The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1932-12-09
FARMERS ATTEND RELIEF MEET
AT TEMPLE AND GET RESULTS


that he would be in favor of relief
being paid out in cash and said he
would write Governor Erickson a
letter to that effect.
OFFICE HOLDERS DOMINATE
On the central committee there
is only one farmer, the rest are
business men and officeholders. A
committee was appointed to go and
ask two of them to appear before
the meeting, Jack Bennett, the
postmaster, and Carl Peterson, the
clerk of court, and both of them
flatly refused. Jack Bennett stat
ing that he was not going to APP
pear before "that mob" and Carl
Peterson saying the same in a
little different way. To these peo-
pie the farmers are nothing but a
"mob," they can go barefooted in
the snow for all they care. The
postmaster need not worry about
the price of shoes. Carl Peterson
and his wife have been drawing
from he county $287.50 per month
for years and years. Carl pledged
ECONOMY" just before election and
laid his wife off for a couple of
months. Carl was elected and she
is back in the office again. It is
that kind of people who has to
decide how little relief the suffer-
ing people are going to get, and
that is what the people are OBJ
jecting to.
1t was different with Phil lei
barth, the elevator man., who is
also on the central committee. He
was man enough to appear at the
meeting when he was asked, and
answered the questions put to him,
and he was not "mobber" either,
they thanked him for coming and
when he left the hall they all ap-
plauded him.
A telegram was sent to Cover.
nor Erickson asking him to order
the relief given out in cash instead
of in orders on stores. A petition
was also circulated and signed BY
everybody demanding that the gov
ernor. have the office holders re.
moved off the relief committee
land somebody else appointed in
their place.
At six o'clock the meeting. ad.
Ijourned and everybody paraded W
thru Main street shouting "Dowr
with the Central Committee" eve
want cash relief and mroe of it.
Then back to the Temple anC
talked some more.
Many of the farmers were de-
Itermined that they were not goint
home without overshoes and othel
things which they could not ge
along without, so they made them
selves at home on the floor of Thu
Famer-Labor Temple and stayec
over night.
/ THE NEXT DAY
The people who stayed ovr
night had made up their minds
that they were not going to leav
town before getting the relief the,
had come to get. First they wer
going to go before the county com
missioners, but the commissioner
smelled the rat, had adjourned tn
session before five o'clock Tues
day and did not meet on Wednes
day at all. This being the frs
time in years that the com
missioners stayed in session fol
two days only.
Seeing that something had to b
done or trouble could be expected
, the Central Relief Committee cal
led a hurried meeting at the oil
Riba bank building. Soon tn
building was filled with shiverin
men and women, shivering from
cold and not from fear. The re
lief committee refused to deal wit
a mob" and a committee, consist
: ing mostly of women, were pickle
In a hurry, the rest of the "mob
left the building and stood guar
outside in Is below zero weather.
The central committee were no,
told by the women that they ha
left children at home without sui
ficient clothes, shoes and grocerie
and that they were not going HON
without these things even if the
had to help themselves to it in tn
stores as their last resort. TIL
: men stood outside ready to bac
!. this demand uD at any time.
Here was bunch Of people VIII
E were not going to be turned dow
: and the central committee wer
! wise enough to realize it, and 20
busy making out orders for cloth
ing. shoes, groceries and coal.
Another night had to be spen
. camping in the Temple by tn
farmers, but. when they got thei
orders on Thursday morning 70
, what they had applied for they a
started for home satisfied tia
the three DAYS had been well spen
and with a 90 mile trip in 25 belo,