THE  SINGLE  TAX  AND  THE  FARMER  125

inequalities  of  assessment  deserve  separate  and
particular  treatment.
1  The  Overvaluation  of  Agricultural  Land
Mr.  Thomas  G.  Shearman  in  his  “  Natural
Taxation”*  has  made  a  careful  estimate,  with  which
the  farmers  themselves  would  no  doubt  agree,  that
improvements  in  the  land  itself  constitute  60  per  cent
of  the  assessed  valuatiofi  of  farm  land.  His  language  is:
Upon  the  whole,  it  is  safe  to  say  that,  under  a  system  of
valuation  excluding  all  improvements,  cultivated  farms  would
be  assessed  at  less  than  40  per  cent  of  their  whole  value,
improvements  included.
2.  The  Undervaluation  of  Urban  or  Village  Land
As  already  stated  the  dimensions,  as  well  as  the
continuous  character,  of  the  contribution  made  by  the
people  to  the  growth  and  volume  of  ground  rent,  are
seldom  realised  —  by  many  persons  hardly  suspected,
even  in  cities,  where  they  are  more  acutely  discernible.
But  especially  is  this  the  case  in  village  communities
and  factory  towns,  where  it  has  not  been  the  habit  to
note  closely  the  value  of  land  apart  from  buildings,
and  the  rise  and  operation  of  ground  rent.
A  few  illustrations  will  show  how  this  potential
agency,  ground  rent,  escapes  observation  both  in  small
and  large  towns,  and  in  small  cities  as  well.
In  the  following  illustrative  examples,  the  ratio
between  assessed  valuation  and  actual  net  value  of
land,  as  indicated  by  actual  rentals,  is  calculated  by
deducting  from  the  net  income  of  the  entire  estate
(i.  e.,  total  income  less  taxes)  an  amount  equal  to  10

*  Chapter  XII.,  Section  u,  p.  188.