ditches, drains, and buildings. Everything done on the land to
increase its value would be counted as an improvement, and would thus
be exempt from taxation. This would leave only location value and
fertility to be taxed. By location value is meant that value which is
due to the situation of the land. For example, land in a wilderness
has little or no location value, but if, later, schools, stores,
railroads, and other elements of community life develop in that
region, the land may take on great value because of its location in
the community. The fertility value of land is that value which is due
to natural endowment in the way of moisture, climate, and soil
elements.

105. HENRY GEORGE AND HIS WORK.--The doctrine of single tax is closely
associated with the name of Henry George, an American reformer who
died in 1897. His theory was best developed in his book, _Progress and
Poverty_, published in 1879. In this book George points out that in
spite of the progress of the world, poverty persists. This is due
chiefly, he contends, to the fact that land-owners take advantage of
the scarcity of good land to exact unduly high prices for its use.
According to George, this monopoly of the gifts of Nature allows
landowners to profit from the increase in the community's
productiveness, but keeps down the wages of the landless laborers.
"Thus all the advantages gained by the march of progress", George
writes, "go to the land-owner, and wages do not increase."

George proposed to use the single tax as an engine of social reform,
that is to say, to apply it with the primary view of leveling the
inequalities of wealth. Value due to improvements was to be exempt
from taxation, so that land-owners might not be discouraged from
making improvements on their land. On the other hand, it was proposed