The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1922-02-09

Iownley Feels That he Is Slipping
In an address made in MINNEAPOLIS
Friday, Arthur C. Townley, president
OF the Nonpartisan league, locked
horns with Van Lear and other radi-
calls, IN advancing the theory that the
nonpartisans should no longer place
candidates in the field for public office.
but secure from the candidates a
promise to stand by league principles.
In his address he said:
North Dakota is the only state in
the country where the farmers and
laboring men have stuck. l don't
seem to be able to make it work any
where else. I've lost the knack, I
think"
The league made mistake when it
did, not trust government affairs to
regular politicians in North Dakota,
he indicated in semiapology for
the breakdown of the league admin
istration there. Farmers, and working
men, he said, should not elect men to
office who know nothing about govern
ment.
"We've tried that and it don't
work." he said. sour government is
run by politicians. They will always
run it. And they are good men.
More men have made themselves great
through politics than in any other
way. We said, Were going to build
political machine and run the
government without a politician. We
did it. When it comes to running the
government you and I are just a
bunch of dubs.
~ have found out. and you should
have found out that it is pretty hard
proposition to get enough farmers and
working men organized into politi-
cal party to stick together long enough
to have. more votes than any other
party. l am the only fellow in Ameri-
ca that was able to make it stick any,
where in America.
"Nobody ever denied you the right
to live. But you starve," he said, af-
ter likening them to the steer that
pulls the plow. "The steer has a
right to more than he gets. Nobody
denies that. But the steer doesn't
get it because he hasn't enough gray
matter under his horns. The same
thing goes for you. You have the
right to more than you get. Nobody
denies that. But you've got to use
your brains in order to get it,
Townley started by saying he
would talk on "Why l was sent to
JAIL"
"Some people," he remarked, "may
think I went to Jail because l wanted
to. | didn't. Some think l went be-
cause l had to. 1 didn't. For with
the use of just very little Of the
standing / have with hundreds of
thousands of farmers l could have
avoided going to Jail. l went to jail
because l thought it was the best
thing to do, and I will go again under
similar circumstances, but l am going
to avoid these circumstances if l. can
"There were those who thou Git
had done something against the
government in the midst of war, and
should have gone to Jail because
had. But l think they are mistaken
for this reason: that while l made
some 200 speeches during the war, the
federal agents and court reporters
United States authorities finally gave
up and left me alone. 1t remained fol
the authorities of Jackson, where ]
had never made seech, to arrest M
for being a traitor. So when reat
in prison about the release of all fed
eral prisoners, was very sure tina
I my offense had not been one agains
the government" K
: Townley asserted that after all h
is not discouraged. "Not bit Of it,,
he said. II never was surer of m.
way since my earliest youth, when
began reading the works of Kar
Marx. / think things are better no,
thox, ho1 hoovo ~ =