The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, June 28, 1920, Page 3

IN THE INTEREST OF A SQUARE DEAL FOR THE FARMERS - Entered as second-class matter at the postoffice at Minneapolis, Minn., under the act of March 3, 1879, Publication address, 427 Sixth avenue 8., ea) Minn. Address all remittances to The Nonpartisan Leader, Box 2075, Minneapolis, Minn. VOL. 10, NO. 24 CoMMUNET N PN @y DELEGATES to the Républican national convention eliminated 1 General Leonard Wood and Governor Frank Lowden at Chi- cago. They did so because Senator Borah of Idaho threat- ened, if either were nominated, to go before the American people ‘and tell them about the $1,500,000 contributed to Wood’s campaign fund to promote militarism in America, and about Governor Low- den’s “Missouri purchase,” where he bought delegates at $2,500 per head. Senator Borah was elected from Idaho two years ago with League indorsement. While individual Leaguers may not approve his record throughout he has certainly performed one service in refusing to allow the convention of one of our great national parties to sink to the lowest depth of .political immorality and approve a nomination, purchased directly with the coin of big business. Now it is up to the Democrats to eliminate Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer from the list of theireeandidates. Palmer has a record fully as culpable as either Wood or Lowden. According to the statement of a United States federal judge he has maintained “agents provocateur” in the Communist and Communist-Labor par- ties—spies to incite those parties to illegal acts, so that Palmer could pounce down upon them and jail their members, thus getting publicity for himself. Palmer’s campaign manager is lawyer for the head of a firm which admits defrauding the United States govern- ment out of some $9,000,000 in taxes—and which goes unpunished. If the Democratic party has any regard for public conscience, it should turn ' Mr. Palmer down, and turn him down hard. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IS NEEDED HE defeat of Wood and Lowden at Chicago is a moral victory ‘H ' for the people. It means that the Republican party has not sunk quite low enough to admit publicly that its nominations are for sale to the highest bidder. The defeat of Palmer at San Francisco also will be a moral victory. It will mean that the Dem- ocratic party is not willing to approve the use of “agents provoca- teur” or to have a $9,000,000 tax dodger running the-next president of the United States. But are the people getting any direct advantage out of the de- feat af Lowden and Wood? Senator Harding, while lacking the support of millionaire soap manufacturers, munition makers and the Pullman trust, has a thoroughly reactionary record as a mem- ber of the United States senate. He is perfectly satisfactory to the “old guard,” though they were divided between Wood and Lowden for first choice. g . Similarly, if A. Mitchell Palmer is defeated at San Francisco, who will the Democrats probably choose? Most likely W. G. Mec- Adoo, a millionaire promoter and financier before his elevation to the cabinet. Mr. McAdoo, it is true, made some friends among un- ion labor ranks during his directorship of the railroads, but inas- much as all the Taises given to labor were passed on to the general public in the form of increased freight rates (instead of being taken out of the profits of the railroad stockholders, as they should have been), and inasmuch as Mr. McAdoo is now regarded as “quite sat- isfactory” in Wall street circles, where is the'gain? What is needed in national politics is not merely negative ac- tion, to weed out the worst of a bad lot, as was done at Chicago and probably will be done at San Francisco. : i What is needed is affirmative action, to select from the proved friends of the people the best man in the United States for president. In the states in which it is organized the National Nonpartisan Tonpartissn Official Magazine of the National Nonpartisan League—Every Week OLIVER S. MORRIS, Editor. MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, JUNE 28, 1920 . Let’s Get Rid of A. Mitchell Palmer! - cader A MAGAZINE THAT DARES TO PRINT THE TRUTH classf te! 11 One year, in advance, $2.50; six months, $1.50. Clas- sified rates on ifled page; other advertising rates on application. Member Audit Bureau of Circulations, . C. Beckwith Special Agency, advertising represen- tatives, New York, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City. WHOLE NUMBER 247 s k. | 2=\ - Y wared Mg OUT OF ALCMTH : PALMER ¢ league is choosing the'best and most available men in each state for governor and other state offices. Within the next four years the League plan must be adopted nationally. The people must choose their own candidates for president in 1924, instead of leaving this choice with the politicians. 5 SOARING PROFITS- . HE cost of everything has gone up outrageously. The mer- chants, manufacturers and landlords who make that explana- tion for the high prices asked of the public state facts. But— and here is something just as true which they will NOT admit— profits also have soared beyond all reason, except in agriculture. The farmer still has to accept what is offered him. He still. has to buy at retail and sell at wholesale, and he still has no voice in fixing his selling price and profits. But everybody else who produces or sells anything is raking in previously unheard of profits. Profits of practically all corporations dealing in food, clothing, fuel and basic raw materials are now more than 100 per cent greater thgn before the war. Sugar profits have increased 300 per cent, meat packing profits 300 to 400 per cent, clothing 500 per cent, shoes 100 per cent and coal 400 per cent. These are the profits of the manufaeturers and “handlers,” not of the farmers who produced the beets for the sugar, cattle for the meat, wool for the clothing and hides for the shoes. The farmers’ profits, where there are any - profits, are no greater than before. These figures are from an-offi- cial report of W. Jett Lauck, former secretary of the-national war labor board, as given the railroad labor board (United Prese renort). So the consuming public not only has to stand the increased cost of raw materials, manufacturing and labor, but has to pay for heartless and immoral profiteering all down the line. \ KANSAS, ALLEN AND “LAW AND ORDER” ANSAS is the state of Governor ‘Allen, famous “law and or- der” advocate and originator of the industrial arbitration law which labor is opposing. At Great Bend, Kan., the other day a mob beat, abused and deported members of the Farmers’ un- ion and the Nonpartisan league, including a woman. The activities of the mob were protected by the “peace” officers. The object was to prevent peaceful assemblage and free speech as guaranteed by the constitutions of Kansas and the United States. The Wichita (Kan.) Daily Stockman on June 8 following the above outrage gleefully reported a news item efrom Hutchinson, Kan., which stated that a “Service Bureau of the American Legion posts” had issued the following “proclamation” : NOTICE TO 1. W. W. Any red card I. W. W.s coming into the wheat belt are directed to = the following farmers who belong to the Nonpartisan league, which is fraternally affiliated with the I. W. W., and who doubtless would gladly employ their comrades in the common cause: (Then follow names and addresses of farmers.) : I. W. W.s are not wanted by any one else, and notice is hereby éiven that the service bureau, American Legion posts, of this wheat elt will furnish quick transportation if necessary. This studied, brutal insult to law-abiding American farmers whose offense is organizing politically, needs no comment, we think, We merely inquire what the “law and order” governor is going to do, if anything, and, in respect to the Legion proclamation, what the state and national officers of the American Legion are going to do. PAGE THREE 2