The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1919-08-28
INJUSTICE CAUSE
OF MUCH UNREST
TACTICS IN TOWNLEY TRIAL
SHOW DISREGARD OF
FAIR DEAL
Chairman of Committe on Public
Information. in Leslie's Weekly.

Cn8lrman OF commune on Public
Information, in Leslie's Weekly.
A few weeks ago a Minnesota jury
returned verdict Of guilty in the
case of the state against Townley
and Gilbert, two leaders of the Non
partisan league, charged with con-
spiracy to teach doctrines Of disloy-
atty. The League, it may be explained
is a farmers organization sufficient
ly powerful politically to carry North
Dakota at successive elections and to
threaten the dominance of the two old
parties in Minnesota, Montana, Neb-
braska and Idaho. 49,.
The indictments against. Townley
and Gilbert were returned under cir
cumstances that in themselves arous-
ed a great deal of bitter feeling and
unrest. In the first place, the men
were not arrested under the federal
espionage law, specifically and dras-
tically framed to reach just such Of
fenses, nor was any federal official
in the state found willing to proceed
against Townley and Gilbert on the
evidence collected and presented. The.
arrests were made under an made
quate state law that had to be stretch
ed to cover the alleged crime, and
the trial was delayed until a year
had passed.
Members Of the Nonpartisan league
charged openly that the whole pro-
ceeding was part Of the campaign of
persecution organized and carried on
by the Republican machine" aided
at every point by certain leaders of
the Democratic machine" This feel
ing was widespread and we'll known,
and it rose and grew at a time Of in
dustrial unrest both in Minnesota and
the nation.
- The Methods Used
How then did the autohorities in
charge of the case go about the busi-
ness of disproving these sinister sus-
picions? ss%,r~~os-~7 .- ~ ~+~. .- .....
By holding the trial in re-
mote county IA sa small town virtually
inaccessible b any modern means Of
travel.
By trying the case before a
Judge who had recently admitted pref
dice. when it happened to be Town
ley and Gilbert before the bar, how
ever, the eminent jurist decided that
his prejudices had aba-cd, and sue
ceS',rliy resisted the eff ITS IT the
defense to oust him.
3. Although charged with making
speeches calculated to undermine 10y
atty, neither Gilbert or Townley was
permitted to introduce speeches call
ing upon people to support the war,
nor were they allowed to show their
various patriotic activities or to call
witnesses willing to testify to their
loyalty to the government and to the
war purposes Of America.
4 At the last, when Townley
claimed his constitutional right to pre-
sent his own. case to the jury, the
Judge refused permission and the
prisoner was made to keep silent.
And then there are those who snug
ly wonder why it is that there is dis
content, anger, suspicion and unrest;
why it is that our courts are attack
ed and the processes Of our law sub
jected to the charge Of discrimination
and inequality The guilt or inno-
cence Of Townley and Gilbert has
ceased to be. Of prime Importance in
this matter. It. is the machinery Of
American justice that is again on
trial before the workers Of the Unit
ed States even as in the case Of
Mooney. SOS