Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1935-09-26
JUST TALK


that the Republican meeting held in
the beautiful park at Taylors Falls
Sunday and at which United States
senator spoke, was attended by COM
paratively small crowd.
The meeting had been given much
publicity and even though Senator L.
J. Dickinson of Iowa, was the main
speaker and such dignitaries of the
Minnesota Republican party as M. A.
Nelson of Austin; Ward Sem, Mime
apolis; r. w. Hitchcock, Hibbing; S.
B. Wennerberg, Center City; Roy
Dunn, Pelican Rapids; Charles Elm
quist, st. Paul; and others were pres
ent, the crowd numbered only be-
tween 400 and 500 at o'clock when
the senator took the floor and gave
an hours talk.
The senator by the way is fine
looking gentleman, has a good voice,
good poise, uses good English, and is
also what might be termed an enter
tanning speaker. In line with most
conservatives and reactiOnaries he ad-
vOcates but a two-party political sys-
tenn in the United States, one party to
check on the other. He was even old
fashioned enough to talk about the
full dinner pail" the campaign slO-
gan used back in the days of William
Mckinley and Theodore Roosevelt. He
appealed to the younger Republicans.
The full dinner pail of course is
new to them for they were born since
Mckinley and Col. Roosevelt were
presidents.
The flowery senator from the Hawk
eye state laid himself wide open to
criticism when he said that reforms
have come only after being adopted
by one of the major political parties.
That is a true statement. But was it
the major parties that popularized
the reform? Was it not the progress
sives and radicals who first expounded
the doctrine? They kept drumming
away at it and finally the pressure
became so great on the part of the
general public that one of the major
parties had to accept and adopt the
reform.
Most progressives and radicals
could agree with the senator in his
condemnation of the theory of scarcity
because that program of cutting down
production of farm products, when it
has never been demonstrated that we
have an over-production, is not funda-
mental Maybe it will have the re-
suit of teaching farmers to do things
collectively. Working entirely indi-
vidually the results are too much on
the hit-and-miss order. But whatever
lesson the scarcity theory program
teaches us it will he an expensive one.
OF course like all conservatives and
reactionaries Senator Dickinson up
held the constitution to the nth de-
gree. He stated that the trainers of
the constitution had made a good fun
that there should be any Tennessee
Valley Authority, NRA, AAA, and
such other New Deal legislation.
1t would hardly be expected that
the trainers of the constitution
though ever so intelligent and fore
sighted would know that today. about
175 years later. the people would be
III tilS thiotS vi poWti u HClS
is a reason for the Tennessee Valley
Authority. Not knowing what the
trend Of events might be the constitu-
tional fathers were wise enough tc
make it possible to amend the consti
tuition. To date it has been amended
81 times. If the Tennessee Valley Au.
thority will require an amendment
let us have it.
About so per cent of the senator:
time was spent in criticising and con
demning the program and activities o
the present Democratic national ad
ministration and the balance of hi,
time was devoted to generalities.
he had spent part of his time in stat
ing what the Republican party ha
done. what it proposes to do. and wha
il would have done when it differe
with the Democratic party. then tn
senator might have given his nearer
more food for thought. As it was
those who swallowed his words. hool
line and Sinker. went home with tn
idea that the Democrats are all we
and any third party people are i'm
possible. Those who came there t
learn went home with but little.
any more knowledge.