Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1907-01-11

from receiving a majority over all, ard
to defeat him by having the matter
thrown into a convention where the cards
could be more easily manipulated.
The making of a ballot Is a very irn-
portant thing, but II is no more so than
the casting of q ballot. In all our cleo
lions the Candidate receiving the highest
number of votes is elected and installed
into the office. This is true even though
one-third of the total vote cast. A rule
which for years has successfully prevailed
to nominations by primary election. AT
any rate, in cases where there are three
or moro candidates, one should be sue
cesSful if he receives the highest number
of votes cast for any one candidate, and
not less than one-third of the total vote
cast for all the candidates for the same
office in the primary of his party. A care
fully drawn law covering the above points
will answer the objection that there VIII.
be too many candidates and that the sng-
cessful candidate may not have a SUIT
Client Endorsement to eutitle him to the
nomination and a provision therein pro
viding for a convention to take part IN
making the party platform and TO make
nominations in cases where no candidate
has received a third of the total vote,
will prevent disintdrgration and decrease
in party interest,
As to voters of an opposition party as
sistins in making nominations and AFTER
Each party should have It's separ-tc
primary ballot, and when a voter asks
name in a distinct and audible tone OF
voice, the political party OF which he is
a member. Each party should be ne9Inir r.
case of n challenge, the voter should be
required to make oath that since prior 70
the last general election he has, in good
faith, been a member of such a party and
a believer in its principles, and that ne
intend in good faith to support the
candidates nominated by it at the prtm-
aries in which he is participating. severe
penalties should be imposed for the pun
ishment of members of one political party
xvhA WIT. nN a ftnIaIt. 70 vote he DTimarN
ticket OF another. With proper safeguards
OF this kind. there will be less voting OF
this character at the direct primaries than
there is now at party caucuSes,
AS to the objection that in making nomi5i
nations for county offices, the country VIII
be denied fair representation;
County nominations by direct primary
until the caucus law of two years ago waG
enacted had been voluntarily adopted by
the dominant party and maintained IN
Hughes. Hyde. Beadle M C~odington
counties for years. Several times the ques-
or more of these counties whether they
should not abolish the primary and re-
turn to the convention. In every such
case, a decided majority was In favor OF
retaining the primary. Thu law, however,
can easily contain a provision giving to
each county the option to decide by a pop
ular vote whether candidates for county
offices should be nominated in such cour-
ty where the large towns are disposed to
take more than their share OF the offices
under the direct primary, should that ever
be the case, the option to suspend the APP
plication of the law in that county as e
county nominations and to make such
nominations by convention the delegate
to the same being elected by vote at tbs
primary election. All of these objections
lation can obviate. No objection to thu
fundamental principle involved III the
primary will stand for a single moment
the light and assistance you can get, tc
formulate and enact a practical and com
prehensive primary election law. i
should be made effective by an emergency
clause, because it's enactment has beel
demanded from authoritative sources with
out conditions. Nearly 5000 of your con
stituents petitioned for its enactment and
submission two years ago. Its enemies
year every political organization in the
state by overwhelming meiorities in par.
ty conventions have emphatically declared
in favor not of the enactment and sub
mission OF the law, but In favor of the en-
actment of the law. It's enemies who tive
years ago opposed it's submission may nov
emergency clause on the plausible claim
that the right to invoke the referendum
should not be barred by such a clause.
ago may now-if they receive encourage
m~ent-pose as its most Jealous defenders
Under the cloak of ~pretense, however, vii
be found enmity on their part to the pro
posed law and a desire to defeat the de
mands made in party platforms by delaa
stoned not to enact a primary and ALLOW
it's enemies to suspend it's effect for twt.
years, but to enact a primary and max
If time shall prove that 1t is defective
it can be amended; or if experience witt
both satisfies the people that the conven
be repealed. Our duty is plain. We niue
in good faith execute our commtssiot
which is clear and unequivocal.
Public Accounting for Campaign Funds
The corrupt use of money to in1luencE
voters and to carry elections IS a DANCE
which attacks the very foundation of rel
resentative government. When assess
the purpose of carrying on political cam
paigns, the public welfare is involved II
its expenditure.
If It is used to buy votes, make bets upo
results, pay for whisky and treats, and de
bauch the morals of men. It sows the
| sponsibility to account is placed upon tn
men who receive and disburse it, they MAY
collect It for one purpose and spend It e.
punity, or use it against the very men WnN
paid It. To assert that no legal checks Q
Of money IN political campaigns and cleo
tons, is to take a position that IS little les.
than monstrous.
Assessments Laws.
Every one comedies that our revenut
laws are crude and inadequate. The re
firing governor two years at the CLOS
of an administration OF four years, dc
legislature to this one subject. In h.
opening address to the Legislature. M
| predecessor referred to It 1t seems TO mt
that the time for action has come.
The franchises of public service corpora
tons organized in this state and the prlv-
ileges to do business Xnd hold property II
this state granted by Ms laws to non-rest-
dent pubic service corporations are o.
very great value, and the law prescribina
u rule for assessing the property or these
corporations whose property is a kinc
possessed of marvellous earning power
omits all reference to the value OF tne
| ence rs made to increased value OF tina
part of the property of these companies ~
ing within towns and c.ties, where theA
have depots, machine shops, enlarget
grounds, sidetracks, general offices ant
personal property of great value. The ter
minal grounds and depot buildings of tn!
Burlington and Missouri RIVER Railroad
company and OF the Chicago and North.
way N the city of Deadwod and Lead
worth thousands of dollars, are valued un.
der the law at the same rate per mile a
one mile of single track over the oper
| spaces of land in Custer or Fail River o.
Pennington counties
With one of the richest gold mines in Tho
world in its midst, the average value o
mineral lands in Lawrence county is only
S91. 66 per acre: the total number of acres
of mineral lands in the county is A, TO ane
the total assessed valuation thereof, $,r
4 SOC, 235.
With 2. 734 miles of Western Union tele
| graph lines in the state assessed by the
state board at $249.G00 and 0,723 miles OF
telephone wires in the state assessed b.
the same board at STSo,293. and the prop.
erty of the expresstcofnpanies assessed "a
Sl3J, 2gS, and the Pullman company as
sessed at S22.5C0, We find all this propert!
going entirely free of road tax, because tht
tax levy is made upon 1 by the stat
board exclusively and no equivalent I
the road tax IS levied at al.
1t should be made the duty of the boart
/ of raf lrOa1 com miSSiODerS to enDlOy ex