The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1920-02-07
All Parties to Controversy Are
Silent - Faculty in
Round Robin
REFUSE TO SIGN CHARGES
Professor Libby and Nonpar-
tisan Adherents in College
Are Active

Fargo, n. d., Feb. 7.-AnnOunce.
ment was made today by George
TOtten, Sr, chairman of the North
Dakota board Of administration,
that the resignation Of DR.. Thorn.
as +. Kane, president of the Uni.
versity Of North Dakota, has been
requested.
For the past two days news.
papers III the state have predicted
that such Il demand would Ibe
made.
Mr.. T0tten asserts in his state.
ment that the request for DR..
kane's resignation was made be.
cause of charges filed by univer.
Sity faculty members and he said
that ii Kane remained Mt the head
Of the institution numerous fac.
ulty members would retire.
Grand Forks, Feb. 7.-Geo. Totten,
ST., chairman of the board Of admin
istration, and Robert Muir, brother-in-
law Of William Lemke, vice president
Of the National Nonpartisan League,
and a member Of the board, came to
Grand Forks yesterday, and In con.
ference with President 4. +. Kane in
timated that his resignation as presi-
dent Of the university would be very
acceptable to them.
They read excerpts from charges
filed against DR.. Kane a year ago last
fall during the influenza epidemic, in
which it was charged that President
Kane was morally unsound and men
tally unfit to hold the Office" When
asked who filed the charges, they re-
piled that the university faculty did,
but when it was suggested to them
that it would be we'll to let the faculty
members express an opinion they said
that "that would never dO.'
REFUSE INFORMATION
Mr.. Muir, who was seen later, by
two representatives Of he The Press
would not comment one way or the
other on. the report that they had ask
cd DR.. Kane to resign. Mr.. Totten re-
fused to be interviewed. When ap-
preached by The Press representa-
tive. he walked away, declaring gruf-
ly that che didn't waint to talk to any
AlNANi"
When Mr.. Muir was seen at the
Great Northern depot just before
boarding an early evening train, he
was asked point-blank whether or
not he and Mr.. Totten had either
asked DR.. Kane to resign or intimat.
ed that he should resign.
Il will not answer your question:
Mr.. Muir said. II refuse to com.
mcnt; every time I say anything l get
into troublc.'
The charges from which Mr.. Tot
ten read are said to have been filed
by the faculty members, but they are
not signed. Not name Of any mem
bcr of the faculty appears on them.
Several prominent members Of ;thc
university, faculty, when interviewed
on the, charges, declared that they
''do not represent the opinion of one.
tenth of the faculty."
ONLY TWO HERE
Mr.. Uotten and Mr.. Muir are the
only members of the board who were
here yesterday. p NJ. Casey is i'll in
a hospital in Fargo, Miss Minnie J.
Nelson is ill at Bismarck and ]. N.
Hagan is out Of the state. Mr.. Ha.
gan already has been placed on rec
ord in Nonpartisan League newspa.
pers, including The Grand Forks
American, as not being a party to the
plant to remove DR.. Kane. Miss Mel
son, of-cOursc, has taken no part IN
that SCHEME and Mr.. Casey has not
been connected with it. He has been
.,tro FNnftnr Nf,,{ IN ~
their plans, one Of which was the re-
cent Stangeland affair at Bismarck.
Mr.. Casey and Mr.. Hagan both de-
manded that the board release
Stangeland, but Totten and Muir re.
fused TO until requested to do SO by
Governor Frazier.
Totten and Muir closed an aus
picious time to come to the uni
versity and endeavor to carry out
their plan. They came while the
institution was closed and the
majority Of the students had re-
turned home.
They came here, evidently, to
try to work up case Of incom-
petence against DR.. Kane in the
handling of the influenza situa-
tion. but learned that it had been
handled efficiently and expedi-
tiOlAsly, whereupon they resorted
to their old scheme and fell back
upon the anonymous charges.
which they claimed were filed by
faculty members.
LIBBY ACTIVE
1t is known that DR.. O. G. Libby had
been very active against DIR. Kane in
the influenza epidemic of 1913. and:
more or less. took matters in his own
hands at that time DR.. J. NJ. Gil
lette, who has always supported the
Nonpartisan league, program, and
Acting Dean Hugh E. Willis Of the
Law school. who has been quoted
again and again as favoring the Non
partisan League in all its activities
and who has been consulted on vari-
Gus occasions by Totten and Muir.
have been very active against DR..
Kane for some time.
The first indication that the board
was planning to override DR.. Kane
Continued on Pago Sevep)