Tax the Trade each Man does in his own Store, or what he earns by Toil; it puts a Tax on what comes in at the Ports, and on some Things that go out. It is a Plan that Costs Much and is not Just or Fair.

Woodcut: In the left half of the panel, a uniformed man is looking through a bag carried by one of two well-dressed hatted women. On the right, two similarly uniformed men are chatting. On the wall is a sign saying "Customs."

canons of taxation

tariffs

LESSON XX — Milk Keeps Just ... Rent For State ... Same Calf Law

Oh, see the Cow, and the nice wee Calf.

Does the Calf call the Cow ma?

Yes, and the Cow loves the Calf. The Calf lives on Milk, which it draws from the Cow. In this we see the great Law of God once more. When a Calf is born it needs Milk for Food that it may Live and Thrive, and so in each case the Cow has Milk for it. If the Milk were kept from the Calf, and it were fed on Hay and Roots, it would be like to Starve, for Milk is its right Food. Now, just as the Cow brings forth Milk for the use of the Calf, so does the Land bring forth a Fund for the use of the State. The Milk for the State we call Ground Rent. It is a Fund from which the State could draw all it Needs to serve all its Just Ends, just as the Calf will thrive on the Milk of the Cow.

Woodcut: A bucolic scene, with three animals. The first and largest is a Cow, labeled "Land Value." The second is a calf, labeled "The State." In the background is a grazing figure, which might be another calf. There is also a post with a line attached to it.

rent as God's provisioning for all

intelligent design

rent

LESSON XXI — Goat Owns Cow ... Takes The Milk ... Like Land Lords

But see! What is this?

It is a Goat!

Is it a Calf?

No, it is a Goat.

But why is it Here, and what does it Mean to do?

Just what you See it do now. The Calf is Tied, you see, and the Goat sucks the Cow's Milk. Goats are fond of Milk, and this Goat has quite a Snap.

Is this Right?

Well -- yes, I Guess it is, for the Goat "Owns" the Cow, and it is a Queer Thing if it can not take the Milk.

But what of the Calf?

Oh, the Goat "Bought" the Cow, you know, by Leave of the Calf -- which is a Beast of Small Sense -- and now, while the Goat takes the Milk for its own Use, the Calf has to be Fed on Things that do not Suit it as well as the Milk would do. Just in this way the State (which is a Calf) lets Land Lords own the Land and Feed on the Rent, while it has to do the Best it can to keep Life in it by a Tax on Goods, and Toil, and so forth.

Woodcut: Same figures. But now the calf is tethered to the post, which is now labeled "Tax System." And the other figure, previously grazing in the background, is now in the foreground, nursing from the Cow. It is a goat, labeled "Landlordism."

LESSON XXII — Toil Digs Pick ... Must Have Land ... Thus Makes Wealth

What is this?

It is a Man at Work with a Pick.

Does he Dig?

Yes, he Digs in the Land.

What is his Name?

We call him Toil.

Will he Dig all Day?

No, he will Dig but part of the Day, and then he will Rest. He can make as Much in that time as he Needs for his Keep, and then he will Read so as to Feed his Mind, and Play that he may have Health.

You say he can "Make as Much as he Needs." What is it he Makes?

We call it Wealth. This Word just Means all that is got by Toil.

But could Toil get any Wealth if he were with his Pick out on the Sea or up in the Air?

No, he must be on the Land. Toil and Land are the two Things by which all Wealth is Got, and there is no other Way to get Wealth in all the World. There is not a Thing that Man has, or that he can have, but what comes from Land and Toil.

Woodcut: A workman with a pick, about to strike some rocks.

labor

land

wealth

LESSON XXIII — Man Brings Oxen ... Thus Helps Toil ... His Good Friend

But what do you Call this?

It is a Plow and Oxen.

Does the Man own the Plow and Oxen?

Yes.

What does he Mean to do with them?

He is on his Way to where Toil is at Work. He means to give Toil the Use of the Plow and Oxen in his work on the Land.

Is he not a good, kind Man?

He is, and he is a firm Friend of Toil.

What is the good Man's name?

You may read it on his Ox. By the use of the Plow in place of the Pick, you see, he will aid Toil to do much more, and so get much more of a Crop, and this he will, of course, Share with his good Friend, as is but Just, since by the Help he gave so much more Work was done in the same Time.

Is it Right that he should have this Share?

I think it is, my Child. I know some try to make Out that he is the Foe of Toil, but it is not like a Foe to Help one, is it? He and Toil are Friends.

Woodcut: The same man is leaning on his pick. Nearby is another man, with a whip and a team of two oxen pulling a plow. On the flank of the nearer ox is written the word "Capital."

labor

capital

technological progress

savings

interest

factors of production

LESSON XXIV — Toil And Friend ... Now Quite Mad ... Worm Eats Fruit

Who are these two Men, and why do they Dance and Tear as if they were Mad?

They are Toil and his Friend.

They have done the Work, and now they are mad at the Worm which eats the Fruit. You see the Fruit is Wealth -- that is, what was got by the Joint Work of the Two on the Land. The Fruit is to be cut in two Parts, one for Toil, which we call his Wage, and one for his Friend, which we call In-ter-est.

Is it Strange that they are Mad at the Worm, which means to Eat up most of the Fruit? Did the Worm help them to get this Fruit of Work?

No; but the Worm owns the Land out of which they have to get all the Wealth that can be got, and so it Claims its share in the form of Rent. But the Worm does no Work. It's Plan is to let them Work, and then take Toll.

Woodcut: The same two men. The first has put down his pick and appears to be stomping his feet. The second too might be stomping; he is also waving his whip. The oxen are in the background. Between the men is a large round fruit, labeled "Product" and on top of it is a large caterpillar or worm labeled "Landlordism."

fruits of one's labor

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... because democracy alone hasn't yet led to a society in which all can prosper