The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, June 14, 1917, Page 4

. ne e R RR——————————"TT oo S for the United States to become involved in if the people of those countries had had their say. And yet, in the sacred name of patriot- ism, the anti-farmer press of North Dakota would crush the Ameri- can people into blind submission to war policies framed for them, hanging or shooting any person daring to make suggestions contrary to the policy adopted by the government. ; The Leader does not believe that the people of the United States want to be shut out of having their say in the conduct of a war for which they are sacrificing their flesh and blood. They do not want to be crushed into miserable, undemocratic submission as the people of Europe have been. But why argue this question as to the right of the members of Another Cartoonist Cartoons Baer BT _ FOOD GAMBLER (cornered by farmers’ candidate for congress)—‘Well, what you stopping up the hole for?” GANG POLITICIAN (attempting to save life of food gambler)—*“You will find out if this tail breaks!” This cartoon is by P. A. Bendler of the Dakota Photo Engraving company of Fargo. Other cartoonist® have jumped into the game to help elect J. M. Baer, Leader cartoonist, to congress as the farmers’ man in the First district of North Dakota. This is one of their clever ideas. A New Enemy HE Fargo Forum last week used its front pags news columns I for long attacks on the farmers’ political movement in North Dakota. The first attack was on the Nonpartisan league con- vention that nominated John M. Baer for congress. It was intended to be sarcastic. It succeded in being silly. It revealed the hand of a writer whose warped imagination has played him many tricks before this. Following this the Forum seized upon the League’s war resolu- tions and President Townley’s speeches in regard thereto as the basis of another dirty attack, one phase of which is discussed on the front page of this issue of the Leader. < Leader readers were informed some time ago that the Fargo Forum had been purchased from J. P. Dotson, the former owner, who had attempted to keep it, with more or less success, neutral on the question of the farmers’ organization. The suspicions at the time of the sale that the paper had been acquired by interests that have a big fund of money to fight the farmers’ political and economic program in North Dakota, were amply confirmed by the Forum’s plunge into the political arena last week against the farmers’ movement, its candi- date for congress, its delegates and President Townley. LITTLE FINESSE SHOWN IN THE FIRST OPEN ATTACK The surprising thing about the attacks, however, was that the Forum jumped into the fight up to its neck the first thing, leaving no doubt as to its position.in regard to the farmers’ movement. It has flat-footedly aligned itself with the two other old gang daily news- papers of North Dakota that have been the farmers’ enemies from. the start—the Grand Forks Herald and the Bismarck Tribune. It was exgec_ted that the Forum - would be used against the Nonpartisan _~-Yeague in a more insinuating manner, doing the dirty work it has been hired to do more covertly and with finesse. But somebody messed things up. Discretion was thrown to the four winds and the Forum flared brazenly forth in silly and prejudiced attacks on the farmers that have spoiled its own game. the Nonpartisan League to express their opinions and the right of President Townley to advocate those principles? The attack on the League is not based on a desire for honest criticism. The attack is made ruthlessly and without reason, because the anti-farmer press thinks it can use the League’s war resolutions against the League, without regard to whether the resolutions are right or wrong in principle. * E3 * _ DEMAGOGY OF FARMERS’ ENEMIES O meaner or more contemptible attack could have been made N than that on President Townley and the League on account of the League’s war resolutions. The old enemies of the farmers and their cause are seeking by the lowest tricks of dema- gogy to stir up prejudice and passion, even to the extent of advocat- ing rioting at the meeting next Saturday at Fargo. The country is at war. It needs a united people back of it—a thinking people, ready to criticize government policies and offer suggestions for betterment. Yet the anti-farmer press seizes the occasion of the expression of war policies by the League to aid it in its fight against the farmers’ cause. “Here’s a chance to make the farmers’ cause appear unpatriotic —to brand its leaders as traitors,” they say. When such newspa- pers can exist, and get the ears of even as few people as they do, it is evidence to prove the need of more active participation in war by the people, in the way of thinking, discussion and offering sugges- tions. The very fact that papers exist that advocate gég rule during the war, that are ready to divert the American people’s spirit of patriotism into channels that will serve the corrupt and unprincipled aims of these papers, is enough to warrant the people asserting more freely their right of free speech and criticism of the government. In the face of a public press that would trample free speech and democracy in the dirt while shouting from the housetops that this is a war for democracy, the people ought to exercise more exten- sively their right of discussion, that gag rule during the war may not be forced upon them. for the Farmers There is already evidence that this reckless plunge into the fight on the farmers is considered a misstep by those interests that have paid their good money and loaned their good eredit (anonymously, of course) to put this new enemy in the field against the League. The Forum may be more discreet from now on. Those who put up their money and eredit to acquire the Forum, it is said, did not put it up to buy such ‘‘rough stuff’’ as was served the public last week. But it is not likely that the Forum from now on can conceal its real pur- pose and real backers, which might have been its original program. ‘“ASSOCIATES’’ KEPT DARK; THEIR PURPOSE IS KNOWN The formal announcement of the sale of the Forum to its present owners stated that it had been purchased by Norman Black ‘‘and associateg.”” The ‘‘associates’’ were not named. They did not need to be. The connection of Norman Black with the paper was enough. Norman Black has served the old gang well in the past, for some years as editor of the Grand Forks Herald. He is better known, perhaps, as the secretary and manager of the ‘‘Good Government’’ league, the organization formed last year to fight the Nonpartisan league, but which blew up last winter. The fact that Norman Black’s ‘‘associates,’’ who really put up the money, are not named, is also enough to utterly discredit anything this new enemy of North Dakota’s and of the far- mers’ cause—which are one and the same thing—ecan say or do. There is something humorous in the spectacle of a person hired to do a dirty thing, hesitating on the brink for several weeks and then hastily setting about the work with feverish haste, to have it over with. The Forum, as all the evidence shows, has been purchased and its editor hired to assassinate the Nonpartisan league in North Dakota. It has rather a ‘‘tall’”’ job on its hands. We can smile at its first attempt—the front page attacks last week—to deliver the éoods to those who have paid good money for it. We hope the ‘‘associates’’ are pleased with the first installment delivered by Norman Black. The Leader is. Townley’s Definition of Patriotism ing the elimination of food speculators and gamblers, who refuse to let this food reach the mouths of the hungry, not only is not a patriot, but is an ally ‘of the Kaiser and one of the worst enemies this country has.”’ : -This statement was made by President Townley at the great meeting of the Nonpartisan league at Minot, N. D., June 7, which brought 8,000 farmers to town in one of the biggest demonstrations ever seen in the state. These words may set a new standard for patriotism. They may be jarring to sleek gentlemen whose patriotism so far has consisted 3 NY man who urges a larger food production without also urg- - . in lending money at good interest to the government for war purposes and urging other people’s sons to enlist. It may not satisfy others who claim to believe in universal service in war time, but who really oppose universal service, because they believe in everybody giving his life to his country but nobody giving his property. But the Leader believes that Mr. Townley’s definition of patrio- tism is not far from that of the rank and file of the’ people of the country. If the greater production that the patriotism of the farmers is bringing forth this year is merely to fatten useless middlemen and - speculators what good is it going to do? FOUR = SsSass SESS =S S e gy S S i —— e e