Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 2.djvu/766

 75 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

of mitigating the present evil of class interpretation of social prob- lems. While the Nation and the Outlook might agree as to the desirability of such a process, yet their interpretations would never be harmonious.

Mr. Spahr's general conclusions may be summarized as follows. As to the distribution of property : Less than half of the families in America are propertyless ; yet seven-eighths of the families hold but one-eighth of the national wealth, while i per cent, of the families hold more than the remaining 99 per cent. As to the distribution of incomes : One-eighth of the families in America receive more than half of the aggregate income, and the richest i per cent, receives a larger income than the poorest 50 per cent., this latter class receiving from property alone as large an income as half of the people receive from property and labor. As to national taxation : The wealthy class pay less than one-tenth of the indirect taxes, the well-to-do class less than one- quarter, and the relatively poorer classes more than two-thirds. As to local taxation : Our system is the most just in the world to the poorer classes; for from incomes less than $1200 less than 3 per cent, is taken, and from incomes above $5000 7 per cent, is taken. Yet these relatively humane burdens rest twice as heavily upon the property of the poorer classes as upon the property of the rich. When these local taxes are joined with the national the aggregate tax is one-twelfth of the income of every class. There is no exception of wages. The wealthiest class is taxed less than i per cent, on its property, while the mass of the people are taxed more than 4 per cent, on theirs. In this way the separation of classes is accelerated by the hand of the state.

It is neither to the motives nor the general conclusions of the work that objections are taken, but to the method. The end does not jus- tify the means, for the means but become obstacles to the realization of the end, the removal of the alleged conditions. It is a favorite amusement with a certain class of individuals to construct straw men only to be destroyed by their own brave selves. Such a practice has no serious consequences and misleads few. But it is quite a different thing when sincere friends of the common man erect dummies of this kind to be destroyed by the other fellow. The fallacies in Mr. Spahr's method will but render more complacent the self-satisfied adherent of laissez faire and the existing status.

PAUL MONROE.