New-York tribune., 1920-02-12
farr1ler.s Veto
Iabor's Third
Party Project
Harmony Plans for Chicago
Congress Strike Snag as
T;llers Turn Thumbs OH
the Political Movement
Non.Partisanship to Rule
Convention Aims to Apply
Cooperative Methods to
Production and Trade
c...;oi Dispatch to The Tribune

s,ee;oi Dispatch to The Tribune
CHICAGO. Feb. 11.-Harmony plans
~ ,be all-day American farmer-labor
..sneratiye congress which opens here
orrow struck preliminary snag
.:.h+ when the farmer elements
lo~..assented turned thumbs down on
W isp' ans;,e of the radical laborites to
a..e sIe the congress behind a third
p.rtv nolitical movement.
psf" 4 Gustafson, president of the
..nrress and likewise president of the
S"h,aska farmers union, speaking Tor
.be farmer representatives, issued she
following statement:
"We have no intention oil &aunching
ths uncharted seas of third party
uaovement. y" The organized farmer and
.nus,d ar..sn;yed labor forces, uniting to Sc
US nrogram of direct trade to Sc
.vrs cooperative banking and credits
snd to standardize methods of CO.
"nsration. are not going to be in
,ss;gled into any will-of- the-wisp
politics. A.. cs
eve have our feet on the ground
and it is good enough for us. Some
~ ne are Republicans and some of us
sre Democrats. We realize that legis
!ation is necessary to make our CO.
oneratiye program 100 per cent ef-
ac;ent. This may involve program to
sscure the election of Congressman
snd United States Senators committed
to our cooperative program. and if so,
snd this question is in the future, we
shall act strictly in a non-pa partisan
NAV and no. attempt any third party
movement
~ regret very, much the misunder-
standing with reference to this ques-
t;on which has arisen. | sincerely hope
that this statement will set the public
right on this matter, ana if their minds
are free of any apprehension OF q
third party as part Of our program
the public will give its full considara-
tlsn to the plans of the conference
which are to reduce the high cost of
living througt direct trade and 100 FER
cent cooperation between farmer-pro-
ducers and city consumers and between
city producers and farmer-consumers.
That is the purpose OF this conference"
Cooperation Is keynote
ments represented, discrediting the
about labor reforms by non partisan
dgh. within the two old parties, had
hoped 20 bring out of the meeting here
an alliance between the radical labor
ties ana the radical farm organization,
which would give strength and sub
stance to the labor party that was
organized here last spring.
As it is the hackers of the convcn-
70 h-.,rr
changes in the economic and indus
trIal systems of the country through a
nation wide adoption of cooperative
methods in productions and trade.
It is proposed on the one hand that
the farmers shall organize coopera-
lively for the marketing of farm prod
lcts and the purchase of farm sun
olies, while the industrial workers of
ne country shall organize similarly
or the production and marketing of
manufactured goods.
Under this plan it is proposed that
he farmers and industrial workers can
each supply the others needs at a
minimum cost and with a more or less
complete elimination of all middlemen's
profits
Not only this, but it is proposed that
he two classes shall maintain and
operate peoples press'-with news
paper plants established in all farm
and Industrial communities further.
because the railroads and the merchant
marine of the country are regarded
'y the progenitors of the movement as
Indispensable distributing factors in
heir scheme. there is no question that
ne convention will indorse government
ownership of the merchant marine and
continuation of Federal control of
ne railroads, to the ultimate end of
fulfilling the naturalization and de-
nocratization principles of the Plumb
,lan.
Significant of this purpose is the fact
hat practically all OF tie railroad
'rotherhoods and railway unions will
'e represented in the convention, while
'ctive participants and leaders in the
convention will be Warren S. Stone,
resident of the Brotherhood of Loco
motive Engineers, and Glenn E. Plumb,
PRESIDENT of the Plumb Plan League.
Farmers representative propose to
how what has been done by the Ne
'raska Farmers Union and other farm
rganizations in cooperative farming
nd marketing, while labor representa-
ives will show what the railroad
rotherhoods have accomplished by the
Operative textile mills and banks
Which some of them are operating.