The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1919-05-15
AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT

. The attitude of the gang controlled press calls
to mind the ancient though at the moment very
apt tale of that son Of Erin who, as he landed
on our shores, was asked as to his political pre-
ferences. "Have yez a goovernmint?" said he,
and being answered in the affirmative, replied
succinently: Thin, I'm agin it."
Under the present frenzied and fear-stricken
attitude of the old machine press, that man,
by his own words had condemned himself. Any
man who is now "agin the goovernmint" is Ii
able to expectation on the one hand or Ole Han
sons Seattle gallows on the other. It is no long
er polite to be opposed to the government. Per-
haps times may change and by the campaign of
1920, we may be permitted a short breathing
spell, wherein we may crowd in all the adverse
thoughts and comments that have until that
time been held within US.
There seems to be somewher e a gross miscon-
ception of the finer shade of meaning that may
easily be found between being against the gov
eminent" and "against the administration"
This is true of both state and national govern
ment and administrations.
Thus we find the anomaly Of the loyalists of
this state being "loyal' to the national govern
ment or administration (save for a deft party
criticism of Wilson now and them and being
very disloyal to the state government or admin
i~stration.
Thus we find also that the same l~oyalists and
profiteers do not hesitate to denounce the farm
ers of North Dakota for their attitude of dis
loyalty to "our established institutions" and to
the sort Of government which the interests gave
us for nearly thirty years. The farmers are
accused of desiring to overtu1n a republican
form of government, of wishing to destroy
democracy and impose upon themselves and the
remainder of the people of the state the "slav-
cry of socialism,"
Yet the fact remains, despite these accusa-
lions, that the farmers of North Dakota have
no intent, desire or purpose to overthrow the
government of this state. Judging from results
OF recent elections, they evidently desired the
overthrow of the old administration and they
got what them desired. They were evidently
opposed to "our established institutions" if
these meant that the products of the farmers
toll were stolen from him and he were left with
out remedy in law or in fact. That sort of an
established institution may be good but is in
good in the sense that King Georges taxes on
the Colonies was good for his Majesty and the
reverse for the men who paid the taxes.
It may be Socialism" to have wrongs and to
seek to remedy them through the orderly meth
DDS of a democratic form of government. It
may be "socialism'' of the darkest type to dare
to criticize the form of administration under
which these evils and wrongs fourished. If it
be, then socialism has all these long years
been rampant in majority of hearts in this
great nation, and we have had among us not
a few foreigners, like the Hibernian, who came
here prejudiced against government" but a
large majority of the people who are just as
the farmers of North Dakota are, but without
that energy or that leadership that North Da-
kotans possess to drive them into responding
by action to the thoughts that dwell within
them.