The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1920-06-03

WI Ills OHRAAN0 W t4AC A6xI1lCI JuSI
as it does to the city wage earners.
With the rising scale of prices, and
with the greatly increased production
per farm family due to the increasing
use Of mechanical power and machin-
cry on the farm, there has grown up
the possibility of normo profits on
the part of distributors of farm prod
uts. The whole machinery Of distri-
button has seemed to develop with the
purpose in view Of absorbing all the
profits at both ends Of the line, leav-
ing the farmer a bare living, and ex-
torting from the intimate consumer
of farm products the last cent he
could pay. Pretty much the same con-
ditions exist in the distribution Of the
products Of city industries.
every attempt to interfere with
a view to giving labor a larger share
in what it produces, to giving the
farmer a share of the profits on his
products, has met with the most vio-
lent opposition, the more promising
the movement the more violent the
opposition.
Reason for League Attacks
at is inevitable that when the Non
partisan League began to make head
way with its program of reform in
the field of distribution of farm prod
ucts, and especially when it began to
cut out some of the time-honored
graft which had been ~practiced on
farmers ever since there were middle
men, the League should became a
storm center. It is important for the
public to know that the opposition to
the League comes mainly from, and
is inspired by those who in the past
have been ~fattening at the farmers
expense. 1t is a highly significant
fact that the League has had it's most
marked development in the territory
dominated by the Minneapolis Cham
Der of Commerce. The daily papers
in the Twin Cities seem to be under
the domination of this organization
to such an extent that they seer to
make no effort to tell the truth about
the League.
Last November l attended the
meeting at which the American Farm
Bureau federation a organized, in
Chicago. A delegate from a state
where League meetings have frequent
ly been treated with mob violence
made a vicious attack on the Nonpar-
tisan League. He was frowned down,
and it was voted to expunge all ref
erence to his remarks from the record.
Yet the next day of the Minnea-
polls papers came out with glazing
headlines stating that the Farm Bu-
reau federation had severely con
demned the League. This is the kind
of misrepresentation that the League
meets with from the old crowd Of
exploiters.
II have watched the development
of the Nonpartisan organization with
a great deal of interest. The League
is trying out some very advanced
ideas, and it is only natural that some
experiments should turn out unsatis-
factorily. But on the whole, the pro-
gram Of the League is one that de-
serves the support of all right think
ing people.
A League Convention
II was particularly impressed with
the methods used at the recent state
convention where Nonpartisan candi-
dates were selected in Minnesota. It
was no cut out and dried affair. The
were not hand picked by
a lot of representatives Of political
corruptions. Their names were placed
on a blackboard, and every one pres
ent were allowed to discuss every can
didate. The final selections represent
ed the best judgment of a lot Of ser
ious minded delegates. There was a
distinct contrast between the meth
DDS pursued at this meeting and those
used in the farcical primary by which
another political organization tried to
defeat the will Of it's own members
in the selection of hand picked dele
gates.
1--WE are all watching North Dako-
ia with interest. We want to see how
your state bank makes out. I can see
III AC0SVA why d SCdIc S1lOulU UOC Gu
gage in the banking business. The
banking business is very profitable.
1t is natural to expect that those en-
gagged in this business would resist
to the uttermost anything that ap-
pears to threaten their hold on bust
ness and the big profits they make.
Why can't the people Of a state make
these profits for the general public?
"The effort North Dakota is making
toward insuring that every citizen in
the state shall be a home owner is
another very commendable thing.
Land owning farmers and land own
ing laborers are the greatest safe
guards of a free government. The
alarming growth Of tenancy in this
country in recent years justified SER
ious efforts at the eradication of this
growing evil. North Dakota has taken
steps toward the solution
of this problem
"If people all over the country
would make as serious efforts to rem