El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1919-04-17
NORTH DAKOTA
NEAR SOCIALISM
NOnpartisan League Advo
Gates States Ownership
OF the Utilities.
during N. war and the telegraph and
loontInued Ion ~ b


Public Wants Efficiency
7 suggested to SIr. Townley that the
objection was not 10 the nomenclature
OF these things but their operation
b The pubic wanted efficiency and
would choose accordingly as IL be-
liz ed the government or private own
{ ers would do the job better and in
a Quired what incentive he thought
there would be for men Of executive
! ability who have the "knOw-how' 20
get into the railroads or utilities II
the highest salary they would get was
about $4,000 a year
eWell.- saTG Mr.. TOFnIey.
there's no question hut that state
and government salaries are too
little. hut while the salaries OF Of
ficials might be fixed there Il no
ohiec- TO hiring experts At
] higher sums In North Dakota.
our hi=-t Il officials EC-s 5000.
I but In the operation Of our state
! bank. for instance. we shall prob
] ably have l. pay more to get eL-
] pert help
I questioned Mr.. Hownley about two
! things which opponents OF the league
I ha cited to me- One was the chain Of
] cooperative stores in which the
/ leagues officers are interested and
/ the other in the proposed measure in
Y the North Dakota legislature whereby
{ only one newspaper in every county
! vas hereafter 10 be selected for legal
/ notices and advertising. This had
| been described TO me a means TO put
/ ting out Of business newspapers now
/ fighting the Non Partisan league.
To Vote For Newspaper.
! At present" said Mr.. Townley, the
/ county commissioners pick the legal
/ newspapers OF small circulation The
provision 70 pick the newspapers by
a st~-s ting commission viii last
only until the next general election.
when the people in each county viii
Hnr "a ~r-hfnF- ehrrr
wish TO get this advertising. just as
! they would vote for a sheriff"
OF course il is between now and
the next general election which more
than a year away that the damage
viii ne done If il Is going to be done.
The Non-Partisan league has newspa-
pers in nearly every county. Tt is ex-
pected TO select its own newspaper
and thus get a strong hold, because
the Non-Partisan league has given its
members the Impression that all other
organs but its own are controlled BY
the Interests" Such an attempt to
establish firmly the Non-Partisan
league newspapers is bound to react
against the league itself and when
the measure comes before the people
In the referendum in June Il would
not be surprising to see them reject
Certainly. the opponents Of the Non
Partisan league, who have denounced
most everything that the league has
proposed. are not in a position TO
carry conviction on this vulnerable
point because other things obviously
TO the good OF the farmer are not
sanctioned, though privately many
men viii admit they are not as bad as
they seem
For instance. the state owned
elevator. There's no doubt that
ToWnleyism wouldn't have pro
pressed very far II the powers thar
be had believed in n state owned
elevator and II sometime ago
curbinE power had been exercised
against those who were asking
ezOrhitaut rates OF interest for
loans TO the farmers.
The railroads and the manipulation
Of freight rates didn't help to keep
down ToWnleyisms, but bred them.
and the only encouraging thing about
the situation today is that the oppon-
ents OF such changes have seen how
powerful any class can become II a /
skillful agitatOr comes along and
takes advantage OF the weak spot in
the economic machinery. The big
question is whether the opponents
viii fight 70 the last ditch or begin |
to recognize the merit OF those things /
which ought TO be remedied
Revolt In The League.
Now appears 10 be the opportunity l
for there is a revolt on in the ranks /
OF the Non-Partisan leaguers them l
selves, with the attorney general. /
state treasurer. secretary OF state, 4
and state auditor aligned against 4
Townley. ~ho is called too dictatorial /
and autOcratic. Also, the blue sky /
law commission OF North Dakota /
composed Of the governor. the secre-
tary OF state and attorney general \
have forbidden the further sale OF {
stock or the Enlistment Of any r
Nan - Las ct.
an accounting is rendered and changes 4
are made in the form Of contracts by
which subscribers today pay 500 /
simply for the privilege Of buying at
these stores for cash plus ten percent
and no provision is made for that 500
to come back TO them because II is
spent in managing the stores or "edu-
organization"
Mr.. Towniey himself denied TO me
that he had any stock in these con-
Germs or that anybody could make any
more out Of them. but the insurgents
inside the Non-Partisan league are
asking for an accounting and are
given an impression that the stores
are not as beneficial TO the consumer
as they sound. the truth Of which
however. is something which only an
official investigation can reveal.
Solicitors Selling Stock
i IS important that something like
this should occur, because solicitors
are out IN ten different states OF the
central west preaching that the stores
ere success Also, in order 20 earn
heir commissions on the emberships
which they sell TO farmers throughout
the central west they are saying
things about the actual operation OF
The league which may or may not be
50. The Minnesota opponents Of the
league accused IL OF disloyalty during
The war and undoubtedly weakened
he league in the election by so doing.
lut one editor told me he believed the
charges would never be
sustained in higher courts, and that
he indictments against Townley in
particular. had been promptly quashed
ly the supreme court Of the state.
This man, as well as others who do
Tot approve Of the Non-Partisani
eague. said the tactics Of the opposi-
Ion made converts to the league
imong the farmers. Now. however
he war is over and the disloyalty ar
5ument Is gone.
The big question for surrounding
Itates TO decide is
VIII they recognize the good points
II the league and say SO and fight the