The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, August 5, 1918, Page 3

- - Leaguers. = ticket. In the iinterest of a square deal’ Vfor the farmers _ VOL. 7, NO. 5 lonpartisan Teader Official Magazine of the National Nonparti_san League g 3 ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA, AUGUST 5, 1918 A magazine that dares to print the truth WHOLE NUMBER 150 NEBRASKA ]OINS “SOLID WEST” E of the things the politicians always ac- cept as un- able to be changed is the “Solid South” They’ve quit worrying about that, and now are harassed with the fear of the “Solid West.” Take a map and be- gin at the Canadian boundary. There’s North Dakota, the first League state; then South Dakota, with a Nonpartisan ticket in the field; next comes Nebraska, where the farmers are steadily organizing; Kan- sas’is next, with a good League membership, and Oklahoma and Texas,, both rushing into the arms of the League. Far- ther west are other League states, to the east are Min- nesota and Iowa. It’s enough for the old-style gumshoe statesmen to fret themselves to death over. But this story is about Ne- braska. The organized farm- ers of that state held the first state convention of the National Nonpartisan league July-9 and 10 in Lincoln. It was, as the editor of the Ord Quiz said, “A patriotic love feast,” and unlike any other political convention, absolutely without boss domi- nation. “Slow but sure” is the motto of the Where success does not appear certain, the farmers are willing to play a waiting game . until they have gained the preponderance of strength. So no nominations or recommendations for state offices were made by the state convention. It was thought best for the League not to go into a state campaign this year. Instead, the Leaguers have nominated a number of legxs.atlve and sena- torial candidates in counties where they are best orgamzed ; A DRIVE ON THE LEGISLATURE “Undoubtedly the League will have a goodly representation in the next legislative session,” says the Lincoln Herald. Thus it is seen that the plan is 'to center the League strength where it will be felt most. = A group of Nonpartisans in the legislature, standing together on the League plat- form, will be able to hold the balance of power in making the laws. This, the farmers decided, was more prac- tical than risking the chance of state- wide defeat by putting up a full The League ‘wants nothing " but success to its credit, and never moves its big guns into position until it has plenty of ammunition. " Since the state council of defense 'in Nebraska has admitted in court that the League is loyal and not to be interfered with, farmers are flock- ing to the Nonpartlsan standard in_ great numbers. The - platform adopted by the state Nonpartisan ' convention is bringing the principles of the’ League before all ‘the people. Candidates on all tickets: will have to meet these de- mands of the farmers. The Leaguers have thus drawn a chalk: ‘mark that every candldate tor theu' votes must stick by it. Nebraska is the Cornhusker state, and this scene taken in the 80-acre field of T. G. Ott near Tilden shows the reason. Mr. Ott joined the League almost two years ago and is going to He recently got two new members himself. State Convention of the Nonpartisan League Lays Its Platform—W ll Put Farmers in the Legislature gatherings of farmers since the days of the Farmers’ alliance and Populist party. After the singing of “America” by the audience, Mayor Miller of Lincoln delivered the address of welcome, paying high compliment to the farmers of Nebraska. He said that the delegates perhaps represented the majority of the voters of the state, because the farmers are in the majority, and he was glad to welcome them to Lincoln because it was their town and had been built and made pos- sible by the fact that the farmers of the state had produced the wealth and by their patronage had- built all the towns and cities of the state. WHEN - THE FARMERS ARE PROSPEROUS ALL ARE PROSPEROUS. Destroy the towns and the farms will build them again, but destroy the farms and the grass will grow in the streets of the towns. While the mayor said he did not entirely agree with the program.of the League, he admitted there was much good in it and much that was destined to come to pass in the march of political events. On the whole the mayor’s address was fair, and if THE NEW FREEDOM The trial between the Nonpartisan league and the state * council of defense came to a sudden and dramatic close in the Lancaster district court, when the leaders announced that a compromise had been effected. Under the terms of this agree- ment the council is no longer to attempt to prevent the League from organizing and holding meetings. charge of disloyalty heretofore lodged against: the organiza- tion is officially withdrawn. The League on its gide agrees ~o withdraw a pamphlet called its war aims, to- place the or- - ganization entirely in the hands of Nebraskans, and to cease distributing a pamphlet containing extracts from the wnt- mgs of President Wilson. . “This fear that the public may be misled by President Wllson is no doubt matched by the fear of the profiteers that the public - will understand every word in the book. League did wisely in agreeing to cease circulating their ex- * tracts in order to make an honorable peace. . can not be expected to smother a natural desire to know the causes lying behind this repudiation of President- Wilson’s ~ book by a state council of defense created by Governor Neville, who nominally, at least, belongs to the: presxdent’s own polltlcal ! party. It is an amazing incident. L et ——NEBRASKA STATE JOURNAL This means that the But the public it voices the sentiment of the people of Lincoln it is grati- fying to know that the capital ‘of the state does not entertain an attitude of hostility to the farmers and their movement for better economic conditions. R. L. Metcalfe of the state council of defense appeared by invitation and delivered a pa- triotic address which was well received by the delegates. All references to President Wil- son and the nation’s purposes in the war were enthusiastical- ly applauded. Mr. Metcalfe became somewhat personal in reference to the petition of Pierce county citizens asking the governor to remove him from the council of defense. He intimated that they were a bunch of Nonpartisan leazue Germans, James Manahan in- troduced a copy of the petition showing that only 45 out of the 243 were members of the Nonpartisan league. Mr. Met- calfe later resigned from the defense council to run for United States senator. Mr. Manahan and A. E. Bowen occupied most of the afternoon session in explaining the causes which led up to the organi- zation of the League and the principles for which it stands, and their addresses were most enthusi- astically received by the large audience of dele- gates and spectators. - BACK OF THE PRESIDENT . At the business session of the delegates the ten- tative program of the League for the state was approved and adopted for the ensuing two-year campaign period, and the old executive committee was re-elected. The following resolutions were adopted by the delegates and later unanimously ratified by the mass convention: “We, the delegates of the Nonpartisan league of Nebraska, in convention assembled at Lincoln, on July 9, do hereby adopt the following resolutions, platform and declaration of principles: “We declare that the winning of the war to make the world safe for democracy is of paramount im- portance, and to this end we pledge our lives and our fortunes to our country and to President Wilson in ‘his noble stand for llberty and human rights. " “We heartily and unequivocally in- dorse the high and noble purposes of President Wilson as expressed in all his messages and in his declaration of war aims and terms of peace. “The Nonpartisan league has from the time of our entry into the war contended for the conscription of men . to fight-the war and the conscription of wealth to finance the war, there- _ fore, we can and do consistently and ~ wholeheartedly indorse the declar- ation of President Wilson for higher taxes upon incomes, excess war prof- itsand luxuries. _ “Realizing as we do that the win- ning of the war depends as much upon food and materials as it does upon soldiers, we- pledge ourselves to do everything in our power in the pro- duction and conservation of foodstuffs The and our boys in the trenches.~ : “We further urge: that the farme‘i-_s (Continued on page 15). ; and materials to support our allies e