The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1913-03-19
.DON0HUE ATTACKS
EDWARDS
DAWSON COUNTY MAN REFUTES
DISPARAGING ARGUMENTS
OF AMALGAMATED CHIEF.

Glendive, March 1S.-(Special)-In
Saturdays Billings Gazette appeared
an interview with Senator j. E. Ed
wards of Rosebud county, in which he
attacks the governors veto of the
county division bills, which has
aroused the ire of a good many resi-
dents Of this section. who know that
the same does not give a true state
ment of facts.
No man in this section is more ia
miliar with general legislative condi-
lions and with the methods used in
the Iate legislature for the passage of
the four county bills which Governor
Stewart vetoed than is DIR. D. j. Dono-
hue, who served a term in the house
from Dawson county, and who was in
Helena most of the time during the
recent session of the legislature, fight
ing the progress of these self-same
measures. DR.. Donohue has been
prominently identified with the af-
fairs of the democratic party in this
section for many years, and is known
as one of the original progressive
democrats Of Montana. He has al
ways been found fighting on the side
OF the people, both in the legislature,
and out of it.
From DR.. Donohue your correspond
ent has secured the following signed
interview, which makes pertinent n
caustic reply to the statements of the
senator from PoSahu1 cnI1ptv.
The Statement.
The statement of Senator Edwards
regarding the governors veto of the
county division bills astonishes me
more than any accredited public ut
terance I have eve read. 1t is evil
len to me that the senator is either
guilty of a deliberate attempt TO de-
ceive the people and cast opprobrium
on Governor Stewart, where it most
emphatically does not belong, or that
he manifests an amazing ignorance of
political conditions in Montana, and
especially in the legislature.
Senator Edwards w public record
as a political accessory of the corpor-
alton interests in this state will very
largely discredit anything he may say
as to the Influence of the Amalga-
mated Copper company, either pro or
con, on this county division question.
Every word he writes or utters on the
subject will be taken by those who
know him best as being but the ex-
preston Of the sentiment and desire
of those interests themselves; and it
is quite evident to everybody that,
since the governors independent,
fearless stand on these measures, nav
ing at last met a chief executive of
Montana whom they cannot bulldoze
nor bully, these people are eNerting
every possible effort to discredit the
governor and weaken his influence,
which is increasing with the growing
errors integrity.
In tho light of actual facts, the most
ridiculous claim that could possibly be
made is that Governor Stewart was
in any manner influenced in his veto
by the powers that control all at
fairs of Silver Bow county," The
whole state knows now that those
powers were in favor of the creation
of these counties, and especially of
Wibaux county, from the very start.
A Clear Division.
For instance, in the senate those
eight or nine members who are known
to be anti-Amalgamated voted against
these county division bills, while
those senators who wear copper col
lars, like Muffly, Whiteside, Burns,
Dearborn, Leary and others, were
with Edwards, the chief corporation
%nenchman, and the r%eactiorary repub-
lican machine, working for and voting
for the passage of these particular
bills. And never before in the history
of the Montana Legislature has a bill
of such apparent insignificance as
were these county division bills had
back of it so much l~og-rolling and
lobbying as did these measures. The
men behind them held up everything,
regardless of it's merit, in order to
force these bills through. They open
ly boosted at the beginning of the leg
islature that they had the owe and
were going to put them across; that
the republican machine and the Anal
ga:nated Copper ring were back of
them, and tat his continuation of
power could not be broken. They de-
livered the goods all right enough, but