To the Editor of Liberty:

Assuming the law of equal liberty—

It follows that no one has a right to the exclusive control of land. Land, however, being of such a nature that it is impossible for two persons to use the same portion at the same time, there is a necessary infringement of the law, and the best we can do is to approximate to it as far as possible. Communism being out of the question and force undesirable, the occupancy and use theory seems to apply better than anything else. If each could use the same land at the same time, the first to use would have no right to exclude.

Assuming the law of equal liberty—

It follows that no one has a right to the exclusive control of ideas. Ideas are of such a nature that it is possible for any number of persons to use the same ideas at the same time without preventing other persons from doing likewise. If it were impossible for two to use the same idea at the same time, the first to discover and use would have the better right to it.

When land is held in common and the products divided, the same land is not worked at the same time by the same parties, it being, of course, impossible for more than one to work a particular portion of land at the one time. But any number of persons may hold the same ideas at the same time. If using different portions of land and dividing the products is communism, then using the same ideas is not communism.

George Forrest.