Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-03-05

aO0uttYe Departments ot the North Da.
,kOta state government. They have
passed. by initiative vote OF the pep
pie, constitutional amendments which
regime In that state. Included anon
these Ia the measure which conforms
to the main plank IN the platforms
of, both the national and state Social
list parties-the provision which per-
mits h state to engagein any indus
trtal enterprise or business, except
the liquor business" North Dakota
is and has been for years q constitu-
tionally prohibition stated
I said that these amendments had
been passed by the people. That was
not correct. They wore simple de-
clared by Towrhey's Socialist supreme
court to have been passed, although,
they were not. And right hare is a
good example lof the defiance ny So
ctalisnl, in practice of all legal and
qonat!tutional restraints: The North
that. to pass q oonstitutional amend.
ment by. initiative vote Of the people,
it must receive. not merely a majority
Of tho votes cast upon that measure
but a majority Of all those cast at.that
general election; and this was en-
phasized. by another constitutional
provision that, if passed by two sue
ceeding legislatures, it should then be
referred to the people and that in
such case the action Of the legislature
should be confirmed as to any amend
ment bysa majority Of votes cast
thereon. Townley himself gave warn
ings to h voters before the general
election, for fear that these amend
ments should not receive a majority
Of all the votes cast at the general
election. He publicly issued oral and
written warnings stating that the pro-
posed amendments in order to pass
must receive a majority of all the
votes cast at the general election.
But when such majority failed he and
amendments had passed anyway; and
the other day his state supreme court
SO decided.
His Socialist legislature has just
convened at Bismarck and the riot
of laWlassness is on. 1t has already
appropriated s21. 900. 900 and provid-
ed for the taking over by the state
of the banks. elevators and flour mills.
And more is yet. to mn The tax
$35 ,00O, 900, which makes a tax of $50
per capita this year as against about
one-half that sum last year. And
more are yet to come. Every action
of the legislature is determined by an
outside secret caucus where Townley
and a few chosen adherents control.
To this secret caucus no one is admit
ted except those members Of Town
ley's league who have been sworn
in and who have a card to pass them
into the caucus room If afterwards,
on the floor of either, branch OF the
legislature, any discussion is started
on IN measure, some league member
moves the previous question. All de-
bate is stopped and the ,~nnsure
! Doouoc ar fnilo ooo0r1inO IN tna MO
vious action Of the secret caucus. 1t
is useless for any body to introduce
a bill before it is approved by the So
cialist members of the secret caucus
and a league member has to introduce
' bill IF he is told tosdo so. One
Of the official organs of the league,
published at Bismarck. announced last
did not follow the action of the
league caucus upon measures before
the legislature would be excommuni-
Gated and, indeed, driven out of North
Dakota.
To what extent these Socialists will
dare to so in their present. orgy Of
control. 1t is difficult to say. Measures
have already been introduced, which
it is understood will be ordered
passed, for the purpose of setting up
the state in different kinds Of bust
ness, under one of the defeated. con-
stitutional amendments which the SUI
preme court held to- have been passed.
Thus far this includes the business of
elevators. mills. state fire insurance,
and hail insurance. But the session is
yet young and only a small percentage
Of the usual number of bills has yet
been introduced. 1t is not surprising
that a bill prohibiting the display of
the red flag was promptly killed.
Tax measures. thus far introduced
by league influence or passed, indi-
cate a trend toward a c~onfiscation
of land values by the application of
the single tax theory. Indeed Social
ism as taught and applied by Town
ley is everywhere apparent to be Of
the orthodox type. The Nonpartisan
league has been advertising and SELL
ing "a league text book" by Freder-
ick c. Howe, of which a special league
edition was gotten out for league
members and this book advocates the
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