The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1901-08-29

ever understood or JUSTIFIED, ne sent out
Stump Speech No. l as a veto message
in the matter of House Bill No. S7-a
measure intended to insure impartial
justice in the courts and to bring peace
with honor to the troubled and dis
tressed people of Butte. who wanted
nothing but square deal and Favored
the bill because it insured one. Cover
nor Toole was aware of that, or never
would have sent out such veto mes
sage as he signed on that occasion.
Now he has issued Stump Speech NO. 2,
in an effort to explain why he went
against organized labor on the Cincin-
natl contract. He seeks to fix the re-
sponsibility of contract with an "un-
fair house, upon organized labor itself,
because it did not discover and notify
him that the house is unfair" thus
seeking to evade his own share of re-
sponsibility for the violation of personal
and party pledges made to the working
men of this state last fall when he was
seeking their votes. In his statement
he makes out a splendid case for the
Cincinnati firm to bring suit on. Were
the Hon. Joseph X. Toole the attorney
for the firm instead of the Hon. E. w.
Toole, he could not lay a better founda-
ton for a suit than is contained in this
statement:
Believing, as I do, that the acceptance
of the bid by the board. based upon the
specifications which formed a part OF 1t,
with notice of such acceptance to the
company, makes a complete contract IL
does not seem possible, however disposed
one may be, to avoid it by failing or re-
fusing to sign a written contract.
Nothing but a suit against the state
| could be expected in view Of the official
admissions Of the states executive, him
| self a member of the board that made
| the contract. OF course II the governor
| insists that the contract cannot be an
| nulled, and regards an attempt to null
lily it as a dishonorable evasion OF an
obligation, the inference for the public
to draw concerning the character and
motives Of the representatives of labor
is anything but creditable to those gen
| tlemen. Such Indifference of democratic
office holders to the interests Of the men
| who place them in high station, trusting
| to their good faith, is not without prece
dent in Montana politics. The Inter
Mountain warned the workers of Mon
tana last year when the democratic can
| didates were going up and down the
state cursing every corporation in exist
ence and threatening to drive out of the
state every man who would like to re-
tain his investments here under the pro
lection of the law-the Inter Mountain
warned the workers of Montana thai
they were following after false gods
This fact has been apparent to them fol
some time, and it may explain why al
the Anaconda labor convention last weel
the delegates, by unanimous vote, al
yocated separate political action o!
workingmen in the future. It is as GER
tain as fate that so long as labor shall
trust to democracy to right its wrongs
or places confidence in men having onl!
selfish objects in view, labor will get tn
worst of the bargain.
What the legal points involved are
the Irter Mountain does not pretend t.
decide. The courts will decide the ques
ton of legal right and wrong, and thei
decision will meet with the instant ap
, prevail Of this paper The governor
: error may not be so much in his presen
! attitude as in his neglect in not ascer
tanning before letting the contract tn
{ status of the Cincinnati firm of Niche
& CO, from a labor standpoint.