Williston graphic. (Williston, Williams County, N.D.) 1895-1919, 1918-01-24
N0NPART|SANS HAD MEETING
IN ARM0RY LAST SATURDAY
Walter Mills NOnparsan Spea ker Delivered An Address To
Audience In This City Saturday-Talked On Govern
ment Ownership - Tenant. Landlord Credit System

Walter Mills, lecturer, delivered the
address in this city Saturday for the
league. There was fair
crowd present, many farmers prob
ably being prevented from attending
by the weather conditions. Whether
his audience agreed with what he
said or not they were all of the opin-
ion that Mr.. Mills was good enter
tainor and speaker.
Mr.. Mills was introduced by Mr..
Burdick in few we'll chosen words.
The speaker opened his address by
saying that "The Nonpartisan League
has no theories to explain, no doc
trines to fulfill, but that they are
making an earnest effort to fix with
in the state what the people wanted
done, that they are going to fix their
proposals while they had the power,
while they were here. Not one pro-
posal of the League is one of expert
ment but each has been tested out
before and where such has been tried,
has also succeeded" Mr.. Mills up
held the League and said that "they
were undertaking nothing new, that
this was not an experiment" because
he has visited places in distant lands
where such enterprises have been car
ried on and have succeeded.
Turning to Mr.. Burdick he asked
GLOW is that?'
"It all sounds good" was his COM
prehensive reply.
Mr.. Mills has visited a number Of
foreign lands and mentions one in
particular where the plan of govern
ment ownership of all industries was
successfully carried on when once es-
tablished. Why and how this task
has come to the Nonpartisan League
was the main theme Of his address.
"The League is rapidly being extend
ed to new states and it will be the.
task of the League to elect members
to Congress who will put such enter
prise into effect"
Mills went on to show the condition
and the position in which farmers are
at the present time. "The
returns of the farmers are expended
in different ways: labor must be paid
for first; then comes the tools to work
the land with which is controlled by
the capitalist; then the interest on
the investment must be paid. If the
interest is unpaid, there is a fore.
closure. What remains after labor,
tools and interest have been paid, is
profit. By the toll of the workers all
wealth of the world is created"
Mills puts the farmers in a class of
workers or laborers and states that |
he League is working for the better
nent of this class of people.
"There is an essential difference
between tenant and landlord. Land
listen you people-You
'oor devils are not landlords. A
is one who owns the land
lon't want to use it-won't use it
md would feel disgraced if he was
compelled to use it, A tenant is one
Who uses the land but does not own
t, must pay the landlord a big price
or the use of it. l nmany cases the
and is so poor that it will support
My the tenant and furnish fodder
o the mules. Consequently there is
othing left for the landlord, but the
interest must be paid, so the tenant
ails"
Mills related an instance Of this in
illinois, "where some of the richest
,,,I ~, -, h.
urface holding invaluable riches of
liant and in a layer under ground an
nexhaustable supply of coal. Here
re found some Of the poorest peo-
lie living in small shacks, fences
bout the place all down and every
1ing in delapidated condition.
hese were the tenants and the land
'rd lived over there in London. Lord
Gully Of London, when the law for
id an alien Of Illinois to own land,
ame to the United States, swore the
.th of allegiance and went back.
hus the debts pile up on the ten
ITS and farmers. "The bank" says
ills "is an institution devised for
andlin,g this great credit system.
is the biggest and best invention
'er devised by man." To show the
'igin Of the bank, he began with the T
ank of Venice which according to
ills was the first of it's kind in his
ry. "This was community bank:
lyone could put in their gold and
her precious metals but they could
Ike nothing out, without the pres
ice of both parties at the pank. In
e Bank of England great change
ID taken place, a great invention +
e checkbook- had been made, which
the banking business.
,e transfer of credit then could be
ne without the. trouble of making
rsonal appearance at the bank.
lis shows the evolution of our pres
credit system. A man loans an
her man $1,000 and makes transfer
/