The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, July 8, 1918, Page 16

Use Mails to Threaten League Farmers Traveling Salesmen Spend Their Nights Now Writing Intimidating Letters to Nonpartisans—What They Say'and How the League’-l_f_s Laugh at Them EN the traveling salesmen an- nounced that they were going to fight the National Nonpar- tisan league it sounded like a joke. Well, it is a joke. What do you think the organized drummers are doing? Writing intimidating letters to Leaguers who have their names in the Leader. , They are not even brave ign their own names, but call them- 1, “An Equity Member,” and one even . - «» an American soldier. All the letters are similar in tone and expres- sion, indicating that the drummers have been fur- _ nished a form letter by the employers, which they copy off, varying a little each time. The system seems to be for the traveling middleman to read the Nonpartisan Leader and pick out the names and addresses of members who write especially geod letters. The first Leaguer to receive a com- munication from an enemy of the people was A. D. Peugh of Toston, Mont. The writer dated his let- ter Williston, N. D., and signed his name as J. H. Smith. This is what he wrote: THE BRAVE LITTLE PROTECTOR OF BIG BIZ “I read in the Nonpartisan Leader of May 27 your communication and I am going to ask you if it is the aim of Townley to put all the big kept press and all Big Biz out of business. I notice you name a few of the kept press. “I am going to write to a gentleman of Toston that I know, asking him to tell something of you, if you are capable, etc. If I find out that you are not, and just one of those ne’er-do-wells, I am going to publish your letter in a kept newspaper, so it will be read by quite a few, not just members of the League. “I am going to find out whether you are well- to-do, whether you are a good husband, a good father, and a few other things. I can not imagine a man who is capable of taking his chance with other men under the same laws joining a bunch like Townley’s outcasts.” . As this sniveling little Smith was too cowardly to give any address, Mr. Peugh sent an answer to the Leader. No one can bluff a Leaguer. This is how this Montana farmer handled him: A STOOL PIGEON OF THE INTERESTS “I am inclosing a letter I received today from a satellite of Big Biz, the kept press and the old gang parasites that have infested the producing class for years. I suppose he is a paid stool pigeon to write the patrons of the Leader that have any correspondence in its columns and annoy them, if such slush as he writes would annoy them. He seems to have Townleyism on the brain. If Townley is not supporting our government in the war or has done anything to obstruct the govern- ment in the war to make the world safe for de- mocracy, the federal authorities would have pinched him long ago. “In my opinion there is going to be a reaction against this mob rule and beastly brutality that is prevailing in northwestern states. At least there will be a reaction when the farmers get a chance to speak at the ballot box. They will speak, and speak loud, and with as much force as they did in 1916 in North Dakota. “He says he is going to write to a gentleman here in town and then is going to publish the answer in the kept press. Well, he can hop to it. I have received several complimentary letters from different ones in this state in which they say they were well pleased with my communication in the Leader of May 27. Some of the writers I never met or knew, others had known me in years gone by. You will notice this J. H. Smith’s letter is written on the letterhead of the Great Northern hotel - of Williston, N. D., mailed somewhere in Montana, in an envelope of the Libby hotel of Libby, Mont. The whole letter bears the earmarks of a paid tool of Big Biz that is hired to travel and write against the Nonpartisan league.” Big :‘Biz has all kinds of slush funds to hire 2x4 para- sites that are destitute of honor to fight the League. “It won’t be long until such parasites as this Smith is, and the kept press, will be cussing Presi- - dent Wilson, Such as Smith would try to make - the people believe that Big Biz has kttersvpatent” : ON THE HOME FRONT In the big crop drive with horse and machine on all the patriotism in the United States. Well, we farmers and workingmen are entitled to and are going to get our share, too, regardless of all the camouflaging of the kept press, Big Biz and the little 2x4 satellites. “We know and have known many busiiiess and commercial men that we hold in the highest esteem for their honor, integrity and fairness toward the farmer and producer. But this Smith is an enemy to progress and an' obstruction to winning the war.” Readers of the Nonpartisan Leader will remem- ber the correspondence of C. E. Wheeler of Web- ster, S. D., with Jerry Bacon, the farmers’ enemy, in which he made Jerry howl his head off. The publicity the Leader gave this broadside greatly" enraged a henchman of big business, who promptly sent the following letter to Mr. Wheeler, signing the name of B. A. Calkins: TO THE DEFENSE OF JERRY BACON - “I notice your letter in the Nonpartisan Leader. I am about to make a trip to South Dakota and when I get there I am going to look you up and get your pedigree. You say in your letter to Jerry Bacon that you seem to be able to move around a bit there at Webster, but I will bet 30 cents that this man Jerry Bacon has got you beat a mile at anything from Siouxp to Knutts in._anything you wish to name, no matter what the game is. Tl bet he stands better in his home town than you do, and cuts more ice than you would in any gather- ing that you or he happen to be in. “Now that is taking in a lot of territory.. He says that any man who will mix up and stand for Townley and. that bunch of ex-preachers who -are his organizers is just simply a damn fool or'is as- big a crook as they are. And when I get to Web- ster and I find out about you it will be published.” Mr. Wheeler says-his letter gives one address and the postmark on the envelope another. He HELPING DADDY \w Here is a lesson in mutual aid. This Towa farmer is helping “his hogs by spraying thein. ~hogs will help him because he helped himself: The packers will help him; too, R T ‘when he organizes to help himself. =~ © = has him sized up as a middleman who lives off the consumer, saying: “No wonder he squeals, for when the League gets strong enough he will be pretty apt to have to go to work and earn his living instead of living off the producer and con- sumer. He says he saw my article in the Leader. I guess he is like Jerry; he grabs every Leader he can get his hands on and devours it greedily. “He says when he gets to Webster he' is going to look me up. Good, that is just what I want him to do, and for his benefit I will give a few references such as the First National bank, the Farmers’ and Merchants’ National bank, the Se- curity bank, Sheriff E. Beachy and State Attorney W. H. Woodworth. He says he is going to have it published. Hop to it, old boy! He might also in- quire of the rest of the county commissioners, as I am one of them and have served the county for 20 years continuously. Then, if he wants to meet me, let him come out to my farm. I surely will be pleased to meet him.” ONE PRETENDED TO BE AN EQUITY MEMBER This shows clearly how the underhanded cowards who are fighting the League all hang together. It is to be noticed that the thing that enraged the sneaking Mr. Calkins was the way a South Dakota- farmer had roasted Bacon, the farmers’ enemy. . The next letter came to Arthur A. Francis of the Equity Co-Operative association at Wolf Point, Mont. Here again the same phrases crop up. The anonymous communication, which was signed “An Equity Member” and mailed in Carter, Mont., follows: ; “In reading the Nonpartisan Leader I notice your letter. I notice you feel pretty bad that the gang in Wolf Point didn’t let Mills speak. ou are absolutely wrong when you say that stopping free speech is wrong. b “I understand that in the northeastern part of the state everybody belongs to the Townley league. They are all Socialists. ) “I have no objection to meetings of the Equity, ‘Farmers' union, Grange, Red Cross, etc., but should the Equity do what they foolishly did at Great Falls last February and have Townley as a speaker, there will be damn few towns in Montana where any of this stuff will be allowed to be pulled off. “A friend of mine is about to visit Wolf Point and he is going to look you up.” “He signs his name, ‘An Equity Member,” but I am afraid this is a forgery,” Mr. Francis says. “The Equity and the League must go hand in hand. If we, as Equity men, were only to devote our in- terest to the Equity and leave the making of the laws to political grafters, it would only be a short time until we would have no Equity. “If this man would read the Nonpartisan Leader more and the Grand Forks Herald, the Minneapolis Journal and a few such papers a little less, he might get his eyes open.” ANOTHER SMITH JOINS: IN The next sneaking attempt at intimidation was made on Edgar Lee of Round Valley, Neb. It was signed “Smith,” posted in Kalispell, and read thus: “I notice in the Nonpartisan Leader you wrote that you had read the Leader for six months. I . judge by this time that you are posted on the evils of the day. I also suppose you don’t read the horrid kept press. You say that you need a lot of organizers in Nebraska. Do you know (Continued on page 21) Later on- his e