Spencer Heath Archive

Item 2356

Letter sent to each of a list of 26 backers of the Freeman magazine, critiquing Glenn Hoover’s article of July 27, 1953, “What Is Left of the Single Tax?” (Heath’s comment: “Nothing is.”), an article supposedly rebutting a Single Tax article in the previous issue but accepting all of its five basic premises. Enclosed with each letter was Heath’s article entitled “How Come that We Finance World Communism?”, containing a critique of each of the premises. His article was not accepted for publication, the matter of the Single Tax supposedly having been covered on both sides and the issue closed. Following the letter reproduced here is the list of backers of the Freeman to whom it was sent on August 28 (list provided by Gertrude E. Vogt at the Freeman, August 24). Following the list are the relevant extracts from those who responded.

 

 

 

 

Dear Mr. ________ :                   August 28, 1953        

 

Perhaps it will interest you to see the enclosed Definitive Exposé, in the form of an unanswered letter to the editor, of each one of the five basic premises of the Land Communist argument as they were set out approvingly and unqualifiedly endorsed in the Freeman for July 27, 1953.

     Whether or not these basic premises represent the view of the Freeman, they were printed in the Freeman’s columns and have not been specifically answered.

     Communism is a real and present menace in our midst. It rests on the false that we allow to masquerade as true. It is not necessary, not even intelligent, to accept its basic premises.  To do so is tantamount to swallowing the whole “line.” To be indifferent is to play into their hands.

     Do you not think the error of these premises should be publicized?

Sincerely,

/s/ Spencer Heath

SH:sm

ENC.

 

 

_____________________________________________

 

 

Directors:

 

Mr. John W. Hill

Hill & Knowlton

Empire State Building

New York, N. Y.

Alex L. Hillman
Hillman Periodicals
535 Fifth Avenue

New York, N. Y.

Mr. W. F. Peter

Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific RR

Chicago, Illinois

 

Mr. Henning W. Prentis, Jr.

Armstrong Cork Co.

Lancaster, Penna.

 

      -0O0-

 

Mr. James Bruce

National Dairy Products Co.

260 Madison Avenue

New York, N. Y.

Mr. Victor Emanuel

Avco Manufacturing Corp.

420 Lexington Avenue New York, NY

Mr. B. E. Hutchinson

Chrysler Corporation

Detroit, Michigan

 

Mr. Edward P. Hutton

61 Broadway

New York 6, NY

Mr. Sterling Morton

120 So. La Salle Street

Chicago, Illinois

 

Mr. Edgar H. Queeny

Monsanto Chemical Co.

1700 S. 2nd Street

St. Louis, Missouri

Mr. Benjamin E. Tate

Carew Tower

Cincinnati 2, Ohio

Mr. Pierre F. Goodrich

Electric Building

Indianapolis 4, Indiana

 

Mr. Eliot Janeway

270 Park Avenue

New York, NY

 

Mr. William Loeb

Union Leader Corp.

Manchester, New Hampshire

 

General Henry J. Reilly

Hotel Fourteen

14 East 60^th Street

New York, NY

 

Col. Truman Smith

Greenfield Hill

Fairfield, Connecticut

 

Mr. Herschel Williams

River House

435 East 52^nd Street

New York, NY

 

 

Contributors:

Mr. Louis Bromfield

Malabar Farm

Lucas, Ohio

Mr. Lawrence R. Brown

Publicker Industries

1429 Walnut Street

Philadelphia 2, Pa.

 

Mr. George Creel

Bohemian Club

San Francisco, Calif

 

Mr. Garet Garrett

Tuckahoe, New Jersey

Mr. Harold Loeb

424 East 57th Street

 

Mr. Towner Phelan

St. Louis Union Trust Co,

St. Louis, Missouri

New York 22, NY

Mr. Donald R. Richberg

1000 Vermont Avenue

Washington 5, DC

 

 

 

Copies sent August 22, 1953 to the following

persons, backers of freeman magazine:

 

 

John Chamberlain

c/o Barron’s Weekly

40 New Street

New York City 4

 

Wm. Henry Chamberlin

40 New Street

New York 4, NY

Jasper Crane

c/o E. I. Dupont Co.

Wilmington, Del.

 

John Davenport, Ed.

Barron’s Financial Weekly

40 New Street

New York City 4

Max Eastman

Nantucket, Mass.

 

Lawrence Fertig

149 Madison Ave.

New York, NY

 

John T. Flynn

3511 222^nd Street

Bayside, Long Island, N.Y.

Mr. Frank C. Hanighen

1855 K Street NW

Washington 6, DC

Dr. Ludwig von Mises

777 West End Ave.

New York, NY

Howard Pew

c/o Sun Oil Co.

Philadelphia, Penna.

Leonard Read

Foundation for Economic Education

Irvington-on-Hudson, New York

Rev. Stewart Robinson

Elizabeth, NJ

 

Claude Robinson

Public Opinion Institute

Princeton, NJ

Rev. Stewart Robinson

Elizabeth, NJ

Edward A. Rumley

205 E. 42d Street

New York, NY

(Committee for Constitutional Government)

Professor Leo Wolman

Columbia University

995 Park Avenue

Morningside Heights

New York, NY

 

 

 

 ___________________________________________

 

 

Responses:

 

Lawrence Fertig         August 24, 1953

 

My understanding is the The Freeman editors and directors are definitely against the Single Tax. They published this article and .. an answer to the article by Dr. Frank Knight of the University of Chicago. Thus, they presented both sides of the case.

     I, myself, am not happy that the original article in favor of the Land Tax was published since I think it is a bad tax, and anyway, the issue is a dead one.

 

 

Jasper E. Crane         August 25, 1953

 

It is curious how many people who are ardently opposed to socialism and in favor of freedom still manage to believe in the single tax.

 

 

J. Howard Pew      August 25, 1953

 

I must confess that the whole principle of the Single Tax seemed to me to be so absurd that I never gave it the study that I probably should. What you say rings true, and I was a sympathetic reader.

 

 

Leo Wolman              August 25, 1953

 

I think you are right.

 

 

John Davenport           August 26, 1953

 

.. I certainly find your arguments both succinct and persuasive.

 

 

Garet Garrett           September 2, 1953

 

It is a rule of my life not to get myself involved in a single tax argument. It is like a religion and whether you win or not you are bound to lose.

 

 

Towner Phelan           September 2, 1953

 

..I am in agreement with you that the single tax involves the socialization of land and should be opposed by all those who believe in freedom.

 

 

Claude Robinson         September 2, 1953

 

I do not feel sufficiently posted on the subject of the single tax to have any worthwhile views.

 

 

Sterling Morton         September 3, 1953

 

I believe this matter of a single tax has been argued by wiser men than myself for a great many years — and there is still great divergence of opinion. Under the circumstances, I would be loath indeed to enter into the controversy.

 

 

Donald R. Richberg      September 7, 1953

 

I read your letter of August 28, with enclosures, with much interest and considerable sympathy. This I have indicated in a letter I am writing today to Mr. Hazlitt.

 

 

William Loeb            September 10, 1953

 

Frankly, I have never considered myself enough of an economist to pass judgment on Henry George’s ideas. …

     Suffice to say that I just don’t feel that I have any basis for judging George’s remarks and, therefore, your rebuttal.

I can only say that I am glad to see anyone who is willing to strike at any form of Communism, wherever it raises its head.

 

 

H. W. Prentis, Jr.       September 11, 1953

 

You point out clearly the fallacies in that tax theory.

 

 

Max Eastman             October 19, 1953

 

This is just a line to thank you for your letter and tell you I read the enclosures with a lot of interest and learned something from them.

 

 

_____________________________