Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1917-05-15
IN THE INTEREST OF ACCURACY

The esteemed Courier News of Fargo. virtuous1y
rebukes all and sundry who are not throwing up their
hats and shouting 'Hurrah for Bill Ianger!" anent the
recent raid at Minot, and it makes particular mention
Of one paper from which the only praise that the at
torney general gets is that his action looks like a cheap
attempt to be sensational The inference is that the
paper from which the quotation is made condemns the
effort to enforce the law at Minot.
1nasmuch as the language quoted was used by The
Herald, we take it that it is The Herald which is de-
nounced as the friend Of the evl-doer because it does
not set up a hallelujah for Mr.. LANCER.
If the Courier News will obtain a pair of spectacles
which will straighten out its obliquity Of vision it will
find that the article from which it quoted will bear no
such construction as 1t has given 1t. It will find that
The Herald stated distinctly that II the conditions at
Minot were anything like those described. TT was high
time that somebody got busy 1t will find not a syll-
able of excuse or apology for wide-openness, but, on the
contrary. denunciation Of it. 1t will find the statement
that. regardless of political motives-and MI. LANCER is
decidedly more the politician than the stateman-if the
situation was beyond control Of the local authorizes, it
was the duty Of the attorney general to act. And 1t will
find that the paragraph from which It quotes has no
reference to the raid as such. but rather to the histrion-
les with which it was staged. In the interest Of accur-
acy that paragraph is again quoted, as follows:
The method Of procedure-if again We are to
credit the stories sent out from Minot-eeems to
leave much to be desired. 1t is rather poor business
to breek one law in order to enforce another. For the
attorney general Of a state, either by himself or by
his agents, to march into a telephone Office and drive
a roomful Of girls from their work and hold them at
bay with revolvers does not add greatly to the pop
udI COHCoptlOH OF n dignity OF the once or the
horse sense Of tho individual who occupies it. It
makes the whole performance look like a cheap at
tempt at the sensational rather than a serious at
tempt to enforce the law of the state.
In looking that paragraph over we find in 1t nothing
to modify. For more years than it is necessary to count
The Herald has stood for law and order. It has fought
the blind pig and the things that belong with II. But
it has not approved all the methods which have been
employed by ostenstble reformers, whether these meth
DDS have included the smashing Of windows with a
Ratchet or the terrortzing Of telephone girls with a re-
volver. 1t has condemned those methods, whether I'm
ployed by Carrie Nation or by Bill LANCER.
The Herald, together with all other Sunday morn
Ing newspapers in the northwest, was misled by informa-
ton which came with every appearance OF authenticity
into making the announcement that the First and Third
battalions Of the North Dakota National Guard had been
called out for service. This information. which came to
The Herald from private sources and from the Associat-
ed Press, was erroneous. The North Dakota troops have
not yet been called out, and there is no intimation as
to when they will be. The manner in which this re-
port gained currency is not yet clear. That subject is
still under investigation.
So far as the calling out of these two additional
hattaions is concerned the situation remains unchanged.
1t is a foregone conclusion that orders for service will
come in the not distant future, and the soldiers will
maintain themselves in a state of readiness for the call
when 1t does come.