# III: As to Certainty explained — Progress and Poverty

> Chapter companion for Progress and Poverty by Henry George.

## What happens

This chapter discusses the importance of certainty in taxation, criticizing current tax methods for fostering corruption, fraud, and evasion. It highlights the material and moral costs of uncertain taxes, such as those on whisky, tobacco, customs, and income, and argues that a tax on land values possesses the highest degree of certainty due to the immovable and unconcealable nature of land.

## Themes in this chapter

### The Single Tax on Land Values

The chapter advocates for a tax on land values as the most certain and least arbitrary form of taxation.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown

The narrator presents the argument for certainty in taxation and critiques existing tax systems.

### David A. Wells

Mentioned as part of the New York Commission that investigated taxation and proposed an alternative tax based on rental value.

## Key lines

> Taxes which lack the element of certainty tell most fearfully upon morals.

Uncertain taxes have a severely damaging effect on public morality.

_Highlights the moral corruption caused by uncertain tax systems._

> The tax on land values, which is the least arbitrary of taxes, possesses in the highest degree the element of certainty.

A tax on land values is the most certain and least arbitrary form of taxation.

_Emphasizes the certainty of land value taxation._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/progress_and_poverty_se/chapters/iii-as-to-certainty
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/progress_and_poverty_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/progress_and_poverty_se/chapters