Bismarck daily tribune., 1908-10-21
IEMRER OF ASSOCIATED PRESS
SIGNIFICANT AGITATION.

r Z SIGNIFICANT AGITATION.
B The supreme court of this state is
a pretty able and fair tribunal. The
inference of the Democratic organ
at Fargo that the court had decided
the primary election law case in ad-
vance and that, for that reason it
took jurisdiction of the case, is the
noise. of a little thinking critic and
not the reflection Of wisdom. The
court in all probability took juris-
diction of the case because the mat
ter is an important one, because any
citizen has an entire right to bring
1t to the courts attention, and be-
cause the court is not shirking it's
duty. Ne serious person will take
serious consideration of the view
OF the case advanced by the Fargo
News.
Neither is there such grave turmoil
aud alarm for the saty of the state
as some Of the newspapers of the
state would have us believe. The
Valley City Times-Record loudly pro-
claims that the entire political body
polite is agitated, that terrible times
are upon us. that unless the case be-
fore the court is dropped, many Re-
publican voters will punish the Re-
publican party by voting against c.
A. Johnson, candidate for governor.
We have heard such threats from
the Times-Record before, IL we mis-
take not, and we shall probably hear
them again from similar sources,
whenever the Times-Record can use
this threat as a club with which to
gain it's special ends. u ma Il 4
C. A. Johnson, the Republican can
didate for governor, is not at all con-.
cerned with the case that has been
brought into the supreme court, of
that we are certain. He is the nomi-
nee of the Republican party for
governor by majority of the Re-
publican votes too large to question.
Just why any Republican should
vote against him to punish some citi-
zen or citizens who may have availed
themselves of their rights to test a
!. law that is believed by good many
people to be unconstitutional, we can-
not see. And we do not believe there
is any such intention on the part of
anybody unless it is the editor of the
Times-Reeord, whose loyalty to the
Republican ticket all along has been
pFedicated upon certain quid pro
quos, and has been accompanied by
frequently repeated threats. Such
party loyalty is hardly commendable
and it not very deep rooted. :.
So far as the senatorial features
of the primary law are concerned,
they have not. yet been decided by
the court, and there is no question
but that the decision of the court will
be based upon the law and the con-
stitution, without respect to the spec
ial interests of anybody, and with
due regard to the rights of every
body. There have been admissions
from various sources that the sena-
toria1 features of the law were of
questionable validity.
Even the Grand Forks Herald,
which for reasons of its own, opposes
testing of the law at this time, has
said:
The section prescribing the
pledge for legislators is, so far
as form Is concerned. as clear
violation of the federal constitu-
ton as could have been framed.
Tt appears that the person or per-
sons who have brought the suit to
test the law have had the benefit
of some suggestions from such dis
tinguished source as the Herald.
1t is a privilege citizens Of the
state have to avail themselves of the
courts in cases properly brought, and
to say that because some citizen or
citizens OF the state have chosen to
\ test the primary laws senatorial fea-
lures, the candidate OF the Republi-
can party for governor shall be pun
ished by partisans OF a candidate for
the senate who seeks the indorse-
ment Of the people under that law
Ii to advance very poor kind Of
party policy indeed
The interest Of the Democratic
papers of the state, and Of Democrat
ic speakers, in the selection Of = Re