Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1920-08-11
Failure to Deliver Goods
Hurting Influence Of {
Nonpartisan League
Chickering's Within Inner Circle Also Helps to Disrupt
Organization in North Dakota Farmers Show
ing Signs of Growing Skepticism as to Ability OF
Body as Economic Necromancer. :,

of the season had made great
profit.
Show Actual Loss.
The independents countcred on
this by producing figures to show
that in actuality loss instead OF a
saving had been registered. From
Fargo the anti Townleyites are
spreading the word that the flour
from the Drake mill was sold for
20 cents hundred pound sack more
than the private mills charged.
: AS to the State Bank of North
Dakota. nobody on the outside
knows how its affairs are progress
ing. 1t is a law unto itself. 1t is
such a secretly run establishment
that no real publicity has been able
to be thrown upon its operations.
The bank had to borrow $l,0OO.0OO
in Chicago some 10 days ago. What
the anti Townleyites seek to know
is what loans have been made and
how the bank actually islands, and
this is. the aim of an act it IS seek
ing Through the rext election.
At Grand Forks the state is to
build a great mill-so far only the
foundation has been started, and
work is slow.
One chief trouble the league has
met with is that IN these days it cam
not sell the states bonds at 5 per
cent. Then there was the fousing
act-the state could build homes for
poor people not to exceed $5,OOO.
The ants have been placarding the
state with word that last year the
state managed to build one $4,000
bungalow, and the overhead cost for
running the department which su-
pervised its building came to $40
600. This year the state will build
probably a dozen, at a cost esti-
mated by the independents at 3d. 600
to $4,000. These are some of the
things which the aati-T owleyites de-
veloped during the spring campaign,
and the way in which the argument
bit into the farmers is seen in the
large vote registered against the
league in the more populous re-
glons. such as the Red river valley.
The defections from the inner
circle are still growing. A year
ago there were three important ones.
"Antis" at Fargo headquarters yes
terday furnished the following list
of former big guns, who have broken
away from the league: Attorney
General William LANCER, who was
elected four years ago as Lacquer.
and ran for governor, this time as
an anti-leaguer and was defeated; !;
Secretary of State Thomas Hall,
renominated as an anti; State
Auditor Carl Kotsitzka, who broke
away from the league and was de-
feated for renomination; Samuel
Ashdahl, was the leagues president
of the board of railroad commission
ers, but became so disgusted that
he would not seek reelection; ] R.
Waters, who was manager of the
Bank of North Dakota, but was
kicked out while on a vacation in
Florida through a quarrel with the
insiders, now bitter antagonist of
the league, and ]. W. Brinton, who
was author of the leagues news
paper grab" bill. He and Waters
now have ambitions to organize
within the league and take control
away from A. c. Townley and Will
liam Lemke, who is boss in North
Dakota.
Z There are Others. The last two
years have seen many changes in
Mr.. Townley's cabinet and the dis
integration has been most du= to
quarrels and jealousies. As to
Townley, one finds many Of his op-
ponents among business men, who
say he is not reaping any great fl
nancial reward out of the league
and he "is ambitious rather than
avaricious," but of the lesser lumi-
naries some are said to be quite
busily feathering their nests.