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Wealth and Want
... because democracy alone is not enough to produce widely shared prosperity.
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Mary's Little Land

Mary had a little lot --
Its soil was very poor;
But still she paid the taxes and
She struggled to get more.

She kept the lot until one day
The people settled down --
And where a wilderness had been
Grew up a thriving town.

Then Mary rented out her land
(She chose it well, you know) --
And waited patiently about
For prices still to grow.

They grew, as population came,
And Mary raised the rent,
With common food and raiment now,
She could not be content;

Her agent wanted her to sell
While was against her rule --
Which made the agent laugh and shout
Because he was a fool.

Her tenants built her mansions fine --
And made a splendid store,
And every time improvements rose
She raised the rent some more.

"What makes the lots keep Mary so?"
The lower classes cry --
"Why Mary keeps the lots, you know,"
The wealthy would reply.

For, so each one of you might be --
" Wealthy, refined and wise" --
If you had wisely grabbed some land
And held it for the rise.

-- Bolton Hall, in The Freeman, July, 1939

Little Jack Horner

Little Jack Horner sat in a corner
Counting his wages-pie.
The landlord put in his thumb
And pulled out a plum,
And said "What a wise guy am I."

--Dorothy Sara, in The Freeman

 

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Wealth and Want
www.wealthandwant.com
   
... because democracy alone hasn't yet led to a society in which all can prosper