Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1939-10-26
Principles Live On
By HJALMAR PETERSEN.


on, it must be worthy of the name,
a liberal and progressive movement,
which it originally set out to be.
Practicing eXpediency will not do.
A political writer on the staff of
the Saint Paul Pioneer Press writes
that he cannot agree with some
prophets who think the Farmer-Labor
party is washed up for good" The
article goes on to state something
very much to the point in the follow
ing words:
The principles and program of the
Farmer-Labor party were not re-
pudiated by the voters in 1888. Its
failure to live up to those principles
led to its defeat"
The thousands of people who joined
with the Farmer-Labor party and
voted its ticket during the past two
decades did so principally because
they hoped and believed it would be
a party of the people, that it would
do the most good for the greatest
number, labor for wholesome legisla-
ton, and would furnish the leader
ship for creation of constructive work
for the masses. Self-seekers and pro-
fessional politicians crept in little by
little, until finally through the old
crude coercive spoils system, and
other maneuvers, they controlled
Democracy was cast aside for autoc-
racy.
The leaders talked of progressive
principles and democratic ideals, but
like dictators, sought to crush them
Tammany Hall, Pendergast and Huey
Long political machine methods were
coming into use.
The sentiment prevailing was that
ave are in now, we have the power
and we are here to use it," And all
this in the name of liberal move
ment-the very Objectionable features
which gave rise to the formation Of
the Farmer-Labor party. Political
coercion and military dictatorship
have much in common. Therefore
freeing state jobholders from being
slaves to a political machine was one
of the issues in the 1888 campaign
The glory of the temporary power
however, was short-lived. Leader:
shouted that no one can defeat the
endorsed candidates, though endorsed
in the main by controlled state job
holders and other favored individ.
uals. But, the close primary cleo
ton of 1888, when the people spoke
through ballot and not coercion, took
the wind out of their sails. The jot
was easily finished in the fall after the
machine methods had been aired fol
two years or more.
1t requires earnestness and stead
fastness of principle to turn agains
the fundamentally people have Ia
bored years to build, but a great
segment of the Farmer-Labor party
did that in 1888. And, it was trag-
edy, for true liberal leadership is
certainly needed today. History fol-
lows definite patterns, and who car
say that as the lights go out, one by
one in Europe, they may not be
dimmed in America.
The Farmer-Labor defeat should
be strong reminder to those who
think that principle may be sub
merged in favor of expediency and
self-interest, even for a short period
1t cannot be done, for although the
people may be fooled for time by
false professions, cloaked in seeming
words of honesty, they cannot be
fooled all the time, nor for long In
the end, they rise and pronounce their
disapproval.
The election of 1888 should also be
a lesson to the rank and file of the
party not to fall asleep and again
permit the party organ to promulgate
misleading propaganda. Intelligent
and right thinking people became sc
thoroughly disguised with the papers
subservience and even downright
falsehoods that they turned in revolt
People with fairness in their make
up will not acquiesce in such deal
ings. It might also be added that
the various legitimate liberal news
papers out over the state, individ-
ually owned, and conducted in such
manner that the editors continue to
function in their communities, carry
far more weight and influence than
central subsidized propaganda
sheet responsible to the politicians
who arrange for the money.
Those few individuals with lust
for power, who built up the patronage
machine, and controlled in undemo-
cratic manner, ought to have learned
a lesson from the definite way in