The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, October 17, 1921, Page 12

_a sheriff must get evidence on A Page for Women - Written by Women Can We Get Fair News? Is There Any Way to Solve Problem? A Letter and an Answer DITOR Nonpartisan Leader: There is something I want to say to the Non- partisans, so I am going to write it to the Leader. Before the women were franchised I used to take off my hat to men for knowing all about politics—that is, when I heard them discuss politics they always seemed to know all about it, and T never really paid a great lot of attention to them. So I supposed that they did. But, after women got the vote, I felt that I wanted to vote intelligently so I began to pay a little more attention to -the men’s discussions of politics, and I began to look around in newspapers and magazines to see if I could find out what our senators and representa- tives were doing. When I look in the newspapers it states some- thing about congress working on such and such a bill, or maybe that congress has passed it or re- pealed it. And maybe it says a sentence or two that doesn’t tell you any more than you knew be- fore you read it. When I look in the magazines I find a long article about such and such a bill that tells what one man thinks about it, and then I get another magazine and find an article on the same subject by another man, and maybe he has an al- together different idea about it. What do I know about it? Now why wouldn’t it be a good plan for the government to issue a paper, say once a week, and state in it just exactly what congress is doing in good plain English? State not what they think of the bills, but just the plain facts of what they are and who are working for them and who against them. Then we would know what our men that we send to congress are really doing. Every one could subscribe for the paper the same as any other, or it could be taken from the taxes and sent to every voter. I think the latter would be really the best way, as so many people would be careless about subscribing for it, but if it comes to them all of the time they would soon get interested and find out what they really ought to know: Of course, I know there would be an awful fight against anything like that, but so is there against the League, and I think we could get one as well as the other. I am going to cite an instance. I'm not going to vouch for the facts, for, as I say, it is almost im- possible to get the facts. Sev- eral people were talking to- gether and one lady spoke of selling something to some men whom we knew to be bootleg- ging. Another lady spoke up and said: “I wouldn’t do that, because I voted for prohibition and I wouldn’t do anything to help them out.” WOULD KEEP TRACK OF REPRESENTATIVES Then another one told us that they understood that our state legislature at a recent session had made a ruling that a bootlegger, then swear out a warrant, before he could arrest him. Now, I'm not saying whether this is so or not, be- cause frankly I don’t know, but, if it is and she voted for our representative, did she vote for prohibition? Now, to go back to the be- ginning, the men“always seem to know just what they are voting for, but do they? I know what I want to vote for—that is, what measures I want put through, but I can’t ° tell whether the man I vote I MRS. VENTZKE I Head of the Washington state Wom- en’s Nonpartisan clubs. raphy of her appeared on this page in the last issue. » THE FARM WOMAN'’S PAGE for is working for or against them after he is elected. Now, if every farmer knew just what his repre- sentatives were doing he would know whether he’ wanted them re-elected or not, where now about all he knows is just what they do for him, or tell him that they do for him, while they are campaigning for election. The Leader tells more facts than any other paper, but you haven’t the space to tell all that the farm- ers ought to know. I think it ought to be the plain facts, just as they really transpire. I believe that if the farmers had such a paper they would be in- terested in it, and I believe if they knew just exactly what their men were doing that they would not have much difficulty in controling the agricul- tural states. I realize that it would raise a big fight, but so has the Nonpartisan league. I would like to know what others think about it. Chester, Mont. MRS. T. F. WITT. EDITOR’S NOTE: Congress now publishes the Congressional Record and bulletins showing all bills and resolutions introduced, the vote upon them and what senators and congressmen say in debate. In addition each government department publishes bulietms, some, like the department of agriculture, even issuing regular periodicals and newspapers. These government and congressional publications can be obtained by anybody. Many of them are free, but any of them can be obtained for a fee covering cost of publication. Your senator or con- gressmen will tell you how to get them, if you write him. SOLUTION IS IN PAPERS OWNED BY THE PEOPLE While these publications give the “plain facts,” which Mrs. Witt says she wants, they are dry read- ing and few people will read them. For reasons too many to explain here, the government can not . issue publications or newspapers that would be easy ° .to read ‘and give a clear idea of events. essary to have INTERPRETATION of plain facts, as well as the facts themselves. Otherwise ordi- nary readers will not grasp the situation. We-can mot trust the government to interpret, because when the government interprets its own acts or the acts of congress, it is merely an interpretation of the politicians who happen to be in power, and is always unfair, one-sided and biased. So that a government news- paper which attempted to in- . terpret events would be a joke. The government published a newspaper during the war, which nobody paid any atten- tion to. City governments have also failed in like enterprises. The solution is the education of the people to finance and support co-operative daily and weekly newspapers of their own, like the Minnesota Daily Star, for instance. Until the people will wholeheartedly sup- port such publications, and get them established in every city, there is no hope for the evil Mrs. Witt mentions, in the opinion of the editor. And it is a hard fight and difficult in the extreme to get the average citizen, man or woman, to sup- port such papers. But it is a good subject to discuss and we hope others will give us their ideas, as Mrs. Witt suggests. WOMEN WIN Work on the part of the women’s organizations was re- sponsible for the enactment of the Missouri constitutional amendment enabling women to hold any state office, and per- mitting women to serve as delegates to the convention to revise and amend the state constitution. The amendment was adopted at a special elec— tion August 2. e PAGE TWELVE ¢ A brief biog- It is nec- . they will not depart from it. To Help Women in New Role as Qitizens _This picture shows the officers of the Renville coun- ty federation of Women’s Nonpartman clubs, which has served the women’s movement in that county since the federation was organized. They are Mrs. E. J. Miller, president; Mrs. B. Binger, vice presi- dent; Mrs. Lilian Hewardine, secretary; Mrs. Max- well, treasurer, and Mrs. Howard Baker, county délegate. The Sin of Waste How the Children May Be Taught by Tell- ing Them Stories BY F. G. B. (Written especially for the Leader) ENTERED my neighbor’s home just as the midday meal was over. I sat down on the opposite side of the table from my friend and we talked. In the meantime her three children, who were four, six and eight years old, amused themselves by breaking off bits of bread from a . half loaf that was on the table, and throwing it at each other. The piece of bread, which would have made toast for breakfast, was wasted and ruined before the mother seemed to notice what was going on. She rebuked the little ones’for pnttmg bread - crumbs on the floor, but said nothing about the waste of the bread. A broom was brought in by Mary, the oldest girl, and the crumbs were swept into the open fire. -I was horrified at this and remonstrated. I considered myself intimate enough ‘with this family to take a liberty, so while the mother cleaned up the dishes I gathered the chil- dren about me and told them the story of the little girl who was wasteful, and who burned her shoes because she was tired of them, and who threw good bread and meat in the garbage can because she did not want them at that time. Then on going to the door of her home one snowy morning she found two barefoot children freezing and starving. She then realized how selfish and sinful she had been. I impressed the children with the fact that over in Europe millions of people are starving, and how glad some little child would have been to have had the bread that was swept into the fire. Waste is more than foolish; it is wicked when somewhere in the world there are people who are always needy. Neither is waste the mark of gen- tility that some foolish people seem to think, but it is sinful and a crime. Christ was not wasteful, as was demornistrated by the parable of the loaves and fishes. One can not know him and yet commit so great a wrong as to destroy the things which many people are dying for each day. Children are easily impressed. A good story now and then will influence them greatly. They like to feel they are doing something for some one, es- pecially for other children, so if they know no bet- ter than to destroy food, whose fault ig it but the parents? Take tlme, fathers and mothers, and bring the little ones ip the way: they should go and