The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, January 21, 1918, Page 6

“cording to the detailed statement he League Exposes A Sensational New Plot Representatives of Big Industnes, Politicians and Editors Attempt to Hire League Organizer to Betray Farmers’ Orgamzatlon Prominent Characters Named at Saint Paul last week exposed what seems to have been a. gigantic and far-reaching attempt to wreck the Nonpartisan league. Details of the plot, as shown by voluminous affida- vits and other evidence in the League’s possession are astonishing and sensational. Some of the most prominent - politicians and newspaper editors of North Dakota and Minnesota are involved, according to the details made public by the League. Repre- sentatives of some of Minnesota's biggest indus- tries are named. The League has made public a statement by W. E. Quigley, an organizer and speaker employed by the Nonpartisan league. The opposition attempt- ed to hire Quigley to tell alleged ‘‘inside’” facts about the farmers’ organization. Quigley informed the League of the fact that an attempt was being made to use him, and, with- the consent of the League, he entered into negotiations with a group of politicians and big business representatives and newspaper men, in order to learn their plans and to expose their plans to wreck the League. Quigley’s statement, as given out by the League is accompanied with affidavits, original documents and other evidence. Persons whose names are mentioned as having taken part in the proposed drive against the League are as follows: THOSE IN THE PLOT TO BETRAY THE LEAGUE NATIONAL Nonpartisan league headquarters F. H. Carpenter, millionaire lumberman of Minneapolis, high in the counsels of the Repub- lican party. Rome G. Brown of Minneapolis, corporation lawyer, who specializes as attorney for the big water power interests. Ed. Smith, former lieutenant governor of Minnesota, Republican political boss. Rudolph Lee of Long Prairie,. Minnesota, edi- tor of one of the country papers opposed to the organized farmers—a man who has been one of the leaders in the fight against the League in Minnesota. Lee is a son of Wil- liam E. Lee, who was defeated as Republican candidate for governor in 1914, J. D. Bacon, owner of the Grand Forks (North Dakota) Herald, who has used his newspaper for three years in the fight against the or- ganized farmers and who has spent large sums of money, with- out effect, in attempts to disrupt the farmers' movement. Tom Parker Junkin, editor of the Grand Forks Herald, a man hired by Bacon to direct the Her- ald’s campaign against the farm- The statement made public by Nonparti- san league headquarters, which is print- ed on this and the opposite page, will astonish League members. The farmers have known how desperate the opposi- tion to the League is. They have known that ‘‘the gang’’ would stop at nothing to disrupt the organization. They have known that some of the most prominent politicians, editors and representatives of special privilege were fighting the organization. But even having that knowledge League members will read with surprise and anger the sordid de- ‘tails of this new attempt just exposed by -the League. Nothing that has yet happened has thrown so much light on the methods of the unscrupulous poli- ticians and editors who are serving the sinister interests that the organized farmers are fighting. “What is printed here is only a starter. The League an- nounces that it has much more evidence of a damaging character to make public as occasion offers in this connection. The Leader -will keep its readers in touch with the situation. developments as reported by Quigley from time to time. Quigley arranged a contract with F. H. Car- penter, whereby he was to receive $200 per month, and was to be set up in a law office, with all ex- penses paid, if he would write a series of pamphlets against the Nonpartisan league. The pamphlets were to be prefaced by a statement of Quigley’s to the effect that he became disgusted with the pro- Germanism of the League leaders and with men F. H. CARPENTER LUMBEB Co. BUILDING MATERIAL BUILDERS SPECIALTIES MSKNIGHT BUILDING MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. Mr. W. E. Quigley, West Hotel, ers. Minneapolis,kinn. Harry W. Hunter, editor of the - Minneapolis Tribune, one of the Dear Sir:- organs of the grain combine, which has been bitter in its opposition to the Nonpartisan league. - Others, whose names are not disclosed by the League at this time, Quigley’s story is to the effect that, on the assumption he was willing to expose the League, he was taken into the innermost counsels of the League’s enemies. He was told, ac- has made, that the opposition to the League wanted to show that the League was pro-German; that the op- position was anxious to obtain evi- dence that it was socialistic; that they wanted “proof,” sworn to by somebody who had been on the “inside,” that officers of the League were crooks, atheists and otherwise disreputable. . They desired, so Quigley says “they told him, to spring these charges against the League under the signa- ture of someone who had worked for the organization and who supposedly knew, the facts. With knowledge that Qulgley was negotiating with ' the - opposition, against the League. Confirming conversation betweer us this.morni I will expect to see that you receive a monthly salary o $200,00 for a period of ons year, from November lst, 1917. In addition to this, I will expect to see that offlce ex~ penses in connection with such work as you do, will be tseken care of, and that all treveling expenses will also be paid. Office expenses and traveling expenses should be vouchered to me. every month. If it should develope that the work you are going to undertake is greatly enmlerged during feel that in that event, some other arrangement should be made that would guarantee you & larger return than is ehovm AN~ ’ This is a_photographic reproduction of part of the evidence in the new plot This is a letter written by F. H. Carpenter, millionaire lumberman and chairman of the Republican state central cominittee. of Minne- sota, to W. E. Quigley, League organizer. Quigley was pretending he was will- ing to “sell out” to the opposition, and Carpenter, on behalf of a '!roup of League enemies mentioned in the accompanying article, wrote Quigley this letter offer- ing him $200 a month and other inducements for the “dirty work” he thought Quigley would do- agaimt the League. The League has other documents and .- evidence, all of whlch have been photographed and may be reproduced In the' ~.League officials kept in. touch 'with. Leader. later. . : in this letter. Yours tmly, December 27, 1917, the year, I would B associated with the League, who were anarchists and atheists. He was to be paid to make this pref- ace to the pamphlets appear to be a “frank con- fession” of a man connected with the League, who had finally become disgusted with the organization and was willing to tell the facts “in the inter- ,ests of public decency and morality” and to “pro- tect” the members of the League, according to the details included in the League’s statement in regard to the matter. QUIGLEY APPROACHED OVER THE TELEPHONE Quigley was given large sums of money from time to time by the men engineering the plot against the League, his statement says. The pamphlet which was to be published was to be used in a way so that nobody would suspect who was paying for it. A pamphlet publishing company was to be organized, apparently to publish and sell large numbers of pamphlets on various subjects, among which was to be Quigley’s pamphlet. The corpora- tion was to exist simply to circulate Quigley’s pamphlet, but it would purport to print and sell _other pamphlets of a general nature, as a blind. Quigley’s story is lengthy and full of the details of all the negotiations he took part in with the men above mentioned, and others. A summary of his story, fuller details of which will be published later by the League together with other ev1dence, is as follows: Quigley worked as organizer for the Nonpartisan league in North Dakota in 1916. Later he worked in Minnesota. In June, 1917, he was organizing for the Nonpartisan league in Nebraska. During Octo- ber and November, 1917, he received several mysterious telephone calls at the office of the Non- partisan league at Lincoln, Nebraska. The person calling him proved to be a local lawyer, who desired to make an appointment for Quigley with “a gen- tleman” in Minneapolis. Quigley reported the matter to League representatives at Lincoln, Nebraska. Ile was instructed to feel out the man who had been telephoning him. Later he agreed with the Lincoln lawyer that he would call at the office of Rome G. Brown at Minneapolis, the man the lawyer wanied him to see. About November 14 he left for Minne- apolis, stopping at Saint Paul to get further instructions at Nonpartisan league headquarters as to what he should ‘do in order to find out the plans of the opposition, and to dis- cuss with League officers measures for trapping those who intended to buy him, if such proved to be the case. Quigley met Brown at his office in Minneapolis and was closely question- ed by Brown. Brown, it seems, had “information” that Quigley was get- ting tired of Nonpartisan league work and was willing to work for the oppo- sition. = Brown said that the oppo- sition to the League had been adopt: ing entirely wrong tactics. He said that the fararers ought to be educated against the League BEFORE League organizers were able to see the farm- ers, because, AFTER organizers had seen the farmers, the opposition could make no progress. only way to stop the League was by some kind of a campaign' that would prejudice the farmers against the League hefore the League organlzers could get around. QUIGLEY LEARNS FACTS ABOUT THE OPPOSITION = . Quigley led Brown to believe that he fell in with this idea. He told Brown a cock-and-bull story about “leaders. of the League having repri- e - in the officers’ traimng corps.” | Quig- not been accepted, because he had _not want to take a ‘man with so‘man three children and the govemment did' He said that the - manded him for attempting to enlist ' ley had attempted to enlist, but had