The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1914-1938, 1924-07-17
IN another column appears letter

III NIX
IN another column appears q letter
= from j. r. Gardner, proprietor OF
the Gardner Nursery Co., a capitalist
so to speak, who feels "impelled" to
answer some of our statements Of
July 10th. Tho we can't see that the
letter answers anything we said, we
print it nevertheless to show the re-
suits of the LaFollete propaganda.
For years we have read the hate
and treason spreading speeches OF La
Toilette, which have been printed free
by generous government. The
Gardner letter sounds much like a La
Toilette speech, destructive, abusive
and unfair, yet there are some people
who wonder why LaFollette is now
forced to speak to empty chairs in the
senate of the United States. It is
simply because LaFollette has de-
veloped into sour old "wrecker" AMI
his colleagues can get no constructive
ideas by listening to him.
Now j. r. Gardner objects to La
Toilette being called "wrecker," yet
he fails to show that LaFollette has
offered a single piece of construc-
tive legislation in the senate to help
the farmer out of his present diff
culties. Furthermore the farmers
wanted the McNary-Hagen bill to
pass. LaFollette voted for it in the
Senate, when it didn't need votes, and
then let majority of his hand picked
Wisconsin delegation help kill the
bill in the House. Then the next
week at the Republican convention
LaFollette refused to let any of his
Wisconsin sheep vote for progress
sive like Kenyon for Vice-President.
Sure, the McNary bill would satisfy
the farmers and Kenyon would draw
the progressive vote. Yet we don't
dare say that LaFollette is politi-
cal trickster, and is playing the shell
game with the farmers, nor that he
is trying to make things look just as
bad as possible, so that he can cash
in on political discomfort.
Republican and democratic senators
grow bitter during political debates,
but they remain personal friends.
Why is it? Because each party is
founded on political principles, while
the LaFollette ambition is founded on
hate. The madden the farmer grows
the more votes LaFollette gets, so he
jabs him in the back and hollers Wall
Street, and fellows like Gardner think
he is a constructive statesman. La
Follette's colleagues in the senate do
not respect or listen. to him, because
they know his methods and motives.
Heretofore LaFollette has been
viewed only as political maverick
from Wisconsin who became soured
when the people accepted Roosevelt
instead of himself. Since that time he
has devoted his energies to wrecking
and hate spreading, hoping for time
Of misery that might place him in the
White House. So why should he help
the farmers when he knows he would
mt have chance if the farmers were
prosperous and satisfied?
Our Richland friend harpoons the
League of Nations, says without a
blush of shame that" Coolidge wishes
to colonize this country with Japs,
and then ends up with some more La
Toilette bunk about bankers scheme
to overload the farmers with debt
when as a matter of fact the scheme
of extended credits came from the
farmers themselves and because, and
only because, of a surplus of pro-
ducts, the banks as well as the far
mers are suffering. We can't accept
the challenge to print any of the
party platforms as the writer knows
we havn't the space.
Now while the regular editor Of
this paper is away we would like to
caution correspondents, even though
they be of the LaFollette type Of mind
that we must demand fairness from
them in stating their cases. For in.
stance our letter written today infers
voting for Coolidge is to vote for
"Daugherty, Means, Burns, Fall and
Forbes. OF course the writer knows
that these men are not connected with
and will not have anything to do
with the Coolidge administration, yet
he abuses his privilege and INDUCES
in yellow journalism. @.E @as
On the other hand, IL correspond
ents want to be fair and write about
Coolidge, Dawes, Mellon, Hughes,
Hoover, Weeks, Stone, ETC., and COM
pare these men with some Of the long
haired wreckers and transformers
that LaFollette runs with this paper
will be glad to give space.