The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, October 4, 1917, Page 7

N AN AN ) , for suspicion if papers like the Pioneer Press, Dispatch and Journal approved a conference like that held at St. Paul. The approval of these papers would be proof that the conference was not annoying to Big Business, Special Privilege and the Politicians, and if it did not make these interests uncomfortable, it would not be in the interests of the people. In doing their duty to their masters, these papers have proved that the St. Paul conference was a huge success, so far as the people are concerned. ' . = ; A loyal labor organization held a fine, patriotic meeting at the Twin Cities recently. This meeting was given the praise it deserved by the Twin City papers. It did not take up any economic questions, however, and the Big Business press was free to say nice things about it. Loyal farmers and consumers a little later also held a fine, patriotic meeting at the Twin Cities. But this meeting DID TAKE UP ECONOMIC QUES- TIONS and formulated a program of fair play to consumers and pro- ducers, to help the government. The Big Business press denounced and slandered it—not a single word of encouragement or commendation ap- peared in the controlled press. See the point? * ® * FARMERS WIN A POINT : D UE to the protests of the farmer government of North Dakota, ) the iniquitous federal grain grades, adopted by the govern- ment recently and in effect for the first time on the present crop, have been partially repealed during the war. Grain below No. 3 will be sold solely on sample. This is not a complete vietory but it will help. The first step toward sthis to'a representative of the federal AL SECT N AN O RN To prove the dishonesty of the Big Business press that has been de- nouncing the great Producers’ and Consumers’ conference at St. Paul as . “disloyal”, it is only necessary to state that these papers refused to pub- lish the text of the resolutions, backing the president and the govern- ment in the conduct of the war, passed by the 5000 earnest and patriotic’ delegates present. . o @ THE RED CROSS HE work of the American Red Cross deserves the support of I every American citizen able to contribute in money or service. This merciful organization is doing a splendid work efficiently and unselfishly. The American people can afford to make sacrifices in money and time for the Red Cross, and they are doing it, especially in North Dakota. The character of this work for humanity lifts it above all con- troversy, all sects and all parties. In it the American people and the people of the world can unite without consideration of nationality, religion or politics. Any person seeking personal gain through the Red Cross work, or seeking political advantage thereby is a person without character or principle and makes himself a stench in the nos- trils of every decent man or woman. But it is a fact that the Red Cross work in North Dakota is being prostituted by just this sort of thing by a few self seekers. Oceasion is being taken by the political encmies of Governor Frazier and of the farmers who placed him in office, to use Red Cross mectings for the purpose of making unmanly, dis- the men it has clected. The Leader move was taken when the North - honest and false "attacks on the Dakota farmer officials protested SOME BALANCING STUNT farmers’ political movement and government, sent to the state to clear up some matters connected with food administration. Suck a thorough impression of the in- justice of the federal grades was made on this government repre- sentative that he took the matter up with Mr. Hoover, as he promis- ed North Dakota officials he would do. Hoover then wired the North Dakota farmer railroad board if it thought the rigid and unfair federal grades ought to be suspended during the war. The response of the railroad commis- sion was an emphatic ‘‘yes’’. Hoover later wired the governor of Minnesota and the Minnesota railroad commission, asking the same question and getting the same response. ' The Leader observes with considerable satisfaction the al- teration made in the grades and the universal desire to do away with them entirely. The coming around of the Minnesota officials to this view is also pleasing. The Leader, alone among farm papers and among the press generally, and with the support only of Dr. Ladd of North Dakota and of the men the farmers had elected to office ' in North Dakota, last winter waged a hard fight to prevent the adoption of these federal grades. The Leader was the only publication that had a representative at the federal grade hearings and the only paper that reported the danger and injustice of adopting the grades proposed, which penalized farmers to a degree that only blind or grossly prejudiced men at Washington could think of insisting upon. The Leader devoted most of two issues to the fight on these grades and its pleas were en- forced by the protests of the North Dakota farmer officials and Dr. Ladd. The governor of Minnesota was silent then, and the Minnesota railroad commission and representatives of-the grain combine and flour mills approved the grades. : Nevertheless, the department of agriculture adopted them. They have been working for several months—working exactly as the Leader said they would work. They are penalizing farmers, on the average, probably about 10 cents a bushel, without a corresponding reduction in the price of flour to consumers. They are grain-combine and mill- trust grades, formed without any reference to justice for the producer, and in fact without taking the farmer into consultation about it at all. The Leader congratulates Mr. Hoover for suspending the grades, even partially, and the Leader hopes that new and fair grades will be formulated at once, not only for the war, but for all time. fish purposes. has the facts in this matter. Be- cause of the character of the work of the American Red Cross it is loath to give names, dates and places. And the Leader wants it understood that regardless of these facts it stands back of the Red Cross and urges every reader of the.Leader to support it. Even if a few political seekers out of thousands of loyal and patriotie citizens who are handling Red Cross work, have stooped so low as this, it.is no reason for friends of the farmers’ movement to with- draw support from the Red Cross. It is rather their part to give it added support, to prove their con- fidence in the great majority of those conducting the work and in the worthiness of the work itself. The Leader would not men- tion this if it had not become an open scandal in North Dakota and if it were not hurting the work of the Red Cross in the rural dis- tricts, where practically every farmer is a member of the Non- partisan league. These farmers, who have paid their money and given their whole-hearted support to a movement for making the state a better place in which to live, naturally resent the activities of a few persons enlisted in the Red Cross work who have forgotten honor and decency to use the Red Cross for political purposes. But, regardless of that, they are supporting the Red Cross and the Leader “hopes they will continue to support it even more with money and service. This is written simply in the hope that the very few political enemies of the farmers who have resorted to this vile method of attack- ing the Nonpartisan league will see the error of their acts. There are many in the Red Cross work opposed to the farmers’ program on prin- ciple who have not tried to use the Red Cross to forward their political views and air their political prejudices. These may be enemies of the ,farmers’ political program, but they at least have the decency to re- spect the character of the Red Cross and refrain from using it for sel- %5 % & The charges of “disloyalty” made against the Nonpartisan league on account of the St. Paul National Producers’ and Consumers’ conference show how desperate the Big Business press has become because of the growing importance of the farmers’ movement. Charges so easily dis- proved would not be made if the kept press had any real arguments. Simply reading the resolutions passed—the passage of which was the only action of the delegates—is sufficient to prove the loyalty and patriotism of the 5000 farmers and workers who participated in the conference. PAGE SEVEN