The river press., 1904-10-19
Chouteau County Republican Ticket.
ARTFUL POLITICAL DODGERS.

Realizing that the platform adopted
and the candidates nominated by the
republican state convention will at
tract the support OF the good citizen.
ship of Montana, democratic news.
papers and orators are resorting to
the dodge of attempting to impeach
the sincerity of republican pledges.
They represent that the reforms prom.
ised in the republican platform will
not be carried into effect in the event
of republican success, and declare tn at
the democratic party is the only hon
est and sincere advocate of the initia-
tive and referendum, direct primary
law, railroad commission and other
legislation in the interest of the peo.
pie.
Even Governor Toole, who is sup.
posed to represent the good element of
the Montana democracy and who pro.
fesses to be honest with the people, re.
sorts to deception in this matter. He
is we'll acquainted with the record of
his party; he has intimate knowledge
Of the corrupt influences tha have con-
trolled democratic legislatures in sen.
atorial elections and in the consider
alton OF proposed laws, and yet he
ventures to recommend the election OF
democratic candidate as the only true
friends of the people.
In one of his recent speeches, Gov.
ernor Too]e stated that repu blican
newspapers are not discussing the re-
forms promised in their state plat.
form. The governor may be excused
for making this statement, as he prob
ably fails to read republican newspa.
pers, but the people of northern Mon
tana have been informed upon this
subject for several months past by the
republican press, and have placed
themselves on record as in favor OF
these proposed reforms by endorsing
them in republican county conventions
This action was taken in advance OF
the meeting of the republican state
convention, and was in response to
the evident necessity for legislation
that would protect the people agains,
corrupt influences that have brought
disgrace upon this state
In speaking of newspaper discussion
of state issues, it is to be regretted
that Governor Toole did not poin
with pride to the able and earnes
support given to proposed reform leg
islation by the leading journals of hi
own party. His omission to do st
was due to the fact that the Anacond
Standard, the Butte Miner and tn
Helena Independent, the three mos
influential democratic newspapers il
Montana, are opposed to the reform
planks in their party platform. Th
Standard says they are temporar
populistic fads; the Miner condemn
them as non-democratic, and the In
dependent has ridiculed them as tn
products of cranks and theorists
The governors criticism of republica
newspapers applies more appre
priately to those of his own party.
The record of the two political pa,
ties in regard to the initiative an
referendum is a matter of histor
which Governor Toole and his dem,
cratic friends DO not care to discus
In the legislative assembly OF 1897, a
initiative and referendum amenduel
to the constitution was proposed b,
met with overwhelming defeat. TT
assembly was almost solidly DEM
cratic, the republicans having on
seven or eight members. In the eigh,
legislative assembly of two years az
q resolution that an initiative az