The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, April 8, 1918, Page 6

§ =5 | & £ { 5 I g 1 P T P s I n ‘ - ED N\ AN . Tonpartissn Teader Official Magazine of the: National Nonpartisan League—Every Week L . Entered as second-class matter September 3, 1915, at the postoffice at St. Psul—. Minnesota, under the Act of March 8, 1879. OLIVER S. MORRIS, EDITOR ) Advertising rates on application. Subscription, one year, in advance, $2.50; six months, $1.60. Communications should be addressed to the Nonpartisan Leader, Box 575, St. Paul, Minn. e MEMBER OF AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATIONS 7% THE S. C. BECKWITH SPECIAL AGENCY, Advertising Representatives, New * York, Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Kansas City. g Quack, fraudulent and irresponsible firms are not knowingly advertised, and we will take it as a favor if any readers will advise us promptly should they have occasion to doubt or question the reliability of any firm which patronizes our advertising columns. TIMES THAT TRY MEN’S SOULS _ VEN in these stirring times, with world events happening j overnight that will fill pages of future histories, the opening- of the farmers’ campaign in Minnesota has thrilled progres- sive and liberal thinkers throughout the. country. The platform | for the state campaign that was adopted at St. Paul by these farm- ers rings with loyalty and patriotism. It of course incorporates in full the program of the Nonpartisan league—the economic program that organized farmers of 15 states are fighting for—and in clear and forceful language it maps out a war program for the com- . . mon people. . i That war program is first of all complete, hearty and unstinted ' support for the United States government in this war. It calls for ' measures that will make the country more efficient in war—public ownership and operation of public utilities and public ownership . and development of natural resources. Support is offered to the ' government in taking over munition factories and. shipbuilding facilities, that no class of capitalists shall profit through the war and that we shall not make thousands of new millionaires and build up new, huge accumulations of wealth in a few hands to oppress . us after the war. These farmers met at St.. Paul under circumstances that prob- ably are not fully appreciated outside of Minnesota. A campaign of abuse and misrepresentation directed at the organized farmers’ movement by the subsidized press of the state has wrought up the _people of Minnesota to a point where, in 19 out of 87 counties of the state, the Nonpartisan league has been made an outlaw, through the barring of its meetings by local authorities.” In many of these - counties, advisory “war boards,” controlled by the politicians and inflamed by the newspapers, are preventing even the organization work of the League, and farmers who are assisting in the signing up of new members are arrested and jailed. In others of these 19 counties, members and organizers of the League are run out of town by mobs of hoodlums, egged on by hostile business interests . and politicians, who see a menace in the farmers’ movement. Threats of lynchings, vile abuse and often man-handling is the lot of League members and workers in these counties, all. without the . slightest interference or attempt at law enforcement by state authorities. During the League convention at St. Paul that named the farm-- ers’ ticket, and during the great membership campaign rally of three days’ duration that followed, the papers of Minneapolis and St. Paul reeked with lies, misrepresentations and abuse, directed - against the farmer# and the union labor forces of the state that were co-operating in the meetings. - The governor of Minnesota ' in an insulting letter refused a cordial invitation of the League and the trades and labor assemblies of the Twin Cities to speak at the rally. The mayor of St. Paul refused to welcome the delegates to the’ city. Instead, City Commissioner Keller welcomed the 6,000 8,000 farmers who were in town. Commissioner Keller is a 7 72 7 L0 ) y oty '%w iy, Y / “ty, ° SEOCT 1 4§ N Yt Tl Y G T 6 e G - labor member of the St. Paul city council, and for speaking at the opening meeting of the farmers and union labor he was viciously attacked by the newspapers. Two days later Commissioner Keller was renominated by the people of St. Paul in the city primaries by a landslide vote, the biggest a city commissioner was ever given in a St. Paul city primary. The people of St. Paul, at least, wel- comed the farmers, even if its rulers and business interests turned a cold shoulder. E ] : During these great events at St. Paul——during_ the naming of the ticket and the adoption of the platform that will sweep Minne- sota this fall, restoring the state to the people, the newspapers car- ried columns of so-called réports of the convention and rally. With one exception, no paper in the Twin Cities printed any of the speeches, except brief extracts which they made fun of, and none published the resolutions in full, but contented themselves with singling out extracts to hold up to ridicule and contempt. The.,St. Paul morning paper, for instance, the last day of the convention, published four columns of write-up, without one full parg.graph of quotation -from any of the speakers. It was all editorial bil- lingsgate and abuse. That is what Twin City people for three days got instea%of news of the convention and rally. Under these conditions the farmers met and transacted the business they had to transact, Their breasts swelled with indig- nation at the treatment accorded them, but their hearts beat true and strong for the cause of democracy and justice. They said in their formal platform and declaration of principles: - The workers of America would be false to the heritage bought by the blood "of their fathers and recreant to the trust reposed in them by those who are fighting for democracy on foreign soil, if they did not maintain their birthright of democracy at home. We will not sar- - render. Despite slander, lies, vilification, mob violence, despite all that wealth and official power of special privilege can bring to bear, we dedicate ourselves to emancipate our state from the political and industrial domipation of big business. It was in such spirit and under such circumstances that the early Christians met—hounded, persecuted and abused. In a simi- lar way men met and dedicated themselves to attain liberty in 1775, the “times that tried men’s souls.” Just as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow, the cause of the workers and producers of America will win. The Nonpartisan league is one of the agencies that is making the victory certain. And because it is one of these agencies, it is feared, and fear breeds hate—which accounts for the abuse and vilification that the organized farmers have to stand. THE MINNESOTA TICKET g O RGANIZED labor and the organized farmers will have little difficulty in putting over the state candidates that were’ indorsed by the great people’s convention at St. Paul. No perfect state ticket was ever put in the field anywhere. = Always,- after it is all over, there has Been a realization that better men could have been selected for certain positions. It was not expected that the farmers, co-operating with union labor, would make no mistakes. Their friends expected that the majority of their selec- tions would be good, of course, but they hardly looked for perfection. But the Minnesota ticket is a surprise even to the best friends of the League in that state, and it has thrown utter consternation into the ranks of the enemy. The organized producers did better than any one expected. They offer no apology for any candidate indorsed, the Leader offers none, and none is needed. The complete silence with which the candidates of the farmers were accepted by the press hostile to the farmers and labor is sufficient evidence that the indorsing convention did its work well. . Of course, these men will be attacked, viciously and relentlessly, before the campaign is over. But it is significant that -the enemy had to hunt and dig and think a long time before starting an attack on these candidates. At the very start they ~ contented themselves with slurs and intimations that the conven- tion was “controlled,” or “slated,” or that some one besides the farmers and workers picked these men and forced them on the farmers and workers. These ridiculous attacks show the despera- tion of the opposition. : The League ticket in Minnesota ought to and will sweep the .