The Hope pioneer. [volume] (Hope, N.D.) 1882-1964, 1920-09-09
BY L. J. SiIjan

Government is business, or should
be. 1t should also be subject to the
same standard precepts for measuring
success or failure as any other bust
ness, but it is not. Therefore, we
very often see the biggest Of all bust
nesses, the government, state and ma
tional, each within it's own sphere Of
influence and jurisdiction, a horrible
example Of waste, Ignorance, careless
ness and general inefficiency. The
voters, who select the government and
who are responsible for it, are aware
of this situation in a general way, even
accept it for a while as the general
order of things, but do very little
serious thinking on the subject. And
things slide along.
Then ONE n period of unrest and
dissatisfaction; the professional agi-
tator gets his cue, sees his opportun-
ity and starts in raising hell all along
the line until everybody is worked up
to n white heat; statesmen in the shape
of political machine builders and can
didates for public offices appear on
the scene and a wholesale unloading
of reforms" begin; spe!l-binders
spring. forth as thick as seventeen
year locusts; they give their song and
dance and the people applaud and
cheer; anything and everything for a
change, and never mind tie cost.
This is the usual way in which the
business Of government is attended to-.
No nflar h,,ci,ns. oN,,ll e.%npI 81 NJ
even the business of government can
stand it in the long run. Then
reaction. The pendulum swings back,
carried by the force of it's own mo-
mentum to the other perlpheral eX.
treme. The people settle down for IL
rest feeling that once again the state
is saved. The mill Of democracy is
again running smoothly, grinding out
in the same old monOtonous way the
products and bi-products of waste, ig-
nOrance, carelessness and general in.
efficiency.
1t seems that humanity in some
ways is akin to the periodical drunk,
ard; it must have it's mental spree at
more or less regular intervals. North
Dakota was ready for it in 1915 when
it thought it gave birth to a Farmers
Nonpartisan league but actually
brought forth Townleyism. The child
that waso to grow up to become the
saviour Of "the farmers program"
turned out to be a grotesque carica-
ture of Socialism.
1t was not the never uttered go
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS which signal
ed the rise Of Townleyism F; nor was it
the neglect on the part of the four
teenth legislative assembly to abide by
the wishes of the people, is expressed
upon two different occasions, in favor
OF a terminal elevator program. This,
and other manufactured or real griev-
ances, helped spread the flames of dis
content, but the outbreak would have
come anyhow.
Not North Dakota alone but the
whole Northwest was ripe for it. Res
tive under wrongs committed by the
elevator combine through it's line ele-
yators, as well as under other injuries
caused by unfair and discriminating
marketing conditions, the farmers
were ready to try most anything-not
only to remedy existing u%ntolerable
conditions but also to get their re-
venge. This gave the professional
agitator his chance. All TOwnley and
his assistants had to do was. to or
ganize and capitalize militant rural
opinion; and that was all they did.
There were a good many thoughtful
who foresaw what was coming long
before Townleyism began to material
lie. In Equity circles leaders had
worked diligently and earnestly to
prevent public feeling from running
amuck. Fearing n blind and frenzied
stampede towards rudicalism and
state Socialism these and other liberul
minded men advocated cooperation us