Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-06-24
"A QUESTION or DEMOCRACY

The treat majority Of the people Of North Dakota
are essentially democratic in their traditions and iheir
practical Many Of them como from q long line Of
Anertcan-born ancestorI II their lineage on this side
OF the ocean reaches back to revolutionary times they
inherit the traditions Of those members Of the great BRIT
tsh empire who took up arms in defense Of that democ-
racy which they insisted was theirs as British subjects,
and of which an insane king and q hidebound tory min.
istry would have deprived them. II Of more recent Brit
ish extraction they still share with the revolutionists tho
traditions Of orderly freedom which have como from the
days of the great Alfred. under whose wise guidance the
foundations Of constitutional government in England
were laid; Of the days OF King John. when there was
wrung from a would-be despot the Great Charter Of
human liberty; Of the days Of Hampden and Cromwell,
and of innumerable other sturdy patriots who loved lib
erty, and who loved peace SO we'll that they were willing
to fight for It.
Many Of our citizens arc Of Scandinavian or,x,nL
They have brought with them tho glorious traditions Of
the land Of their fathers. and. they can point to the
splendid history Of a thousand years Of struggle for
freedom. for the right Of the people to determine their
own destiny and shape their own affairs. No matter what
race is represented among us. English or Scandinavian,
Irish or Scotch: from whatever land our people hail. in
practically all cases they have an inheritance Of freedom,
and Of order without which freedom cannot exist, which
they prize above all other possessions, ana which they
will fight to the death to defend.
Inc Issue IN ne elect10n which Is to be held on
Wednesday, when reduced to its primary elements. is
Simply that Of the preservation Of that freedom which
has been passed on to us by our fathers. and. OF the or
der and security without which that which we call free
dom would at once become anarchy, as it has already
done in "free' Russia.
We are at war; For what? Because some Of our ships
were sunk; because some Of our people were killed; be-
cause our country was filled with the spies and destruc-
tive agents of a nation which pretended friendship: be-
cause we were .houted. insulted, lied to, slapped in the
face? Not at all. These were. contributing causes, irri-
tating incidents, things to make the blood boil, to arouse
the passions, but it is not for them that we are at war.
We are at war because the free government for
which our fathers fought is menaced with destruction,
and. as our fathers fought for it in times gone by, so we
fight for it today. and it is for its preservation that we
are prepared to fight to the death. The result Of the cleo
ton will demonstrate whether or not we grasp the issue
and understand what is involved. While we have been
preparing for war and actually participating in it, men
who have sought to be accepted as leaders of our people
have spoken publicly and persistently in criticism Of the
war, in denunication Of it and the purposes for which it
is waged, have opposed the draft, have opposed the sale
Of government bonds for its support. have opposed the
financing Of the Red Cross and its great work Of mercy.
and have done everything in their power to place OBJ
stacles in the way Of the nations preparation. Mr..
Townley, the head of this propaganda in the northwest,
has his list of candidates for Office. and the nomination
of those candidates will tend to strengthen the hands Of
iTownley, to make his obstructive work more effective,
and will promote directly the cause Of the powers Of
autocracy which this nation is fighting.
The nomination of the Townley candidates., IN plac-
ing the seal of approval on Townley and his methods.
will still further be a direct denial of the principles Of
democratic government for which our people stand, for
Townley has repudiated those principles in all his public
acts. He has sought to set himself up as a dictator, not
merely. over the society which he has created, and which
he insists is a private affair and no concern of the pub
lie, but over the whole governmental machinery Of the
state.
The economic fallacies which have been advocated
by Townley are dangerous, but their acceptance would
not be fatal. Men may suffer great loss and still survive.
We may build state elevators, and packing plants, and
other things Of like character; and IL we are not salts
fed with them, If we lose money by them, we can dispose
of them, or tear them down, orA let them stand idle, and
the money which we have lost we can regain by hard
it. But we cannot sacrifice our own independence and
deny the very principles on which human society rests
without suffering irreparable injury. s.
The moral of it all is that for the sake of our high
est interests, as well as for the same Of our immediate
financial prosperity, we must administer to Townley and
his horde of hired men such a rebuke as was admins
tered in Minnesota a week ago. and this can be done eff
fectively only by nominating Wick, steen and the entire
Independent ticket from top to bottom: 4
REGISTRATION AND VOTING
In some quarters there is a lack of clear understand
ing as to Just what the voter is expected or permitted