The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1920-01-29
Mr.. HAMER REPLIES
Senator Tackles the Statements of the
Milaca Times Man and Tears
Them Into Shreds.
Quotes Part of Letter Written by
the Editor of the Times to
Henry L. Soderquist.
Milaca, Jan. 26, 1920.

Milaca, Jan. 70, l9ZU.
Editor of the Union:
The Milaca Times in it's last issue
again hanks back to the old subject
Of the money that Hamer gets from
the office to which he was elected.
1t seems that the editor feels so much
spleen over the fact that any one but
himself 3tdrew the peoples money" in
the last session Of the legislature that
he has to give vent to it once in a
while to relieve himself. In one of the
former references to this subject, he
spoke of the amount being so consider
able, and more than Hamer ever got
from his farm in one year.
Now, we want to look at this for
moment. If the editor is endowed with
the degree of intelligence ordinarily
credited to men in his position, he
ought to know that the compensation
allowed for member of the legisla
ture in the house is $1,000 for term
of two years, and $4,000 in the senate
for term of four years. Mileage is
allowed for one round trip in each
session. He ought also to know that
the necessity of hiring help at home
for four months or more because of
official duties, and the extra cost Of
living in the city, makes such demands
that these officials will not become
rich on their salaries.
Comparing this with life on an go
acre farm, docs the editor think that
the returns from the farm in year
are less than for serving in the state
legislature?- Yet this is what he tells
his readers. How did he get such an
idea? Do the organized" farmers,
for whom the Times is the exponent,
regard their business Of farming to
be so unrcmunerative as this? Did
those retired farmers now on the
Times board instruct the editor to
this effect? If so, how can they justi
fy the present price Of farm machin-
cry, including, of course, the price they
asked and received for their own
farms? Well, so much for chat.
Most of the people, we believe, have
an approximately correct estimate Of
what the annual returns from an 30
acre farm should be in this locality.
1t may even be that the editor in ques-
ton knows more than some of his
statements seem to indicate. Any way
the display of ignorance here shows a
lack Of common sense But if we are
to credit him with the, exercise Of
ordinary intelligence in writing and
printing this stuff, his statements can
mean nothing less than that we IS a
senator have received from some
sources much more than the author
lied allowance. In keeping with this
he has also characterized our record as
"rotten." These things, taken togeth-
or, mean nothing less than a charge
that our conduct as state senator was
venal and that we accepted brides.
The nonpartisan league had their.
hired spies and liars around the capt.
tol to wage relentless warfare in the
open, or, more often, from ambush,
on certain men. Hamer for one was
marked. To be more specific on this
point, nonpartisan senator voting
against a certain measure was unqual-
ifedly approved for so doing, while
Hamer was denounced for not voting
for it when he was unavoidably alb
sent. But none of these ever went so
far as to charge venality. It remained
for the sorehead of the Milaca Times
to do this, and he never specified any
thing upon which he based the charge.
Talk about "skulk or hide" and
"sneaks who would stab man in the
back" as he did in the Times Of July
"a, 1919, did ever anybody stab him
in the back as he and Magnus johnson
tried to stab Hamer?
"What sort Of man would be to
do thing like that?" asked Senator
johnson, when we showed him copy
Of the Times Of that date and which
implicated sim in this "stabbing in the
back" act. The answer for him and
the Times editor must be that they
are men whose character is in accord
with such acts
From letter written by the editor
to Mr.. Henry L. Soderquist, and pub
lished in that same issue Of the Times,
we quote the following:
= have good reasons to know the
interests that are fighting the farmers,
for> they were not satisfied merely
with defeating me. They laid their
plans to ruin my business and drive
me out Of here, so I had to sell it to
save what ittle.I had accumulated by
rs years Of hard labor. It is not an
ACCIDENTAL question with me. II