The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, October 3, 1921, Page 6

it. The war helped the landlord tremendously. The war stopped building operations. The war deflected lumber, steel, cement, paint—in short, all building materials—from their natural and normal course, into war work. The population kept on increasing, but building stopped. Rents rose rapidly, forcing up wage costs. Wage costs forced up production costs, then interest charges rose also, and finally taxes wrongly applied also increased the cost of building materials. Then another thing happened which was inevi- table. Land values rose by leaps and bounds, es- pecially in the cities. Now, there is something peculiar about land values. When land values go up, they stay up. If business is dull, owners of land stop selling and weit until the depression ends and the inevitable South Dakota Plans 7 MINNESOTA | BY EDITOR MINNESOTA LEADER HE false cry of “Socialism” made against the farmers and workers during political campaigns in Minnesota by the Republican machine politicians and their press was branded as a false issug by the state courts the other day. The decision was in connection with the /suit brought by Thomas Van Lear, workers’ candi- “date for mayor of Minneapolis, who lost out by only a few votes at the recent city election and who is contesting the election of Colonel Leach, the mili- tary man who was backed by the Re- ) publicans and big business interests. The Working Péeple’s Nonpartisan league of Minneapolis, which indorsed Van Lear, has raised funds to test the validity of Leach’s election. Leach charged during the campaign that Van Lear, in a speech at Superior, Wis., had called the United States Flag ¢ a dirty rag.” Van Lear imme- diately demanded a retraction, brand- ing the charge as utterly false and in violation of the corrupt practices act which is supposed to regulate elec- tions in Minnesota. Instead of re- tracting and apologizing, Leach pro- duced an affidavit of a former notori- ous open-town mayor of Superior, who ran a questionable hotel there and who was driven from politics by the moral reform forces of the city. This notorious character, known as “Rilver Joe,” swore that Van Lear had made the statement about the Flag at a Labor Day meeting at Superior. Van Lear immediately produced all the newspapers published at Superior which reported the speech in question, showing that no such statement was attributed to him at the time, and he also got affidavits from a large num- ber of responsible, prominent Superior people, including the chief of police and public officials, who had heard the -speech and who said that nothing of the kind had been said by Van Lear. Leach still refused to retract, al- though all the “evidence” he had was the statement of the notorious “Silver Joe.” - This charge was probably what de- feated Van Lear. The courts last year disqualified a Nonpartisan league candidate for congress who had received a large majority at the -hands of the people, because during the campaign he had made a charge that his opponent was an atheist, which the court held he could not prove. Believing that the corrupt practices act applies to Republican ma- chine candidates as well as League candidates the friends of Van Lear are asking that Leach be dis- qualified as mayor on the ground of the false charge against Van Lear concerning the Flag. In his answer to Van Lear’s suit Mayor Leach stated that it was reasonable to suppose that Van Lear made the statement alleged because he be- lieved in Socialism and was.in fact a “Socialist can- didate” for mayor, although he had not been :in- says: dorsed by the Socialists and ran as the candidate - of the Working People’s Nonpartisan league. The ; demands of population create additional land values. Land owners know that land is something that can not be increased in quantity. Population increases. The demand for land increases, but land does not increase. The land owning class ultimately and inevitably . forge ahead of every other class and in time we arrive at land monopoly. Remember, I speak al- ways of the men who own.land and do not them- selves use it, but demand high rent of others to use it, or hold the land out of use for excessive, specu- lative prices. That is the class we want to tax by a land values tax, not the farmer land owner who™ makes his land produce through his own efforts. High land values benefit no one except the specu- lator and monopolist. High land values do not benefit the farmer who farms, and they are cer- unDakos e NONPARTISAN LEAGUE NEWS Clrsto convention o answer said that Socialists held the Flag in con- tempt and were for destroying the government, and it quoted statements from Socialist books, speeches and resolutions. Van Lear asked the court to strike out this false issue of Socialism in Leach’s answer to the suit, on the ground it had nothing to do with the merits of the case. The court upheld’ Van Lear’s request and the case will go to trial on its merits, without being confused with a lot of nonsense about Social- ism. Minnesota Leaguers are pleased that the courts have at last branded the cry of Socialism against farmer and worker candidates as an unfair and confusing “issue.” l . SOOTHING SAVAGE 1. V. A. BREASTS I Here is a Nonpartisan league organization that is doing effective work in North Dakota. The picture was sent us by J. A. Van Wegenen of Temple, N."D. He “Ole Knutson of South Meadow township organized this boys’ band, whichi has given much of its time to playing at Nonpartisan league picnics and meetings. They are a fine bunch of boys and make great music. Where they stand politically is perfectly plain from the wording on the drum in the picture. ._The ‘N, P. L.’ stands for Nonpartisan League.” [ SOUTH DAKOTA | BY THE STATE MANAGER INCE its great state convention recently held, the Nonpartisan league of South Dakota has taken on new life, and the interest in its work appears to be more intense now than at any time since its advent into the state. Meet- ings have been held all summer, and the townspeo- ple, who formerly remained away or threw eggs are now turning out en masse to learn what the League really proposes. - The political campaign in South Dakota really begins the first week in November, with the pre- cinct caucuses for the selection of delegates to the county conventions. The state nominating conven- tions of all the parties will be held at Pierre the PAGE SIX 7 g - “lands. tainly bad for the farmer who must purchase a farm on part credit. High land values stand as a wall between the non“owning farmer and the farm swhich he rents but wants to own. _ High land values do not benefit the small home owner in the town or city. High land values prevent the renter from be- . coming-an owner. High land values do benefit the landlord, however, because such high land values stop building, decrease competition and inevitably - tend to create moncpoly. The principal land values are in the cities and in the mineral and timber These values are notoriously undertaxed or not taxed at all, and hence such values keep on increasing. g / I recommend that the readers of the Leader send to the Farmers’ Federal Tax league, 2506 Ward (Continued on page 14) first week in December, and the primary election will follow in the last week of March, 1922, The Republican .state machine succeeded in re- pealing the provision of the primary law for joint debates between candidates before the primary and the succeeding fall elections, and also repealed the section of the law providing for a publicity pam- phlet, which was sent to every voter with the candi- dates and-platform of each party. The machine doesn’t propose to take any chances on debates, nor does it aim to inform the people what the issues are or who the candidates may be. . The League management .is staging great meet- ings at the staje fair at Huron, and at the Mitchell Corn Palace celebration, annual festi- vals which are generally largely at- tended. The proposal of the League state office to send a booster delegation from South Dakota to North Dakota during the recall fight is meeting with a generally favorable response from - South Dakota Leaguers, who realize the necessity of .giving North Dakota all the help possible. It is proposed to organize an expedition, composed of South Dakota cars and headed by a battery of speakers, to put in 10 days in North Dakota, going from town to town on regular schedule, holding meetings and giving the South Dakota _ view of ti.z North Dakota fight. ™ coLoraDO BY THE STATE MANAGER HE Colorado campaign for 1922 has now actively started. The League held its mass conven- tion September 3 and 4 at Dén- ver, and formulated plans for better and more effective work. Among the many things talked of in the conven- tion was the matter of post-dated checks. Memberships will hereafter be received on cash payment or ne- gotiable note, instead of post-dated checks. We fully believe that every well-intentioned farmer would prefer to give a note in payment, rather than a post-dated check. “Our state convention was a real suc- cess. It was attended by farmers of broad vision and men who realized that the Nonpartisan league is the £armers’ only hope. These men returned to their homes, and in many instances at once requested that we send no organizers to their communities, because they in- ~ tended to organize their own precincts, thereby al- lowing the regular organizers to go into newer fields. The precinct plan of organization was perfected at the convention and met with fearty approval by all present. We are making preparations to put . the Colorado Leader, the League state paper, in the mails once mere. This we hope to accomplish in the very near future. The state paper has been ' suspended during a large part of this year, as there .. was no political campaign on. ~ Many important resolutions were thoroughly dis- cussed and adopted, among them the following: “That we commend A. C. Townley, president of the National Nonpartisan'league, for his labors in = . 1 < ’