The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1924-10-17

Achievement in these directions
would not be a great task were it.
not Tor the power CT that invisible
force that would oppose it. To expose
that power, by specifically pointing
to 1t, would in these times of depres-
sion and defation annihilate it. To
guide the people right is to inform
them. To inform them is to compel
response.
"The Governor of the state should
be a person whose versatility quail
ties him for action whenever and
wherever a constructive program is
under consideration. A governor is
vested with great pOwer-his presence
commands attention.
There is no leadership in this state
for the state. There are so many
ways of lettering conditions within
our borders that to particularize
would be a waste of time. Montana
needs an inventive, active, determined
leader and Montanans should find one.
We should drift no longer"
Edwards launched out in high
tribute to Senator La Toilette, re-
viewing his record of 40 years in the
senate of the United States briefly,
saying that the Wisconsin senator
had always championed the cause of
honesty in government and the well
fare of the common people.
Relating to the economic condition
of our country Mr.. Edwards forcibly
stated that ''the thing we call politics
in Washington is the thing that
ocg1coc v,of1Ooo1
no politics in Washington. What they
call politics, is business. There, poll
tics and business are one and the
the same. They are as inseparable
as a pair of scissors. The people
ever since the election of Mr.. Harding
In 1920 have been waiting in vain fol
the reconstruction program promised
them by the present administration. ,
Referring briefly to the income tax
, measure, and the recent amendment
thereto, the speaker said:
/ The profits made by the money
/ makers of this country are results OF
4 excessive prices arbitrarily fixed thru
trust regulations and otherwise, which
4 the masses of the American people
! are compelled to pay. These prices
are always based upon what the tariff
1 will bear and such will continue to bt
the case, no matter whether the in
come tax is high or low.
'The lower the income tax the
/ greater will be the earnings of the
profiteers, who will have in lieu of the
income tax they should pay, a greater
sum annually with which to invest il
/ taX-exempt securities"
Declaring that the Governor wa.
too far separated from the origin o.
the metals mines tax measure the
/ speaker declared:
"That in letter March 25 last; tn,
governor stated that the initiated
mines tax bill was drafted by thu
Committees on Agriculture. He is nov
saying in his speeches that the bill
was carefully prepared by the Mon
tana Tax commission. 1t is general!
known that Mr.. Dixon imported a ta1
expert, by the name of n. P. Haugen
and it apears that no reference ha
been made to the association O
this tax expert to the mines ia,
measure.
''Mr. Dixon has stressed the i'm
pOrtance of expert advise in tax mat
ters, and yet it is not clear as to VIII
or what person CIR persons are re
, spOnsible for the drafting of this bill
"In view Of the fact that Mr.. DixO
in a secret conference with the Ana
conda company prior to the conven
ing of the 1921 legislative session
agreed upon the present one and one
half per cent mines tax; and in vie7
Cf the comment which followed tn
said agreement, it appears that tn
governor may later change his min
as to the merits of the pending bill
The speaker then quoted from tn
Muscular, dated September 7, 191;
when Governor Dixon said of tn
Amalgamated Copper Company, mo
the Anaconda):
E'Were they paying on the
same prOpOrtiOnate basis as the
average citizen, and we have
made the basis very, very. low,
they would pay on a basis of
they should be paying about
One-half the taxes of this state
on our present total assessment.
Then your taxes would be re-
duced to just One-third of what
they are now"
Following this quotation, the speal
er then called the attention to IL
change of Dixon's attitude toward Il
mining industry after he had becon
governor, and quoted from the gov