Montana news. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-191?, 1907-04-18

N'0'it lduu - 70 ne IeclalHtu through
irrigation and settlers have taken up
small tracts of forty acres of sage
brush yastness, with the hopes of
having a spot on the planet to call
home.
The first stop was at Scherrer The
new settlement plan has brought peo-
pie into this tract Of country of un-
usual intelligence and progressive
ideas, and in fact most of them are
imbued with the socialist ideas. It is
socialism that stands for progress in
this generation.
Scherrer is the concentrated essence
of this socialist idea. 1t is only a
few board shanties, but the precinct
elected two justices and a constable
last election. Everything is socialist.
Here are our friends, the Demos,
formerly of Butte. John has the vii
lage store in company with Mr.. Hall.
The whole bunch are socialists. Mr..
Scherrer, for whom the town was
named, is one of the stalwarts of many
years standing. He has converted all
the younger generation about him.
Here is also the home Of our friend
Cheny, the teamster, who exposed the
graft in the government contracts in
connection with the Minodoka project,
He was blacklisted for his zeal on be-
half of an honest deal, and the News
printed the circular he issued con-
eerning the matter. His wife is Just
as gritty and just as good socialist
as he is. She is the village butcher
and runst he meat market while her
husband does the work on the farm.
Chickens and Science.
/ was entertained most comfortably
at the Demo homestead. Here live
the father, the blind son, Frank, and
his wife and babies, and John Demo,
all ardent socialists. Frank was blind
ed making wealth for the capitalists
by an explosion in the Rochester mines
The elder Demo was recently elected
justice Of the peace.
Their place is the fsrthest under
cultivation of any have seen on the
" Project, as this whole government
irrigation country is called. They have
quite large part of the place cleared
of sage brush and plowed and set
with all sorts Of fruit trees and others,
and fine garden commenced, a sslid log
house of four rooms, a big rock cellar
with walls three feet thick, and the
finest yards and buildings for the
poultry industry that one can find any
where. They have incubator and
brooder, bone cutter, up to date pans
and fixtures, and deal in the white leg.
horn chickens.
Their moves have all been success
full so far.
Ideal City.
This Socialist Local has planned
its town, that is to be when the gov
ernment sells the lots. Instead of let
ting a town grow up haphazard with
every one elutching at the others
throat, and bad buildings and poor
business as the result, these citizens
have planned cooperative communi.
ty. They have formed a cooperative
company that will purchase the best
lots around the square, and there erect
large, commodious and beautiful stone
buildings that will supply both social
and business needs.
One chief purpose Of the co.opera-
tive company il to provide a market
FOR the product. The company will
send n man with their goods to a large
market, Pocatello or Salt Lake, and
avoid the bleeding commission men.
The place is filed with the air of
70 operation and mutual aid.
Government Graft.
All along the line Of these great gov.
prnment works one is impressed by the
utter inadequacy If government in.
iustry as carried on by grafters and
tool politicians. The letting of the
work to contractors completely oblit-
crates the feature Of entCrprize by and
FOR the people. Graft is rampant, the
'hief engineer being now in the hands
II the federal authorities for making
Of thousands Of dollars of |
he letting Of the contracts
The settlers can't tell anything |
'boot when they will get their water,
he government requires more strict
Concessions from them than from ordi.
nary homesteaders They can't make
! living on this sage brush desert till