The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, January 19, 1920, Page 6

Tonpartigan Teader Official Magazine of the ‘National Nonpartisan League—Every Week Entered at the postoffice, St. Paul, Minn., as second-class matter. OLIVER S. MORRIS, Editor. e AN R T S Ry M St o ot Sy M P i P U S R e L Subscription, one year, in advance, $2.50; six months, $1.50. - Classified advertising rates on classified page; other advertising rates on application. Address all letters and make all remittances to The Nonpartisan Leader, Box 575, St. Paul, Minn, Member of Audit Bureau of Circulations. The S. C. Beckwith Special Agency, advertising repre- sentatives, New York, Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Kansas City. Irresponsible firms are not knowingly advertised. Readers should advise us promptly "if they have occasion to question the reliability of any advertiser. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES : WO things are necessary, this year, to make any one a pres- idential candidate. One requisite is to have held some office, such as United States senator, governor or general in the army, which hundreds of ,Americans have had within the last few years. The second requisite—and by far the more important one —_is to have a millionaire backer, or better yet, a whole group of millionaires behind your campaign. : Of the scores of “prospective” candidates “mentioned” by the daily press a few months ago (men who had the first requirement of temporary prominence) a dozen or so seem to have met the more difficult second requirement and have made connections with a bankroll. In some cases the source of the war chest is still veiled in more or less mystery. However, the connections of more prom- inent candidates already have been exposed. It is a matter of public comment, for instance, that Rufus C. Dawes, the Chicago gas and electric power magnate, who is interested in plants from one end of the country to the other, has'agreed to underwrite one of the military candidates. The approval of the Big Five packers of an Illinois candidate is generally acknowledged, and we have not yet seen a denial of the r:port that George W. Perkins, formerly of J. P. Morgan & Co., now a director of the United States Steel corporation and other concerns, is the “angel” who has charge : of the financial affairs of another aspirant. The support of any candidate by a millionaire should not be F.J GO AHEAD =\ 2 ILL BACK You, SPECIRL reason for the condemnation of that candidate. There are a num- ber of millionaires whose interest in public affairs has been sin- cere and wholeheartedly in behalf of the common people. We can think of a soap manufacturer, now deceased, a Michigan auto- mobile manufacturer, an Illinois manufacturer of plumbing appli- ances and a Maryland carpet manufacturer, as we write. Probably none of these men, if they backed a presidential candidate, would seek any special favors for their automobiles, plumbing appliances or carpets. But there are other interests in the United States that are very much in politics at the present time, not for the public good but for their own special welfare. Before the common man gets behind any of the various candidates whose merits are being so vigorously advertised in the daily press of today, he should try to get an answer to these questions: “How is his campaign being financed ?” . : “What special favors would his backers be likely to seek from the government ?”’ A NEW LINEUP HE dissolution of the packing combine has one moral that should not be overlooked. Foremost in the fight against the growing influence and the unfair tactics of the “Big Five” .were the organized farmers and the organized retail merchants— principally grocers and meat dealers. There are plenty of other fights against profiteers in which the farmers and small business men may well take common ground. More and more, thoughtful merchants are coming to see that they are only used as catspaws when they allow unfair big business to line them up against their natural allies and friends—the farmers. : ; SPECULATION IN FARM LANDS S MORE facts come to light it is increasingly apparent that A the speculation in farm lands, which has been running rampant through the central Mississippi valley, is nine- tenths pure gambling. “In a few sections genuine sales appear to have been made by which one farmer, ready to retire, sold his lands at an increase to another farmer. But in the overwhelming majority of cases speculators have merely taken -options in the first instance, paying as little as 1 per cent down to “bind the bargain” and depending upon being able, before the option expired, 3 S : PAGE SIX . to sell the farm to some one else. One Iowa speculator is said to have boasted that in this way he “bought” more than $1,000,000 worth of land with an actual investment of $11,000. . ; Commenting on this system the bulletin of the Kansas State Agricultural college says: This is practically margining the land—the same system used by the bucket shop in connection with grain. It is a form of betting on land values. Somebody, sooner or later, is going to be the loser— and probably it will not be any of the promoters. They know how and when to unload. ; Rt We might add that there is no mystery whatever as to the “somebody” who is going to be the loser. The farmer is bound to lose in the long run. In the last analysis the farmer’s land is - the tool with which he produces his daily bread. When the tool Yamath : THE FARNER IS e g" THE LOSER W THE L&,Q(//V ; of his trade is priced too high the ordinary man can not afford to purchase. ¢ , When land values run riot there is one sure crop—a large but not necessarily prosperous production of tenant farmers. There is a story about the man who advertised for laborers to help him catch driftwood on shares—the laborer to get half and the promoter, who did nothing but look on, the other half. This story is told as a joke. It is unbelievable that any one man or group of men should have a monopoly on the ocean and the drift- wood it contains. But is it any more reasonable that any group of men should have a monopoly on the land ? THE LEGION REDEEMING ITSELF HEN the Leader has seen occurrences indicating that the American Legion was working under a false leadership we have not hesitated to call such facts to public attention. This week we have a task that is more grateful. It is calling at- tention to recent actions of various branches of the Legion which deserve hearty commendation. In November Doctor Walter Thomas Mills, widely known Non- partisan league lecturer, was kidnaped by a bunch of young rowdies as he was about to open a meeting in a Grange hall near Prosser, Wash. The kidnapers said they were acting in behalf of Captain Green post of the Legion. _This post, in a communication to the - Prosser Grange, now states: * % * The above ramed post did not as an organization spon- sor or sanction the reported abduction of your speaker, Walter Thomas Mills, at your recent meeting and wishes to correct the false impres- sion, now current, of the responsibility of this post in that action. We further wish to convey to you our intention to co-operate with you in all progressive and American movements. : The Washington state executive council has sent the following instructions to all its state posts: As you realize, a large portion of the American Legion is com- posed of laboring men, the great majority of whom are members of . . the labor unions. As an organization, the American Legion has no -quarrel with the unions and is, in fact, anxious and willing to do every- thing in its power to better the conditions of the laborer and help him in ail legitimate ways toward accomplishing this end. 5 At International Falls, Minn., the local post of the Legion has taken action vigorously condemning Governor Burnquist for send- ing state troops to that city to interfere in a strike caused by the attempt of a millionaire manufacturer and railroad owner to length- en the working day and reduce wages. There was not the slightest ~ threat of disorder when the troops were called out, and a committee 2 : L o Sgijovlgfi,gp , appointed by Minnesota state headquarters of the Legion to in- vestigate has so reported. : -As we have said before there has never been a particle of doubt as to the sincerity, patriotism and spirit of fair play on the part of the rank and file of the Legion. Where false leaders have as- sumed power the Legion members, given time, may be trusted to right the wrong. ; WISDOM THAT APPLIES TODAY 5 CILURUS (a Roman who lived 2,000 years ago), on his death- S bed, being about to leave four score sons surviving, offered a bundle of darts to each of them and bade them break them. When all failed he drew the darts out one by one and easily broke them, thus teaching his sons that if they held together they would continue strong, but if they fell out and were divided they would become weak.—PLUTARCH’S LIVES. . St -~ -‘;_—dw;ae—‘-‘ w‘?d{a«v}