The weekly times-record. (Valley City, N.D.) 1912-1922, 1915-02-11
A olscaACEFUL EPISODE.

meeting held for the purpose of grant
ing to representatives of the Society
Of equity the courtesy of hearing be-
fore the entire membership was one
Of the most disgraceful eposides in the
history of the state, and the man Lof-
tus, in taking advantage of the posi-
ton in which the courtesy of the leg
islators placed him to hector, bully
and browbeat men who were sent to
the legislature as the representatives
of the people of this state was an ex'
hibition of gross impertinence and SUI
preme presumption seldom paralleled.
The legislature two years ago d.
rected the board of control to investi-
gate the feasibility of the plan for
some time advocated for the state of
North Dakota to build one or more
terminal elevators outside the state,
and to report at this session. The
board followed it's instructions. 1t in
vestigated in person, it held hearings,
it listened to statements made by adj
vocates of the elevator plan, as we'll
as to those made by its opponents. Il
collected facts and figures, and on the
basis of the information which it has
gained, it presented to this legisla-
ture one of the most complete and ex-
haustive reports, and one of the most
moderate in it's form of statement.
that has ever been placed before a
North Dakota legislative body. The
board concluded, from the facts which
were presented, that the building Of
the proposed elevators would not be
god policy for the state, that the en-
terprise would involve the expenditure
of very large sum of money with
strong prospects of financial loss, and
that there was no reason to believe
that it would result in any relief to
the farmers of this state from condi-
tions in the grain trade of which they
complained.
On Tuesday the two houses of the
Legislature adjourned and attended in
body the meeting which was held
for the purpore of having set forth
the views of certain advocates of the
elevator scheme. And thereupon this
man Lotus, regardless of the condi-
tons under which he spoke, regard
less of the demands of ordinary de-
cency in the intercourse of man with
man, and, more important than all,
regardless of the fact that he was
speaking to and about members of the
highest governing body in the state,
who represent the states sovereignty
and dignity, launched out into a
TRADE which could not bave been
more violent and abusive had it. been
addressed to gang Of convicted
horse thieves.
There was no allowance for any
honest difference of opinion. There
was no admission that men who had
not yet decided might honestly be
seeking information. And there was
the bald statement that members who
were not prepared to vote as this Mr..
Lotus demanded that they should
vote were sold out to corrupt inter-
ests.
And who is this Lotus, anyway?
And how does it come that he as.
sumes to take their work out of the
hands of the legislators, and to in
struct the people of North Dakota
through their governing body, what
they shall do and what they shall not ?
He is politician resident in another
state, who by virtue of glib tongue
and persistent and pernicious agita-
ton when agitation would serve his
purpose, has landed himself in a fat
job and seeks to fatten it still further.
He has travelled over the northwest
preaching TO certain of his hearers
that all other men are rascals. He
has exerted an influence that is en-.
tl'ely vicious, and he has been able
to bully, wheedle and cajole so sue
cessfully tina: he has secured fol.
lowing which has pulled him up with
sense of his own Importance and led
to the exhibition of Tuesday.
There was, in the indignation of the
moment, talk of citing LOTUS for crn.
tempt. This speedily subsidized. It is
better so. The man richly merits pun.
lshment for the insult to the state
and its people. But to institute pro.
ceilings against him would be to dig.
nifty him in manner that is unwar-
ranted and unwise. Neither are re-.
prisals Of any kind to be considered
The legislature Of North Dakota can.
not afford to descend to the level of
Lotus. The incident, disgraceful as
1t was, has its value It shows in a
conspicuous and unmistakable man