Spencer Heath Archive

Item 2821

Carbon of letter from C. R. Walker to J. Rupert Mason, 1920 Lake Street, San Francisco, California. Slight pencilings by Heath

January 12, 1942

 

 

Dear Mr. Mason:

I have your cards of the 2nd and 3^rd insts. A rash of other matters has prevented an earlier reply, for which I hope you will pardon me.

 To begin with, let me say there are no hard feelings here. Our group is big enough and broad minded enough to give you credit for sincerity and honesty of purpose; and I assure you they hold you in high regard personally. They respect your opinions and I am sure you feel the same way towards opinions they may hold. Our cause will never advance if we permit hard feelings to develop because of differences of opinion.

 You are still thinking and talking in terms of land and taxes, subjects in which the group here are in nowise interested, other than that we would deny government the power to levy taxes of any description, even a tax on so-called land values. As long as government is vested with one iota of power to tax, you can bet your sweet life it is going to be used by scheming politicians to advance selfish interests. It is my opinion, as well as of the group here, that the sooner we forget land and taxes, the sooner the goal of the rentists will be reached. As soon as the people understand just what rent is, they’ll make short work of taxes. Why not concentrate our efforts on rent and revenue and forget land and taxes?

 On your card of the 3rd inst. you request me to “please explain, step by step, how your suggestions may be brought into effect.” This is a matter we here are not interested in at the present time. There is no reason why we should be concerned with something the future must decide. The main thing, and the only thing in which we are interested is to educate the public to understand that rent is a product of gov­ernment, should be collected in full by government and its appropria­tion by title holders cease. Whenever the people decide that this is the thing they wish to do, a way will be found to accomplish this end. Why fritter away precious time arguing about methods of accomplishing the thing, and at the same time neglect the thing itself?

 Did the Anti Saloon League spend time talking about how they proposed to do away with the legalized liquor traffic? It did not. All this organization did was to campaign for the adoption of the 13th amendment. All the adoption of this amendment did was to outlaw the li­quor traffic. How the act was to be put into effect nobody knew, talked about nor cared. Following the adoption of the amendment by the required number of states, congress put the amendment into effect by enacting the Tolstead act, a thing that was never mentioned prior to its passage.

 So it will be with the collection of rent in full by government — when the people determine this is the thing they want to do, they can be depended on to find a way to do it. I do not know how it will be done, you do not know how it will be done, nor does anyone else. The point is that this is the thing that must be done, regardless of method employed.

 We care nothing about present laws nor court decisions; they have nothing to do with the case. If laws and court decisions as they are today prevent government from collecting what it has justly earned, such laws and court decisions will be properly set aside. When the time comes, no laws nor court decisions are going to prevent the people from coming into their own. This much is certain.

 Another thing that is as certain as anything can be is that there is not the slightest chance of government collecting its rent in full, or anything like it, until there is understanding of what rent consists. I shall devote my entire time and efforts to disseminating knowledge as to the true meaning of rent, for which reason I positively refuse to be drawn into any side issues.

 With no attempt at flattery, I must say I consider you a man far above the average in intelligence, you are energetic and you have the will to better the state of society. I will be frank and also say that you are not doing your attributes justice in that you have gotten into a mental rut and are thinking in circles. Why not forget the outmoded land value tax idea, laws and court decisions and link up with the new and modern ideas for the attainment of freedom, peace and prosperity? There is a great work to be done if we are to retain even a semblance of freedom. Why try to attain this end by methods that fifty years of experience have proved to be a failure? Why not go along with us on the two simple proposals of (l) the abolition of all taxes and (2) the collection of rent in full for all gov­ernment revenue? Why waste valuable time in discussing how this is to be done, rather than pointing out that this is the thing that must be done if free enterprise is to endure? You can do much to advance this great cause of humanity, but you can do nothing in this regard until you get out of the rutted byway and onto the broad highway of modern thought.

 We want you to work with us; we want to work with you, and we sincerely hope, since we have a simple program, you can see your way clear to go along with us.

 Now, my dear Mr. Mason, on the evening of the day you receive this letter, why not go to bed early, relax and see if your mind cannot hurdle the barriers that have kept it confined in a narrow circle for so many years. It will, I am sure, prove a wonderful stimulant to your splen­did mind to turn it into channels it has not heretofore attempted to navigate.

 I can say, as you did on your card of the 2nd inst., “No hard feelings, I assure you, and I hope none exist there.”

 With kindest regards, believe me to be,

Sincerely yours,

 

C.R. Walker