The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1918-03-15


to advance the political interests of
the league.
These two men have maliciously
slandered public spirited members of
the Public Safety commission in an
effort to bring together the farmers
and wage earners for the political
purposes of your political partys self
constituted leaders who are neither
real farmers nor real laborers, but
self-seeking demagogues whom the
real, actual farmers and the actual
laboring men of our state Will soon
err or later find are nothing but pre-
tended friends-wolves parading in
sleeps clothing.
"You, who appear to be the execu-
tive secretary of this organization,
were the attorney who defended the
murderers in the l. w. w. trouble on
the Range two years ago and who
has assisted the 1. w. w. organization
which has publicly announced that it
is it's intention ultimately to take the
farms from the farmers; whose head
quarters since the commencement or
the war have been raided by the fed
eral government and whose members
are now taking refuge in such organ
izations as the National Nonpartisan
league.
Farmers Support IncomprehensibIe.
'How, under such circumstances,
the farmers of Minnesota who have
been threatened with the loss of their
farms, who have time and again been
compelled to appeal to peace officers
for protection against the members of
this lawless, anarchistic organization,
can now join league with promoters
whose sympathies have been with
this law-breaking Bolsheviki element
in our society, is well nigh incompre-
hersible. The only explanation that
can be given is the fact that some of
the leaders and organizers of the
Nonpartisan league are evidently not
yet known as we'll to the farmers
and laborcrs of our state as they are
to those who have had more exper-
fence with them.
Might Be Misconstrued.
Another reason for declining your
invitation is the possibility of con-
STRUNG my presence at your partisan
campaign rally by some as an en-
dorsement of your propaganda. 1t is,
of course, the duty of the governor
to be fair to all classes and to oppose
any program which is likely to result
in division of our state into classes.
Such arraying of class against class
would be welcomed by the enemies
of our republic, for such a course
war and will eventually mean the dis
solution of our form of government
and the undermining Of the economic
and political freedom of our people.
"He who in normal times needless
ly arrays class against class is most
often the ambitious demagogue, bur
any individual who will do so when
our nation is in life-and-death
struggle is knowingly or unknOwingly
| a traitor to his state and to his coun-
| try.
Is With LoyaIists.
"In declining to speak at your par
| tvs rally l wish to say further that
| for me there are during this war but
two parties, one composed of the
| loyalists and the other of the disloy-
| alists. The only party whose cause
! / shall strive at this time to advance
is the party composed OF those Amer
leans, who, heart and soul, are loyal
| to their country.
| "The only issue that to me is para
mount at this time is the winning OF
| this war, and that cannot be done if
our house is to be divided against
ITSELF through false accusations OH
the part of political agitators such
as those who head your organization
''The only party and politicians
who in this campaign | am going 10
oppose are that party and those poll.
ticians who for party purposes, by
innuendo or otherwise, are discour
aging our people by claiming this L.
war begun by the rich or that the
burdens of the conflict will fall more
| heavily on one class than another OF
make statements which in some other
way will lengthen the conflict by ere
ating dissatisfaction at home and
| thus indirectly cause the death oil
additional thousands if not millions
Of our fellow citizens on European
battlefields.
Reasonable Conduct.
| eve all agree that war profiteers
should be dealt with as drastically
as it is possible to deal with them
But it cannot be said this is rich
mans war, for those who have
gained the most from it would have
made great profits if the United
States had not entered it,
81 hold no brief for any class, bu
to make the farmers or laboring me1
believe their sons are Disseminated
against in this war as claimed in your
statement of principles is reasonable
conduct, for the rich mans sons are
conscripted proportionately to {
greater extent than the sons of the
farmers and laborers. This is ap
parent because Of the exemption o
those needed to support their de
pendents and the exemption allowed
because of agricultural and industrial
pursuits. Up to this date about
per cent of the male population o
our country has been called and 81
per cent of the war taxation ha'
come from business profits and in