The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1917-07-27
ANOTHER HEAVEN
FARMERS AGAIN LED INTO WILD
POLITICS - WILL BEAT
THE CHANGERS.

HE bfA8NtIttS
Tonight A. G.. TOwnley, president
OF the National Farmers Non-Parti-
san league, which has subyerted the
politics OF North Dakota, speaks in
Madison, explaining the new move
ment. The writer was i'm North Da-
kota at the time of the inception of
this movement, and like the politics
of the Farmers Alliance and the
Changers, 1t swept the state like
wildfire.
This organization is n of and for
the downtrodden farmer. I'm the en-
tirety of its organization 1t supplies
the means and machinery whereby
the farmer may buy at the cheapest
market. and sell in the highest. 1t
Is to eliminate the middleman. This
means that the large town will get
smaller. and the small town will van
ish. II means that the league will
have its own elevators. mills and
stores. II will handle every possible
thing that the farmer uses. and will
eliminate entirely all other business.
from banks TO cobblers.
If the farmers OF Lake county will
reflect a moment they will remember
the heavenly promises made by the
Greenbackers. the Changers, the
Farmers Alliance and the Populists
successfully. They will remember
the plans partly perfected OF making
the farmer the ruling class with
stores. shops, transportation and
markets. They will remember the
thousands of dollars invested. They
will remember the disheartening
sickness with which the whole vision
airy scheme fell prone. and the dere-
lict members sought affiliation with
other parties in a mad scramble.
The strong talking point in the
present organization is the fact that
these earlier organizations did not
exact anything from the member ex-
cept his utilization. They ascribe
their failure TO the fact that there
was no money. They are not going
to make this mistake again. With
the present league the first hard
work they do after eating dinner
with the farmer is to collect SIG
from him. This is apparently for a
subscription TO their official paper.
an organ printed in Fargo. N. ID.
For further development of the
great system of stores and elevators
they take either a fore-dated check or
his note. Amount not stated.
The emancipated enrichment OF
the farmer has always been a beau
tiful dream. Charlatans have taught
a gospel fun many times. As often
as a wild-eyed demagog thought out
a feasible one he sprung il on the
people. This lis a guaranteed inn
provement over any preceding one,
and claims are made that it is abso-
lutely the only perfect system yet de-
vised-and so the others claimed.
and where are they? James Weaver
can at least be said TO have been an
honest, if misguided. mamie died
poor. The present organizer travels
in luxury that no farmer whom he
prevails upon to join may ever hope
to enjoy on this side of his spiritual
heaven.
What if the hopes of the organizer
are gained? What will be the exalt-
ed level to which the farmer will be
lifted2 All these economic problems
are governed by immutable laws
which no man nor set of men car
control. AS a conjecture il would re
suit in something of this kind The
league would gain their supply
stores, shops and eleyators-theiI
transportation and storage and clean.
ing and selling facilities. They
would succeed in destroying all com
petitive business. The people who
are engaged in business would be
driven into other oecupations-and
the only single occupation open to
them would be farming. The towns
would dwindle and the proximity to
cities, which in more than half the
continent makes the land valuable
would be entirely destroyed-there'o
be no cities. Then, all these displae.
ed business men would be seeking
farms. The competition would bt
intense, the production would be i'm
mense. There would be no large
populations for the grower TO sell t.
mo prices to sell for. OF course
this is carried out to the extreme o.
its reasoning. But ii shows that tn,
system must of its own growth ant
power become top-heavy and topplt
because of its own rayages-like I
fever. Or. better still, like the vile
systems which have preceded it.
OF newspaper attacks. Mr.. Town
ley says that they were instituted be
cause they fear him. That they ar,
upholding capitalism and pirates ant
Wall street. 1t is admitted. AL
well thinking and we'll grounded
business men fear his creed. Blu.
not from the cause he ascribes. Fol
all business is founded in something
more solid than fanatics can conceiv,
of, and the men who conducted 1t dis
like to see the farmer or the poor mar
duped-not alone for his immediate
loss, but for the hardship that alway.
follows a frenzied emotional debaucl
be the victims of the illusion.