The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1920-04-15
NESTOS HAS PLAN
TO unite FORCES
Candidate for Governor Suggests a
Delegate Convention to Unite on
Candidate and Adopt Platform.
From r. A. NestOs

The following communication, ad-
dressed to the Fargo Forum outlines
proposed plan for elimination which
if adopted should unite the forces op.
posed to Townleyism.
Minot, N. OAK, April 6, 1920
A friend has just suggested that
possibly an answer was expected to
me to the editorial in your paper Of
March 9th entitled, "His Cards on
the Table" In view of the statement
made in the opening paragraphs of
my announcement as to what my at
titude had been, an answer now
seems unnecessary, but in order to
avoid the possibility that the evident
attempt in some speeches and edi-
torials to ignore my statement and
to misrepresent my position, may de-
cieve some good people who really
wish to know the truth and to view
the present situation sanely and dis
passionately, shall nevertheless make
the requested reply and statement.
1t would seem to me that your ed
itorials and Langer's statement are
both unfair to other candidates, an
nounced or prospective. You would
make it appear that LANCER is the
. only candidate who has volunteered
to submit his candidacy to a proposed
convention. This is decidedly not
true. Even since last fall when Gu
bernatorial possibilities commenced to
be considered in talk and press and
when friends commenced to ask me
to enter the race, l declared in each
instance that in my opinion the Anti
Socialist forces of our state must seek
unity upon some common basis of
principles and then arrange for some
state wide representative gathering
for the purpose of adopting a plat
form embodying such principles, and
selecting the candidates to be support
ed by these unified and organized
forces.
was delegate to the I. v. A. con-
vention in Grand Forks and at that
representative meeting of about 900
members of the Independent Voters
Association from all over the State, a
plan of procedure was unanimously
adopted and this plan provided for
state convention to be held in the
spring under the auspices of the As
ISOLATION for the purpose of endors-
ing candidates.
During the winter, after it had be-
come known that / might become a
candidate, sent word to LANCER by
couple of his workers and close
friends suggesting that inasmuch as
had refused to announce my can
didacy and declared that a represen-
tative convention in the spring should
by majority vote select the man
who was to represent the Anti-So-
cialist forces as candidate for Cover
nor, that he should do the same and
make public declaration to the effect
that he would abide by the action of
such convention. The information
brought back to me was that while
LANCER himself favored such a course
his close friends and advisers were
insisting that he must under all cir
cumstances be candidate and that
therefore he could not follow the sug-
gestion made.
When LANCER made his formal an
nouncement and in it reafirmed his
allegiance to the League platform of
the last two campaigns, I felt that
it would then be wiser for al prob.
able candidates to enter the race, to
permit the people to study their rec
ords and platforms and then at the
state wide meeting later on, after
careful consideration by majority
vote of this representative body, to
/; determine which one of the various
candidates best represented the views
Of the majority Of the forces expect
ing to work together for the overthrow
of Socialism and Townleyism in the
state. On that basis made my an
nouncement endorsing the platform
adopted by the convention of the In
dependent Voters Association at Grand
Forks and asked for the support Of
my fellow members in that organiza-
ton. Up to this time there had been
no statement from, or suggestion by
LANCER either in his platform or other
wise that he would submit his pro-
posed candidacy to any kind of con-
vention or state wide representative
meeting.
In the very issue, however, of your
paper wherein my announcement first
appeared and where, in a brief resume
of my platform, you wholly omitted
the statement as to my attitude to-
ward proposed convention, you print
ed in heavy type statement from
LANCER wherein he agreed that if
the people should prefer another man
he would withdraw from the race
and would support any honest man
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