Emmons County record. [volume] (Williamsport, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1884-current, 1917-03-29

ter.
There was time not long since when
it was pretty thankless proposition
for a newspaper to attempt to warn
the public against such political free
hooters as have recently garnered
finances and power in this state by pre-
tending an undying love for the farmer
Now we receive occasional unsolicit-
ed letters from farmers, and farmers
ut that who joined the league when it
was first started To the man not nc
customed to newspaper work it is hard
to appreciate what these letters mean.
The Record has been cussed and dis
cusscd from one end of the county to
the other, and many have fancied that
the paper was opposed to the farmer.
But the Record has made it plain at all
times where its criticism was directed,
and farmer members of the league are
beginning to bear us out And, above
all, recent developments have borne us
out in our contentious most surprising
ly.
The Record contended that many
honest farmers would be elected with a
halter around their necks, and that u
firm hand would hold the rope end of
the halter. Emmons county people
who were in Bismarck during the last
session know whether or not such was
the case. The Record from the first
questioned the honesty and good faith
of the organizers of the farmer move
mcnt. Their course in the last ses-
sion speaks eloquently. House Bill "a
was the chief product Of the league at
that session. We have dwelt upon the
points contained in that measure, as
well as the method proposed. Judge
Robinson, league elected by the largest
vote for any of eight candidates, speaks
up decidedly in declaring the SCENE
unlawful AS to the points of attack
in the bill, tn league organizers and the
league newspapers do not dwell upon
them. They do not explain them,
They simply try to silence argument
by harping upon the fact that league
opponents are circulating these argu-
ments. If they didn't who would we
wonder? Would Ward? Would
Townley? They dropped whole para
graphs of the present constitution pre-
venting mergers of railroads, and they
say the provisions meant nothing. At
least, they had done no harm, so why
make them an issue unless the league
bosses have smooth, underground
working agreement with the railroads.
Or why didn't they change the sections
so they did mean something, instead of
trying to kick them out bodily? Be
yond that. they are silent. They talk
about jOkers in all good bills that the
league killed. Instead of killing the
bills, why did they not by their two
thirds automatic membership in the
house eliminate the jokers and then
pass the bills, thus putting it up to the
senate? For months we have heard
the league bosses patting the Equity
bosses on tn back. Now, in the last is
sue of the Leader, we see the official
Equity newspaper pounded and ham,
mcred as hard as ever was even L. B.
Hanna or the cold gang" Frazier did
the same thing as the 1915 legislature
but he had already stumped the state
hammcring the former legislature for
doing what he has done as governor
Rate Expert Little of the railroad com
mission disagreed with Frazier and
Townlcy on Il certain railroad rate bill
Frazier couldn't give him the bounce
so he vetoed the appropriation for his
pay. He had board of regents that
he wanted to appoint. The old mem
bers had several years yet to serve, Sc
he simply bounced them on techni
cality,and depended on the three league
elected judges of the supreme court to
make it stick.
Never has North Dakota witnessed
more high-handed administration
than this not yet three months old
And, all the time fat salaries are being
paid professional organizers to gather
in the SIG collections, and to keep the
administration in Office two years from
now.
The league representatives tell us
that the senate should have made cor.
rcctions of all parts of the proposed
constitution that they do not them
selves attempt to explain. If their in
terests were what they pretend, why
should such a thing have been neces'
sary? Why should Representative
Ward vote for measure that he can
not back up section by section. anc
falls back upon the argument that the
senate should have eliminated the OBJ
jectionable sections? Our answer is
that he did rot want to jeopardize the
league control by disagreeing with its
dictators in any matter whatsoever
He didn't care to be given dose of the