The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, October 25, 1917, Page 8

D Nonpartisan Teader Official Magazine of the National Nonpartisan League—Every Thursday. s e s Entered as second-class matter September 3, 1915, at the postoffice at Fargo. North Dakeota, under the Act of March 3, 1879. Pt it R ATl S0 ARl Sl iR st e OLIVER 8. MORRIS, EDITOR AN Advertising rates on application. Subscription, one year, in advance, $2.50; six months, sfi.so. Communications should be addressed to the Nonpartisan Leader, Box 941, Fargo, North Dakota. MEMBER OF AUDIT RUREAU OF CIRCULATIONS THE S. C. BECKWITH SPECIAL AGENCY, Advertising Representatives, New York, Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Kansas City. Quack, fradulent and irresponsible firms uare not knowingly advertised, and we will take it as a favor if any readers will advise us promptly ghould they have occasion to doubt or question the reliability of any firm which patronizes our advertising columns. 028 STATING IT FRANKLY SOUTI DAKOTA editor remarked the other day that if any- A one wanted to know the reason why he and his paper were sup- porting the Nonpartisan league, he felt no bashfulness about making a frank statement of the reason. ‘‘This paper is against the war profiteers,’” he said. ““‘Since it is against the war profiteers it can take no other position than one backing the Nonpartisan league. If we were for the.war profiteers we would be against the Nonpartisan league. We do not believe any on-the-fence attitude possible.”’ This editor is right. If you are against the Big Interests seeking to use this war as a means of making big, bloody profits, you are for the League. If you favor allowing the war to be used to make great excess profits that will pile up individual and corporate fortunes to oppress the people after the war is over, you are against the League. To be just as frank about it as the South Dakota editor is, the Leader will say that the Nonpartisan league does not want the support of anybody who is against taxing excess war profits to the limit. If you are with the war profiteers and food gamblers, the League welcomes your opposition and does not want your support. The policy of the Nonpartisan league in regard to the war is an open book. Tt is of record in the résolutions passed at St. Paul by the great Producers’ and Consumers’ conference, attended by 5000 dele- gates from 16 states. These resolutions pledge the League and its membership to unlimited and whole-hearted support of their govern- ment—the government of the United States—in this war. They acecept the statement of President Wilson in regard to the war aims of the United States as a true and righteous statement of this country’s posi- tion in the war. They pledge the people to support the government in all efforts to tax excess war profits to the limit and conseript great: fortunes to pay the cost of war, and to give the government the needed backing in going down the line in price-fixing without fear of Big Business and the unpatriotic interests working at cross. purposes with the government in this erisis. A LOST OPPORTUNITY ; BIG opportunity comes but once to each man, an ancient A philosopher said. If this be true, Governor.J. A. A. Burnquist of Minnesota may as well give up hope of any future great moments in his political life. During the last two weeks Governor Burnquist has had his op- portunity. At the head of the state government and. the controlling factor on the public safety commission, Governor Burnquist saw Minnesota torn with strife, Ie knew that farmers at Lake City were denied their constitutional rights of free assemblage and threatened with a fire hose; he knew that one of the men acting under his public safety commission in Otter Tail county had boasted that he had made arrangements with the mayor of Fergus Falls to let rioting go unre- bulked at a farmers’ meeting ; he knew that sheriffs and local politicians in all parts of the state were using their authority in an illegal and unconstitutional manner to prevent farmers’ meetings. If the public safety commission, appointed by Governor Burnquist, had taken instant steps to remove the secretary of the Otter Tail coun- ty public safety association it would have served effectually. to remove the feeling that prevails t1‘1roughout Minnesota that the state commis- sion is being used by Big Business to oppress working men and farmers. If Governor Burnquist, when the first threats of rioting and dis- order were made, had served public notice that any official interfering with a loyal farmers’ meeting would be instantly removed. from office, he would have become a public hero. 4 If Burnquist had done this he would have secured such a hold upon the people of Minnesota that his pelitical future would have been secure. The people—the farmers and workers of the state—would have looked after his campaign; no combination of scheming politicians could have been formed strong enough to: defeat him. It would not have been a difficult thing for Burnquist to do. It would be only the natural thing, the thing required by Burnquist’s oath to support the constitution and laws of the United States and of Minnesota. But Burnquist let the opportunity slip. While the controlled press of the Twin Cities was shrieking ‘‘treason’’ and ‘‘disloyalty,”’ Burn- quist paid too little attention to the transeripts of speeches at the farm. ers’ meetingd, taken hy his own stenographer; showing that the meet- ings were in the highest degree loyal and patriotie. Burnquist faltered. He: hesitated. He waited to see what would happen. Finally, after farmers’ meetings had been broken up, after the hostile press had been trying to keep farmers away from other meet- ings by saying that they would not be allowed, Burnquist received a delegation of farmers. He admitted to them, with apparent hesitancy, that there was no legal warrant for stopping farmers’ meetings. After two days’ more delay, during which local authorities prohibited another meeting, Burnquist finally caused a.letter to be sent out to local peace officers, telling them what they should have known all the time, that they had no warrant to interfere with loyal meetings. But Burnquist is not entitled to much eredit for this. By the time he acted, most of the harm had Been done. By the time he acted, it was apparent that public opinion was turning against the illegal efforts to break up the farmers’ meetings. Burnquist’s friends say that he means well. But hell is paved with _good intentions. : ' . HURTING THE LIBERTY LOAN \HE Leader took occasion some weeks ago: to show how enemies l of the farmers” cause in North Dakota have attempted to use the Red Cross campaign for funds as a means of circulating: lies and promoting prejudice against the North Dakota farmers’ adminis- tration. The Leader at that time stated: that the loyal support of League farmers for the Red Cross would not be withdrawn hecause of this attempted use of the Red Cross for political purposes. 'But the Leader also said that the prostitution of the Red Cross work by polit- ical self-seekers was resented by the farmers who placed Governor Frazier and his administration in office by such overwhelming major- ities, and who are loyally supporting the governor and his work for the people of the state. It is unfortunate that the Leader is compelled to report at this time another effort to use worthy and necessary patriotic work for the government as an excuse for-another attack on Governor Frazier. This time it is the Liberty Loan campaign which political self:seekers in North Dakota are trying to use to foment discord among the people. Tracy Bangs, Grand Forks lawyer and politician, an ardent enemy of the farmers’ cause and the Nonpartisan league in North Dakota, who has been engaged by the Liberty Loan campaign to-make speeches in the interests of the loan, is taking the opportunity in. his speeches to spread lies and misrepresentations about Governor Frazier, and to air his owny political prejudices. — This attempt by Mr. Bangs to prostitute the Liberty Loan camd paign by using it as a means for political attacks shows to what a low, moral plane the enemies of the farmers’ administration in North Da~ kota have sunk. The Liberty Loan merits and should have undivided support of every American citizen, regardless of factional, religious or political feeling. The Leader ventures to say that there are 50,000 farmers in North Dakota, members of the Nonpartisan league, who resent these insults on their governor made by Mr. Bangs while speak« ing officially for the Liberty Lioan campaign. The Leader took this matter up directly with those in charge of the Liberty Loan campaign in North Dakota, who professed to be in ignorance of the fact that Mr. Bangs was making these attacks on the governor, but who promised to investigate and see that they were: not repeated. : . The Leader desires to say that if, at another Liberty Loan meeting, Mr. Bangs or any other official speaker for the Liberty Loan, again ins PAGE EIGHT ; - ; Szl X R w i Do