The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1923-11-02
MEMBERS
GROW IN NUMBER.
LEE OVERMAN WRITING TO
NEWS-TRIBUNE TELLS OF
GROWTH IN NUMBERS
AND SIZE.

The American Legion is growing
by leaps and bounds both numerical
ly and otherwise. 1t is growing so
fast that most of it's former lean
and svelte type of doughboys soon
will have to lay aside their old uni
forms in favor of new ones with
greater interior parking space.
Most of the $4,000 delegates who
participated in the galaxy of
parades staged here during the ma
tional convention this week showed
considerable bullying at the seams.
The expansion within the order is
so great that local hotels all report
that there were more emergency
calls for needle and thread than
there were for ice water.
Numerically, the Legion also is
growing proportionally. Organized
in 1919 with an initial membership
of 1,O42, the membership rolls for
the organization have passed the
100000 mark, including members,
their wives, relatives and sweet
hearts, officials of the organization
place the total voting strength at
12,000,000-enough to make either
of the old political parties sit up and
take notice.
Like the Grand Army Of the Re-
public, which for almost dozen
years after the end of the war be-
tween the states developed so much
dissension within its ranks that it
had but little political entity, the
Legion also may let several years
elapse before it assumes the power
full influence in political and civic
affairs that it is entitled to by it's
tremendous membership.
Inability of it's members to agree
on many important issues was DEM
onstrated during the convention ses-
SONS. The organization is still bad
ly split on the question of soldier
bonus. There are both probonus
and antibonus organizations within
the Legion. The probonus element,
however, is considerably in the ma
iority and due to the fact that men,
bers of the womens auxiliary are
most solidly behind the demands
for at least some kind of adjusted
compensation, the matter is expect
ed to be forced before congress
again.
The Ku Klux Khan issue which
brought forth such bitter fight in
the convention before a resolution
was adopted putting the Legion on
record as against any organization
fostering racial, religious or class
strife, is regarded by the great
majority of Legion leaders to have
been a tempest in teapot. Senti-
ment among most of the delegates
is declared to have favored ignoring
the Klansmen question altogether on
the theory that to introduce resolu-
ton specially directed against the
organization was to furnish it with
the publicity that. makes it thrive.
Small factions one for and the
other bitterly against the khan,
scheduled however, in injecting the
fight before the convention. That
sentiment of at least four fifths of
the delegates was against the khan
was evidenced when resolution in
troduced by Oklahoma delegates
voicing approval of the organization
was rejected so strenuously that it
was never put to vote.
The one big issue upon which the
Legion is united and which, if the
government fails to show .-esults,
may bring about display of it's full
political strength in the next presi-
Dental and congressional elections
is the rehabilitation of disabled vets.
The Legion is angry through and
through over the alleged neglect OF
wounded and disabled buddies by
spovarp M opto1 -.naoo;oc T& o~ox1.<,