Advocates Single Tax Party

Oliver McKnight

Reprinted from The Bulletin of the National Single Tax League, Vol.3, No.1, January 1919

Amid the shouts of the victorious and the pleadings of the defeated, in this hour between the night of war and the dawn of peace, all lovers of humanity should resolve to use every means possible to enlighten the masses of men in the things that make for Plenty, Peace and Progress.

Our hearts should go out in an earnest appeal to all men to consider the efficacy of the single tax, and to do this more boldly and convincingly than ever before. We should "tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth" about the single tax.
Bearing this in mind, we will stop claiming that the single tax is accomplished in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, South America, Arden and Fairhope. The best that can be said about these places is that the single tax is at work there with a dark lantern and skeleton keys. We will also refrain from boasting of the innumerable single-taxers that infest the world, because real single-taxers are so few that they inspire neither respect nor fear on the part of our enemies.

To tell the whole truth about single tax briefly and to the point, is to say it is a plan designed to take the rent of land for the benefit of those who have produced it—all the people.

To tell nothing but the truth about single tax is to refrain from classing it as a "good business proposition" to men whose landed interests equal or exceed their business interests.

We must make men to want the single tax, not because it will "put money in their clothes," but because it is fair, it is moral, it is just, and, because it is all of this, it is the only force able to fight the hosts of anarchy or the entrenched army of restricted opportunity—some one of which is bound to rule in human affairs if single-taxers continue to bury the one talent of efficient organization in the napkin of conservative action.

Too long have we remained in the trenches and dug-outs of the old parties. Too long have we wasted ammunition in misdirected fire. Too long have we refrained from going "over the top" behind our old banners of the "Land for the People," "Equal Opportunity," "Common Ownership of Land" and "Justice for All," and driving our enemies, if not to destruction, at least out into the open—where they will have no unfair advantage.

In the language of He of old— "Why stand ye here idle?" in these days, when a wounded, suffering, debt-burdened world cries piteously for succor. We have, and we know we have, the remedy that will clean up the poverty plague spots of earth, and cure the cancerous growths of privilege—which our former idleness and cowardly politics have helped to develop. We have, and we know we have, a cause that is worthy of our best efforts, and we know of a method—separate political action— which will impress our ideas on our heretofore unthinking, careless or ignorant brothers. We must hold the beauty, righteousness and sufficiency of the single tax up to the yaze of men, so that all may seesomething that seems far away from the thought of most single-taxers.

Let our watchword be Political

Organization. Is it not a pitiful, if not disgraceful state of affairs that, after forty years of so-called propaganda of a most worthy cause, that only in three or four states can voters express their desire for straightout-middle-of-the-road single tax? It may be said that single tax will never receive a majority vote in any large community — no matter how strong we make our organization. What matters it? Long before such a result is achieved (if ever achieved) the morale of the enemy troops will be so badly shattered and their sources of supply so rendered useless by the bombs of righteous legislation which our growing organization will compel old party leaders to drop upon them, that we can have a moral peace without a physical victory. Let us, then, be up and doing,

From out our eyes remove the mote, Then, still achieving, still pursuing.

We'll learn to labor and to vote.