The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1919-12-25
LOCAL LEAGUE ORGANIZATIONS

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Decisions that will re-constitute the Nonpar-
tisan League from top to bottom and declara-
lions that outline the most important stand on
questions of popular liberty since the war ended,
made the League convention in st. Paul last
week without doubt the most important gath
ering in the history of this movement.
The decision that will change the structure of
the League and influence it's future, without
doubt, more than anything it has done before,
is the decision to organize the entire member
ship of the League into local organizations be-
ginning with the township and going up thru
the county organizations and the state organi-
cations to the national organization. This can
not mean anything else than increased respon-
sibilities and activities for League members in
the future.
An indication of how important is to be the
activities of the membership through the local
organizations is best seen in the way the League
membership fees are to be divided in the fu-
ture. The fees will be $18 for two years instead
of SIG as in the past. Of this sum the coun-
ties will get ST., the state will get 81, the ma
tional office will get 81.
Seven dollars to counties indicates what will
be expected of county organizations in the fu-
ture in the way of organization and propaganda
and political activities. This fits in also with
the new plan to conduct county campaign with
the view Of completely cleaning out the old
gangs and their power to do mischief anywhere.
With 81 to spend at home, the township and
county organizations will develop a great de-
gree of local self government and democracy in
the League.
With it's 81 for every member the state will
send the state League paper to every member
and will have funds to build up a local move
fnent that will continue the spirit of local self
government and democracy. With the 81 ap-
portioned the national office, the latter will be
able to send the National Leader to all mem
bers in all states and in addition to maintain
national unity and conduct the national cam
paions of the movement.
These changes will greatly increase the re-
sponsibilities Of the members They fulfill the
promise made by the founders of the League
that when League ideas had taken sufficient
root in the membership local organization and
local self-government would become the basis
of the Nonpartisan League organization. That
time has undoubtedly come and we are about to
witness, no doubt, the most important develop
ment in the history of the organized farmers
movement.
Just a little less important than this inter-
nal change outlined by the convention were it's
declarations on popular liberty in these strange
times of darkness, reaction, mob violence,
strangely un-American laws-of suppression and
times of delusion and confusion. The League
delegates declared for the old free America and
the old free Americanism of our forefathers
when there was no thought of furnishing men
for their political ideas, or of interfering with
the right of free speech and assemblage. With
most commendable intelligence and sanity and
courage the convention declared against the
continuance of the espionage laws during times
of peace, and for the rights of free speech and
assemblage. It declared that if We must have
sedition laws let them be applied to instigators
to violence as well as to those who advocate the
overthrow OF government. Americanism was
defined as the right of majorities to administer
the affairs and policies of the country and to
change the fundamental laws and institutions
bv peaceful and legal means. This program and
this kind of Americanism is in strange contrast
with the sham Americanism that seeks to rule
and impose itself by force. Only the abandon
ment Of the latter kind and the adoption of the
kind OF Americanism defined by the League will
save this country from trouble and preserve it's
traditional liberties.
Regarding the mixup Sheriff Hennessy had
with Editor Lee some time ago, The Courant
is at a loss to know whether the sheriff simply
walked out of the shop or whether he went out
il q hurry" Opinion around town is somewhat
divided, some saying that Mr.. Hennessy
thought best to get out in a hurry" while 9th
ers have it that he went out as though nothing
lad happened. Probably Editor Lee could lend
q little light on the subject.
Ideas, no matter how undesirable they are,
cannot be deported from . country. The only
way we can get rid Of them is to do away with
the conditions that produced them.
The /. ". Ats were the only ones who voted
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