Page:The Wisconsin idea (IA cu31924032449252).pdf/318

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
294
THE WISCONSIN IDEA

government; is there any great reason why these principles may not be applied here? If lands cannot be developed because of lack of water and the government advances money to supply that deficiency, wherein lies the difference between that aid and the clearing of wild lands of stumps subsidized by the government? The only thing which lies in the way in either case is capital and long time credit. All history shows that land monopoly combined with a renter class, brings about the worst possible situation for a country. In order to prevent the gradual increase of the renter class, can we not introduce some long time credit arrangement similar to that recently introduced into Ireland, by which the government allows the purchaser to pay for land on a long time basis?

Is all of this socialism? Quite the opposite; it strives to give the individual a better opportunity to possess property—the very antithesis of socialism. Reduction of the cost of living and coöperative schemes of one sort or another are also to be investigated by this commission. With the splendid examples of the work of foreign countries along this line—the great Raffeisen system of coöperative credit in Germany, the Luzzatti banks in Italy, the effective coöperation in agriculture in Denmark—before this committee, are there not possibilities to be utilized, to be tested and tried? Is there not some hope that this committee may institute some plan