The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, April 14, 1919, Page 7

THE Standard Oil company of Indiana has started an extensive advertising campaign to present its case to the people. The Nonpartisan Leader has been selected to carry some of this advertising. ' : The fact that the Leader is accepting this advertising does not alter our attitude toward the Standard. We are opposed funda- mentally to control of -national resources, that should belong to ali - the people; by any few men. Neither John D. Rockefeller nor any of the men connected with him put the oil into the ground. The Standard of Indiana, in its first advertisement, points out that its stock is somewhat widely distributed and seeks to gain still more stockholders. The reason for this is obvious. The more widely the stock is held, the more chance of protest there is against %overnment regulation. And that is evidently what the Standard ears. Regardless of the wide. distribution of its stock the Standard is narrowly controlled. Wide distribution of some of the stock is not important. - The fact is that control of the corporation has always been directed from Wall street, New York, and probably always will be until the government makes up its mind to take over the national resources. : : 2 We invite our readers to watch the Standard Oil advertising and to draw their own conclusions. e "a{ ; . - THE TIDE IS RISING ANSAS, once “bleeding Kansas, now “reactionary Kansas,” is swinging into the list of those few states where the legis- lators are shortsighted enough to attempt to repeal the di- rect primary law. By a vote of 25 to 8 the state senate recently passed a bill to allow the old corrupt, boss-ridden convention sys- tem to select candidates for governor and all other state offices. Senator Anderson, in explaining his vote, stated that the bill would keep the Nonpartisan league out of Kansas. The above is the fatuous “explanation” offered by one of the solons as reported in a Kansas paper. It explains what the stand- patters hope, but not what will happen. : There was old King Canute of England. If history is to be believed, he set his throne upon the beach and commanded the tide. 1o cease rising. But the tide rose and Canute fled rather than get his royal feet damp. There are plenty of Canutes today. Senator Knute Nelson, for all we know, may be a lineal descendant of the old Danish king who THE MODERN CANUTE once ruled England. He would have the tide of public.opinion stopped by defining as “bolshevism” every theory of government which he does not understand. And the list of matters that the senator does not understand. is a long list. Minnesota, ‘Montana and Idaho legislatures -contain King Canutes. These states also passed, or are passing, laws to deprive their voters of the right of selecting their candidates for state office. In every case fear of the farmers dictates the movement.. The solons want to “keep the Nonpartisan league’” out of their states. Vain hope! We would suggest to the legislators that they re- tire to private life if they want to keep their honorable feet dry. For the tide is rising, and rising fast. ) FUTURE WHEAT PRICES 00D ADMINISTRATOR HOOVER has predicted that the F1919 wheat crop can be marketed without any loss to the United States government. This means that he thinks the Liverpool price, on which our export wheat depends, will be $2.560 or better. Mr. Hoover also includes in his statement the view that the 1918 price here would have gone to $3.50 or better and would be at this level now if there had been no market restrictions. Our millers, on the other hand, have been using a statement issued by a British expert, Norman Lambert, to the effect that the Liverpool price may go as low as $1.25. Which is the more prob- able prediction? Our millers were pulling all possible wires to get a price for themselves much below the minimum price set for the farmers. Those who talk of the lower price are, therefore, special pleaders, more interested in producing a certain impression than in accurately. forecasting conditions. ) As between the two, general world conditions -appear to strongly favor Mr. Hoover. . Available surplus wheat in Australia, Canada and Argentina has been grossly overstated by our depart- - ment of agriculture and those “bearing” the market. Our own sur- plus is much below normal. - On the other hand, India, a great wheat exporting country, has famine rather than surplus, and Russia and Siberia, long the mainstay of Europe, are out of the market. Other . European countries which produce some wheat will produce much less than in normal years. ‘More than this, lack of shipping will handicap Australia and Argentina. Unless a large part of western Europe is going to starve, therefore, it must take American wheat and this means a higher rather than a lower price; - . - . - ; RN - S iR o S ; PAGE N A XA LA ANt P il - ' ‘ HOUSTON ON TRIAL (Y ECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE HOUSTON, according to. S Clarence Ousley, assistant secretary, considers it beneath his 1 dignity to reply to attacks upon the department made by W. J. Spillman, former chief of the office of farm management, Mr. Ousley, however, does not feel himself above replying. The Non- partisan Leader wishes to acknowledge not one but three separate copies of Mr. Ousley’s reply to Mr. Spillman, each consisting of about a dozen pages, prepared and mailed at government expense. - Mr. Spillman charged Secretary Houston with interfering with investigations of the cost of raising wheat and spoke of the pos- sible influence on the department of agriculture of John D. Rocke- feller’s contributions. Mr. OQusley, in his reply to Mr. Spillman, says that Secretary Houston never was really against the cost of production studies, that he merely wanted them “deferred until the whole matter can be thoroughly considered and the services of an expert with the proper economic training can be secured.” Very well, we will ac-- cept Mr. Ousley’s version of the matter. The fact remains that through Secretary Houston’s efforts the proposed studies were not made when the farmers needed them most. Secretary Houston’s opinion on the ab8tract question of the value of cost of production studies in general is comparatively an unimportant matter. The work that the farmers had a right to expect was not done. Mr. Ousley goes on to attack Mr. Spillman personally, alleging that Spillman was in favor of a $1.50 minimum price for wheat in June, 1917, that before Mr. Houston became secretary of agricul- tyre the department had accepted money from Chicago grain ex- changes. Mr. Ousley says that Mr. Spillman is vain and unreliable. That is a matter of no gréat importancé to the farmers. . Mr. Spillman is not now connected with the department of agriculture. Mr. Houston is. Mr. Houston has proved resentful of suggestions to better the work of his department. He is quoted as speaking of Congressman John Baer, representing North Dakota farmers, as an “ggitator.” The activities of his department have been directed principally to the one matter of securing larger production. The farmers are distinctly disappointed in Secretary Houston. By at- tacking Mr. Spillman, Assistant Secretary Ousley is not succeeding in diverting the attention of the farmers from the failures of the - agricultural department. 5 - NORTH DAKOTA IS LOYAL HE anti-farmer press has apparently about finished talking about the “great North Dakota revolt” of two or three state ‘officials who proved untrue to the men who elected them. For a few days these turncoats were praised to the skies in such e papers as the Fargo Forum and Grand Forks Herald of North Da- | kota, the St. Paul Pioneer Press and Dispatch of Minnesota, the Boise Statesman of Idaho, the Lincoln Star of Nebraska. Then these papers dropped them. They had failed to interest the public in two or three petty traitors. The “revolt” had fizzled. The anti- farmer press has about concluded that it would be wise to forget about it and to try some new tack to discredit the League. But the League farmers have not forgotten. They will remem- ber that at Dawson, N. D., last summer, just before the primaries, Auditor Kositzky, one of the turncoat politicians, said: ' “As long WE'LL STICH o. DAk, FarMER § & Gov. FrRAzZIER as the Grand Forks Herald, the Fargo Forum, the Bismarck Tribune and the St. Paul Dispatch roast me it is prima facie evidence that 1 am remaining true to the farmers. But if those papers ever start to praise me it is a sign that I need watching.” The League farmers have not forgotten these words. And they have not forgotten that for the space of perhaps a week the papers that for years have been attacking the North Dakota farmers lauded Langer, Hall and Kositzky to the skies. 5 The League farmers of North Dakota are going ahead with their work in support of the bills that their representatives passed at Bismarck. Opponents of the League, financed by business imter- ests of the Twin Cities and Chicago, are desperately trying to get signatures for a referendum from the farmers. The farmers are laughing at their desperation. They are laughing at the efforts of the old gang to use all the wornout tricks.of politics to obscure the real issues. For the farmers of North Dakota have been fighting too long for control of their government to let a few deserters and political hacks, paid by Minnesota business, interfere with them.