The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1920-04-08

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| | ST|RS VETERAN
! HILDRETH REPLIES TO GIBE OF
+ EDITOR ROCKWELL AT
SOLDIER CANDIDATES.
/ Fargo, N. D.-Melvin D. Hildreth,
who toured the state in the interest
of the progressive Democratic can
ldidates in the recent primaries return
led to Washington on April 1 to re-
sumo his work for the Democratic Ma
tional committee. In the course Of an
interview he said 81 am sure that the
Democratic party of North Dakota
will never compromise with reaction
ary Republicans in their effort to
bring back to North Dakota condi-
tions against which we have fought
so long. Eighty per cent of the peo-
Eple of this state are farmers. They
are too intelligent to be led astray by
the tools of Wall Street"
| Shortly after the primaries J. E.
Rockwell, editor of the Fargo Forum,
published an editorial making nasty
attack on Mr.. Hildreth and sneering
at the attitude of returned service
men in the primaries. Hildreth wrote
a reply to Rockwell's attack, part of
which follows-"Under the caption:
More Unfinished Work." J. E. Rock
we'll, editor of the Fargo Forum, saw
fit in Fridays issue to launch a bit
ter personal editorial attack upon me
for my attitude in the campaign just
ended. That normally, would occas-
ion an annoyance to me, for two reas-
IONS: First, because Of the reactionary
character Of Mr.. Rockwell and the We
hicle thru which he speaks, and Sec
ond, because it is rather a credit to
la progressive Democrat to be attack
ed by reactionary Republican edi-
tor.
/ But because the attack has wider
and deeper meaning than mere per-
sonal one, l consider it my duty both
to the cause represent and the young
men beside whom I fought the enem-
les Of our country both here and in
France to take issue with the carpet
bagger who has had the temerity to
attack who have lived in and loved
this state long before he was brot out
from the east to teach US by sneers
and senile sarcasm, what our duty to
North Dakota may be.
Mr.. Rockwell has STATED to me that
!, he never was in. France; he has not
stated to me what soft sinecure he
may have had when he left the state
with the, flourish of trumpets that
announced his departure to serve his
country. BY what right does he as
sumo to assail those boys who went
under the enemy's fire in France and
who sustained their naked steel?
His reference to the batt1efields of
France is enclosed in quotation marks
as tho by that awkward sarcasm of
the types he would have his readers
infer that their existence was doubtful
and subject to grave question. Per-
haps they are to the itinerant editor
Of the Forum-but they are not to
men like Leigh Monson and the other
boys whose names appeared unon the
ballots of the last election. The bat
tlefields of France may seem like a
mere phantasy to Rockwell-but they
are yet very real in the minds and
souls of the men of America who
fought them.
Mr.. Rockwell is pleased to be face
tious over the possibility that the elec-
tion has. gone against the American
soldiers and chort1es clumsily in the
thot that the Unfinished Work must
still be continued. I regret that Mr..
Rockwell is so short-visioned. Jesus
Christ came 1900 years ago, to save
world: That work is yet unfinished
and it had as it's beginner the Great
Master.
We came to grips with the helmet
ed ranks of the Germans in France.
We saw them and we knew them as
"ur enemies.> We needed no word
from home to tell US that they were
our e-enojes-trat they wished our
annihilation. Just the same. Mr.. Rock
well, do you know our ene"'ies over
here. We, see the same evil grin be-
Meath the br;m of fedora over here
as we saw beneath the brims of the
7teel helmets Of the Germans we faced
over there. The men who are taking
he place of what Mr. Rockwell per-
~istently called Huns and 'Boches'
(tho we soldiers never called them
such names over there) are the men
who employ Mr.. Rockwell. Thew are
the Huns we face todav-as ruthless,
as bloody and as horrible in their
threat against the liberties we fought
for. Let Mr.. Rockwell delight in the
defeat of the soldiers nominated by
+he progressives-th men he repres-
ents wage war against us with the
poison gas Of slander, with the shells
If nuhl;c denunciatirn. with the Snin-,