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0 THE SUN, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 9, 1917. NON-PARTISAN A. C. Townley Is Trying to Unite Farmers and La bor Men in Effort to Get Socialistic Legislation SEVENTT-ONE per cent of the voting strength of the American people Is centred In the farming and labor elements. To be apeclAc, labor represents 34 per cent and the farmers 37 per cent Keep theso fig ures In mind, for they bear directly upon tho potentialities of the recent labor food conference) held at Cooper Union. Ostensibly the primary object of tho meeting was to discuss the cost of living, but there were Indications thut another purpose was to bring about u closer bond between the termer and tho city worker. There were observers who pointed question Ingly ti some of the dominating spirits f the Cooper Union meeting and liearkened back to that conference on the high cost of living held at St. Paul, Minn., in September lost, when Senator Robert M. La Follctle made hid much criticised speech. It was then that the Non-Partisan League, originally of North Dakota, made Its tow on the stage of national politics, prang into the limelight, and started things moving for a countrywide cam paign to oust the generally recognized political parties and to change indus trial conditions profoundly. Before It is possible to visualize what Bight come of the Cooper Union meet ing, in which Commissioner John J. Dil lon of the New York Btate Department f Foods and Markets, John Mitchell, president of the Btate Food Commis sion, and certain officers of the Na tional Non-Partisan League figured, H la necessary to go back a number of years and review tho latter day his tory of A. C. Townley, the president of the league. The story of this man as so Interwoven with tho fabric of the organization that It is quite impossible to deal with one without dwelling upon the other. To be exact, the league night never havo come into being but for the industrial disaster which upset Tswnley'a dream of affluence. rrom Flax Kin to Politician. In 1907, A. C Townley, then 30 years Id. migrated to North Dakota with Inst money enough In his pocket to start himself on a homestead In the western plains of that State. It was not long- afterward that his success in flax growing won for him the sobriquet f the "Bonanza Flax King of Golden .Valley." In 1901 the average yield of flax seed In North Dakota, the greatest flax growing State, was 9.3 bushels an ore, and tho price on the farm was ILB7 a bushel. That year Townley cleared the tidy sum of 110,000 for his flax alone. Profiting by his experi ence, he kept adding to his acreage each season, and finally took a chance with nature to amass a sudden fortune. He sowed 8,000 acres in flax. To prepare the ground and plant the teed ,110 went Into the market and bought largely upon credit something like a 'iozen traction engines and a great 'array of farming machinery with which to cultivate and to reap a great , harvest. The seeds germinated, the flax matured abundantly, and his flowering fields undulated in the breeze like a sea of shimmering blue. It was a sight to gladden any one, and Townley reasonably rejoiced be causo flax seed was then selling well above $2 a bushel. The planter had almost within his grasp a matter of $125,000 and a net return upon his gamble of quite $100,000. , But nature was only playing with fclm. Before he could cut and harvest POLICE THE policemen of Philadelphia, revolting against political abuses and corruption, have turned upon their leaders In the city administration and are threatening the complete disintegration of the mu nicipal protective system unless their I demands for Increased wages and treatment as honest servant of the public are granted quickly. Last Tuesday between 2,000 and 1,000 out of approximately 4,000 men employed in the Bureau of Police ac tually voted in favor of proposals that recourse bo had to a strike or a gen eral resignation from the city's ser vice. On Thursday a throng of them marched to the City Hall from every district In the city and attempted to lay their demands before Mayor Thomas B. Smith, William II. Wilson, the Director of Publlo Safety, and City Councils. They were forcibly die penned by a hundred fellow policemen en orders of Director Wilson. No more remarkable development than this has come In the series of vents which have shaken Philadel phia out of Its comfortable, careless course lu the last few months, nightly taken, it Is part of a chain of occur rences leading back to tho murder of a Philadelphia detective in the "bloody Fifth'' ward on the day of the primary elections, September 19. Wholesale charges of police conspiracy nnd cor ruption grew out of that scandal, nnd high officials of the Police Department and even the Mayor havo been ac cused of being Implicated directly or i Indirectly in the wholesalo thuggery which marked the battle for political supremacy between Republican fac tions In the Fifth ward which, by Hie way, Is tho homo of Independence Hall, Following the Fifth ward scandal caino the formation of a Town Meet ing party which within a month hud 1 organized throughout tho city find wiin tno neip of an around citizenry waged a battlu which mado tho elec tion returns mi rinse that a cltvwide contest of tho count Is now on In tlio courts In an iffort to prove Unit tlio organization candidates for office ob- 3MBSBsK39Hb1HsSBBBsV BBSSBk:' .sSSBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBSSBa V'sW a' .V VV5 ' PmPB31I1?bbbW bbsbsW. 'sbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsbsVI ' &;-V -i jbT. t-il . lXWWT II 33bBBbHbBBBBBBBBBb1bBBBBBBBBBBBbH VBBBBBBHs,'ivBBsV I O A LINDBERGH , HiiliM his crop frost dealt him it sudden blow and an exceptionally early snow before October was half gouo aggravated his losses. Ho was able to vcnllze upon only 10 per cent, of his crop, and for that tho prlco was below $1 a bushel. Instead of remaining North Dakota's flax king ho became tho State's bo nanza bankrupt, owing Implement manufacturers and dealers in furm machinery a sum closo to 5300,000. This situation might liavo dismayed most men, but disaster heartened Townley, nnd with his dre.i.ui of a great live stock business dispelled for that was what he Intended to em hark upon had his 8,000 acres of flax mado good he caught tho vision of a political gospel which was to chango completely tho flnnncl.il prospects ot his fellow farmers of North Dakota. As an apostle of a new clvlo and industrial order intended to better conditions for the agriculturist. Town ley possessed decided advantages. Ho had tho native girt ot an attractive personality, and his upbringing, train ing and llfo work mado him familiar with farming and the fanner's prob lems. Ho knew Just how to Bet under the skin of tho tiller ot tlin full nitd to make him bellovo that it was posslblo to bring about a legislative millen nium that would glvo tho farmers of North Dakota their rightful chance and their just dues for tho fruits of their toll. Townley Sweep North Dakota. For some years the farmers of tho Stato had been petitioning their legis lative representatives at tho State cap ital to correct what they believed to be economic evils, but the lawmakers paid- little or no attention tit these appeals. Accordingly Townley con ceived a non-partisan movement which should unite tho agricultural element of North Dakota, which constituted Sti per cent, of the State's population. Tho special causo fur action lay In certain alleged abuses on tho part of tho milling and grain marketing Inter ests located for tho most part in Min nesota. Townley proposed nothln less than an agricultural leglslatuio and Judiciary, In other words, law makers and law interpreters who aliould bo in full sympathy with the fanners. Townloy started his campaign early In 1915, and despite tho ridicule of the recognized political parties, ho went on mustering his foiees and winning tho farmers to his cause. Election day In 1V1G dawned with his opponents unalarmed and a downpour of rain throughout the State reasonably prom ised to reduce the agricultural vote in tho outlying districts. REVOLT talned an apparent majority by whole sale ballot box stuffing, bribery and other forms of political coiruptlon. Policemen wero madu or broken on tho wheel, It Is charged, according to tho manner In which they acted In the campaign and according to the voto each cast on election day. Wholesale dismissals and trials on trumped up chnrges have taken place, according to the allegations of the policemen, and tho result Is that after decodes of po litlcul assessment and bulldozing by succeeding generations of political bosses the majority of tlio policemen havo turned upon leaders they nccuse as unworthy. If they don't get what they demand they can go to munition plants or to other industrial establishments nnd get more money, they say. Demand of the Police, That appears to be about all there is to it. Tho ono thing that is likely to hold them from uny uch action as a general resignation Is tho fact that tho city has maintained nnd they have contributed to a pension fund which assures each man a regular In come after his years of useful work are etided. Here Is what the policemen demand: First Bcmovo politics from pollco duty. Second rermlt policemen to elegt their own delegates to tho pension fund as provided by law. , Third Abolish open voting for po llen pension fund candidates as adopt ed to keep sergeants and lieutenants friendly to tho administration In charge of tho fund books. Fourth Obtain n full accounting of tho pension fund and make publjc nil ino accounts. Fifth Becognll Ion of the Patrol men's Benevolent Protective Asso ciation by tlio Mayor und the Depart ment ot Publlo Safety. Sixth Increoo of salary nnd the establishment of n pay snliedulo giving patrolmen $1,400 and sergeants $1,600 a year. Seventh Abolition of tho "ginks" or police spies detailed to prefer charges against patrolmen who refuse to abide by political orders. Klghth Abolition of all political ns sessments. Ninth Abolition of station house assessments. Tenth - Iteorganlzatlon of tho trial system with full publicity ot charges und open Inspection uf minutes ot trials. Uluvcnth Reorganization ot police VI LEAGUE But tho farmers believed North Dakota faced a crisis, they braved tho storm, and when tho ballots were counted It was found that tho non partisan leaguers had carried tho elec tion by an overwhelming majority. As Townley has picturesquely ex pressed It, "We elected almost every thing from the Governor down to the dog catcher." Incidentally the farm ers sen) to Congress J. M. Baer, known previously as a newspaper cartoonist. The programme of legislation which tho Non-Partisan League promised its supporters in North Dakota Included the erection of State owned terminal elevators, the establishment ot State ' Sit'ltA hall IniiirnnPA lour ami ,l,a In stitution of a rural credit system of their own devising. In short, the Stuto was to do what private capital had previously mado possible, and tho net result was to be little less than a new constitution for North Dakota. The programme might havo been put through but for twenty-four hold overs In the State Senate, who have stood squarely against the passage of tho bills originating in the lower house. A year ago the league membership numbered -10,000: to-day there are !,, 000 enrolled, and the president of tho organization says there will be 60,000 under the banner in 1913; in other words, every farmer In tho State will bo pledged to support the now thor oughly reorganized league. There Is therefore something significant in Sir. Townley' assertion that "the farmers are counting the days till they get a crack at thoso holdovers!" Other States Invaded. Students of politlcul affairs havo i cautioned the sceptical against con- fusing tho Kansas Populists of the , '90s with the National Non-Partisan League now that it Is reaching out ! beyond the conlliRM of North Dakota. I President Townley was keen enougH I to realize why other agrarian move I nients failed, namely, they lucked a directive head and they wero wofully I short of funds. He has seen to It that 1 theso deficiencies shull not mar the I prospects of his organization. ' lit- assumed tho headship of the , league after mature thought, nnd he I started out by requiring every member , to pay $6 a year In the way of a cam paign fund. This was subsequently raised to 5S a year pledged for two years and acknowledged as a sub scription to tho league's publication, tlui Xoii imrthan Leader. A Httlo fig uring will show that the.-o contribu tlons mako uji a cry substantial war chest for waging battle against polltl I cal opposition. IN PHILADELPHIA OUTCOME OF ROTTEN Pension Possibility Place at Unce Mens Uemands Backed by Many Citizens pension fund system to provldo for a president chosen from the ranks of the department. Twelfth Retention In tho depart ment of men actively associated with tho organization of tho Henevolent Protective Association. Urlotly tho demands call for relief from politlcul domination, open trials and Efi increase of $300 a year for every policeman. They now invhe $1,100 a year. To give this Increase to 4,000 policemen would mean that tho city's salary It m for this bureau nlono would bo Increased by $1,200,000 in 1918. In view ot tho fact that City Councils havo less than $2,000,000 left for a reserve fund In 1318 after allot ting tt.o funds estimated to accrue from a tax ruto that was boosted 35 per cent, abovo the current levy, such an Increaso would completely cripple the administration ond bring It out on tho clubit rather than tho credit side at the end of next year. By many observers of the develop ments of tlio present year tho situa tion Is regarded as a case of "chickens coming homo to roost." nraniilxeit (o (irt llellef. Muny months ago n policeman named Harry F. Johns anil some of his friends organized tho Policemen's Association ns a protest against mis use of tlio pollco power which was bringing tho men as public servants Into bad repute. The organization was founded on the principle that polico mcn had tho right to act honestly and decently and think as freemen, Just like men employed In any privato en terprise. .Inhns began to meet trouble ut once and It came from various mysterious sources which Anally seem to have "got" him. Ho was In n police station then at tho far southwestern corner of tho city und his home was neiir by. Suddenly ho was transferred "for the good of tho scrvlco" to a section In the far iiorthcustern section, which by trolley Is a full' sixteen miles from his homo and not much less ns tho crow files. Things began to happen also to tho pioneers 111 the association. But tumble seemed to bring sympathy for tho men throughout tho pollco force nnd squad lifter squud of bluccoats Joined tho organization. From dozens Its membership grew to hundred and from hundreds to thou sands. It was labelled generally by Ita MAY THREATEN OLD 5fe4R MITCHELL Tho National Non-Partisan League is fast overrunning the State of Min nesota and is steadily gaining In neighboring Commonwealths in the Northwest. It has been said by a writer for the St. Paul Dlpafc7i, after an extensive study of the situation: "What happened in North Dakota in 191C is in store for Minnesota lit 1918, and possibly for Wisconsin, Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska, Just as suro as tho sun rises In the east and sets In tho west, unless meanwhile conditions shall huvn been so changed as to make this new profession of 1 politics unlnterrstlng to the farmer or a combination of other political inter ests can make a stronger appeal to the intelligence of the voter." In Minnesota, where the National Non-Partisun Leairuo has established its headquarters, the farm vote, while predominating, has the lead by only a relatively small margin ot a few thou sands. Therefore the league has set about effecting a merger or Insuring cooperation with tho State Federation of Labor. The recent conference at Cooper Union reflected this purpose. In tho early part of September of the present year the president of tho National Non-Partisan League gave out tho following notice to tho news paper.t of k "Monster Conference on tho High Cost of Living" to be held nt St. Paul: "A people's convention of organized Only Reason Why opponents as an organization backed by political enemies of tho city ad ministration whose purpose was to embarrass it. There is no doubt that efforts were made to stamp It out and that they failed. Then tho Fifth wjird scandal came along nnd tho association hastened to condemn tho conspiracy which had brought it on nnd the methods of po litical domination which had debased the police system. War an .A Dotation. Tho result was a war of extermina tion. Johns was dropped from tho pollco force the other day. The chargo against him wus "conduct unbecoming an officer" in that he had used his , power as n pollcemun In trying to col- lect an old bill for $0.50 from a local i grocer who had owed It for years. Tho debt was duo to a Arm for which Johns once acted ns collector. Johns de clares tho charges were a frameup, that ho had u stur cluunber hearing, and says that ha will light In the courts for reinstatement. The dropping of Johns from the po lice forco came on tho eve of tho meeting of patrolmen members of tho association, which was called for the purpose of voting on action to be taken. Indignation was so great among them at the treatment their president had received that the threats of a mass resignation became more than a threat "for purposes of publi cation only." In parties of a hundred or more the policemen came from every cornor of tho city on Tuesday last and voted for tho demands that had been framed. On Wednesday the elections of repre sentatives to the directorate ot tho pension fund took place, and called definitely to the public attention one ot the demands mado by the patrol men to the effect that the rules gov erning tho administration of the pen sion fund should be changed so that the patrolmen could themselves elect the president of the fund. This is a direct repudiation of Direc tor Wilson of tho Department of Pub lico Safoty, wlio Is cx officio the presi dent of the pension fund under present rules. The policemen don't want him to bead the fund and they do want to choose some one to head it them selves. Tho election of delegates on Wednesday, It was argued, proved the labor and organized farmers, called by tho National Non-Partlsan League, will bo held In St. Paul, Minn., Sep tember IS to -0. Inclusive, to light the high cost of living. "For the first time in the country's history organized labor and organized farmers are joining hands to eliminate their common enemy, the needless parasitic intermediaries between con sumers nnd producers and the monop olists. The feasibility and neressary limitations of prico fixing will bo dis cussed by economists and statisticians of national reputation, who will an nlyzo tho cost of production of the staples of llfo and prices now charged under alleged open competition, and data presented will bo given tho Gov ernment to aid it In fixing such prices. The conferenco Is being called to enable farmers and representatives of other working classes to discuss the common problems of producers nnd consumers. "If high prices for wheat mean starvation for the children of tho poor tho farmers of the Northwest nro will ing to glvo up out ot tho earnings of their own sweat and toll, hut tho farmers want to bo sure that the money that comes out of their prollts docs not stick In the pockets of gTecdy nilllem and middlemen. "This is not merely n farmers' prob lem. This Is u consumers' problem. There seems to be an effort on foot Wholesale Walkout Does Not Take eil of oral voting, ns a patrolman could not expect decent treatment from a superior otllctr whom ho open ly repudiated for a placo on tho pen sion fund committee. Instead, it was declared, a secret ballot should bo in stituted. Matters camo to n head on Thurs day last w hen tho demands of the pa trolmen wero presented to City Coun cils by Francis V Bureb, the president of tho Councilmanic Association of Philadelphia and floor lender of tho re. form, or anti-administration, forces in the Councils. President Johns of tho Patrolmen's Association had asked all tho members who wero off duty nnd who could ur rlvo In time to come to the plaza of' tho City Hall, whero n demonstration I would bo made beneath the windows' of Mayor Smith, h'arly In tho day cuy oinciais reruscu a penult ror tho rally on the plaza a requirement under local laws for tho holding of meetings in publlo places. Tho orders that no permit should be Issued are said to havo come direct from Director Wilson of the Department of Public Safoty, Demonstration at City Hall. Lest tho policemen sl.nuld try to hold tho meeting nnd demonstration Inside of the City Hall after being re fused permission to hold It on tho out side, orders wero Issued that no police men In uniform wero to be admitted to tho hcsslon of City Councils which was hold In tho ufternoon. Tho members ot the association be gan to assemble on tho street enrly In the afternoon. Some wero In plain clothes, but most were In their uni forms. Immediately Capt, Mills of the traffic squad was assigned to head a detail of policemen then on duty whose orders wero to prevent the rally. Theso policemen on duty were scat tered through the crowd, which hod grown to about 500 members of the police force In a half hour, Tho pro testing policemen were told Imme. dlutely thut tho meeting could not bo held and they separated Into groups to talk It over. They were slow to dis perse, nnd Capt. Mills, Lieut, -iuehler and Lieut. Duffy marshalled their po llco guard of 100 men and went through tho crowd of their fellows In sisting they would have to "move on." That didn't appear to move the pro- BBBBBBBBBBA 'Vf H JOHN J. DILLON In this country to-day to ect one class ' of workers over against tho other. Tho effort Is being made to prove that the city workers havo no interest in com mon with tho farmers; that tho only way to get cheap bread la to glvo the farmer less for his wheat and that tho only way tho farmer can reduce his cost ot living is by making tho wageworkcr take less. "If this game is not blocked it will reduce production In every line. It will dlscourago the fanners from pro ducing big crops and it will make labor discontented and Inefficient." The thing that inspired tho SL Paul conference was the Government's ac tion In fixing the minimum price of wheat at $2.:0 a bushel. That Is to say, the national authorities guaran teed the farmer that sum should ho have to sell hi grain for lesH, but did not limit tho price If he could get more. In view of the wheat crops In Australia, Argentina, Ac, which are reported to bo large and which in case of an early declaration of pcaco would cause a big drop In the valuo of the staple, the Government for tho sake of tho farmer has pledged tho nation to faco an obligation which might amount to many hundreds of millions of dollars. Furthermore some experts say that tho farmer In making to-day not less than 10 per cent, on his out lay in the case of every bushel of wheat sold nt J2.-0, and others are positive that tho return is in the neighborhood of 11.21. The Farmers' Grletnnce. Of course these estimates aro based upon an average production of four teen liunhela to tho acre. Unhappily the weather was against the wheat growers of North Dakota this year and, according to President Townley, the le!d of wheat In tho State did not run above seven bushels to tho ncrc. Seven bushels to the aero Is not a crop; It Is a failure. The seasonal outcomo wan not un like tho chances faced by many manu facturers. It was a hardship, un deniably, and no doubt Mr. Townley Is correct In his statement that each bushel of North Dakota wheat cost the farmer J3.u0 to raise. It Is a fact that tho cereal was bringing J3.0S a bushel in the open market when tho Uovernment fixed tlio price at $2.20, and even without Interference on tho part ot the Federal authorities tho fanners of North Dakota were losln; when their mom fortunate fellows In other States wero reaping extremely handsome profits. Lynn J. Fnizier, Governor of North Dakota, In speaking at tho conference In St. Paul, said: "We don't want to testing policemen fast enough, so a squad of mounted policemen was called upon and these, led by Limit. Buchlcr, who was mounted, rodn Into and through the crowd, breaking It up and forcing tho demonstrators back across tho street. Inttmlilnllnii rhnrard. Finally Iicsldent Johns managed to call bis men off and ordered them to go to tho association headquarters, which la near by, Tlio police guard was kept on tho plaza, however, anil was Increased to 300 men so that the pres ence of tho guard for the ensuing hour made as big a demonstration as that of their protesting fellows earlier In the afternoon. Finally this police guard was withdrawn after tho Patrol men's Association had sent word that Its men would not try to asfemble again nt the City Hall. During the entire session of the City Councils tho corridors wero patrolled by detectives lu plain clothes whose duty was to prevent a demonstration In tho municipal building. "No detail of pollco Is necessary to break up our meeting," said Johns later. "Councils Finnnco Committee had promised U3 a hearing, but wo did not havo our resolution prepared and I went to tho City Hall personally und told tho men to disperse. But theso bulldogs on duty there, especially the mounted men, ucted lu such a way that they aroused the anger of my men. Some ot tho men wero nearly run down by tho mounted police. So I thought the best thing to do was to get my men together and bring them over to tho headquarters of the association." 'This Is the most flagrant attempt to tntlmldato our organization that the police officials have yet made," said Harry M, Dlckerson, the financial sec retary of the association. "It's all rot to say that tho subway excavations make it dangerous. There have been many meetings in tlm Interest ot re cruiting on tho plaza." Dlckerson camo up for trial yester day beforo the Police Board on charges that he had absented himself without leave, and ho declares it Is a foregone conclusion that he, like Johns, will be dropped from tho force. The strength of tho Benevolent As noclatioti throughout the city was shown In the announcement mado that the election of delegates to the police LINE PARTIES prohibit tho Government settling the wheat price, but wo Insist that it go down tho lino and fix the prlco on all necessities." Because of 'North Da kota's misfortune, tho Government prico on wheat hit tho farmers of that Stato a hard blow, and stung by that fact tho National Non-Partlsan League, through Its president and other officers, demanded at the con ference and havo since Insisted that rates similarly below cost should be fixed for the products of steel mills, coal mines, tho leather trade, the shoe Industry, and so on, and for the rail roads and other public utilities. President Townley Informed his audience at St. Paul that "the profiteers demand tribute and are col lecting 4,000,000,000 a year more in profits in a war year than in lime of peace. They are charging you at the rate of $37 a bushel for your bread." And again, "Tho war was begun by a great autocracy that must bo de stroyed, but tho greatest ally of that autocracy Is a group of the same kind of gentlemen in tills country. Made Hero of La Follette, "Wo cannot bring liberty and de mocracy to the rest of the world unless wo go to tho rest of the world with clean hands ourselves. Until you bring about true democracy hero It is impossible to win tho war for de mocracy. It will bo impossiblo to con vince the German people who are buy ing their bread for one-hulf what we havo to pay that they want any of our liberty end democracs-." Mr. Townley did not explain to his audi ence what sort of bread the Germans were getting for the prico they paid. C. A. Lindbergh, a former Repre sentative In Congress from Minnesota, Informed the conferenco that America did not "offer equal opportunity to all"; und Dr. Samuel II. Maxwell of Colorado declared that "there aro only two classes In this country the bklnncd and tho skinner." Whatever might havo been the effort for the general good originally under lying tho high cost of living conference in St. Paul, it offered a welenme j chance to thoso of advanced toclallstlo views to berato tho authorities by im plication If not In plain terms. There wero lip sorvieo professions of alle glanco to the Government. In this fashion Congressman J. M. P.aur Is re ported to have described tho loyalty 1 of tho league: "We aro not climbing on a loyalty bandwagon. We nro the original patriots. Now wo will invito oil the others who are making profits during tl.e war to get on this patriotic band wagon witli us." uenslon fund from each of tho station 1 houses In tho city had resulted in the seating of twenty-threo ot tho oi san itation's candidates against twenty tle who will line up with the city ad ministration's policies und vote to re tain tho present ofllccrs ot tho pension fund. -At that, tho officers of tho as sociation say the pollco lieutenants had to voto policemen who have Joined the nrmy and gono clsewhero lu order to get tho slim majority of tho delegates won by the police heads. The uKiu-latlon Is accused directly by administration leaders of stirring up all this strife because it is allied with tho Town Meeting party politi cally and against tho city administration- The policemen reply that they have little to thank the administration for and much with which to blame It. They go back to the last tesslon of the Pennsylvania Legislature, when a series of bills wero Introduced and hacked more or less Insistently by the l'enroso faction of tlio Republican membership. Theso bills provided such drastic penalties for political activity or tlio soliciting of political contribu tions by tho pollco that they would have completely wiped politics from tho vocabulary of every policeman In the department. The lenders of the forces which are allied wlt.'i the present elly admlnls- t tratlon, which in turn Is tied up to the Vnro faction in Philadelphia, fought these bills lu the Legislature and drove , them off the floor a number of times i by strategic manoeuvring. Finally the bills were pieced in the cemetery of I undisposed of legislation at the end of the session. Administration In nilemma. If these bills had been passed at that time and had bern signed by the Governor they would have placed the entire police system of the city on a par with the finest of metropolitan rorces. Apparently, however, the poll tlclans controlling the local admlnls. I tratlon couldn't bear to give up n source ot rich revenue In assessments and the most powerful political I weapon that a boss can wield in time I I of strife. I That the last election paw free use 1 of tho police in many parts of tho city ' both at and after tho primaries Is ad- I mltted by most Philadelphians. There 1 Is plenty of evidence too that tho police as well as all other officeholders were compelled to contribute when It ' camo time to settle the last of the ma chine's expenses In tho election, Tho Patrolmen's Association refused to pay this political levy and In-1 5' Results in North west ShowMenace of Movement and St. Paul Meeting Was Denounced as Seditious In Introducing Senator La l'ollttte, the president of the league Is leportnl to have said: "He has been morn lld about by tho kept press than anylKly else, but he la, a man who fears noth ing In hell or heaven, whom thoso iol. bers fear more than anybody elso in all the world, but a man of whom rn uro not afraid." And Senator La Pol lette, responding to this, Is reported to have shouted: "No orders from tecret service employees will bo able to throttle this great movement that stands for representative government " The morning following the close ot tho convention a Minneapolis paper remarked editorially: "There was on significant feature of tho speeches last night Never a word was uttered urging unswerving support to the Gov ernment. Truo, the resolutions adopted earlier had urged such support, but the speakers last night devoted them selvcu to criticism, protest, denuncia tion. And tho audience liked it." A HL Taul paper thus summed up tho climax of tho conference: "It out of this hotbed of seditious haranguing, this mischievous endeavor to stir up class prejudice, this antl-Amorlcan demonstration under the mask of a discussion of economlo conditions, there had come one solitary construc tive suggestion, one single proposal pointing the way to benefits to peoplo generally or to the speolal class Inter ests concerned, there would bo at least that much to be set up against the ranting of positive disloyalty and distorted socialism. But the confer enco ended without one palliating or redeeming circumstance." Seeks Labor Alliance. If tho remits already achieved by the Farmers League In North Dakota and the general spirit of the confer ence of the nationalized body at St. Paul can bo token at their face value then the meeting held at Cooper Union for the purpose of merging the Inter ests of tho State farmers and the la borers ot the cities deserves attention on the part of the entire public. Tho mood of the National Non-Partlan League Is not conciliatory; Indeed, class prejudice is strongly in evlden-'o In the utterances of many of it:i spokesmen. In tho judgment of men who have analyzed tho conduct of the National Non-Partlsan League since It lid stepped out of tho confines of North Dakota Its object Is essentially politi cal and of a socialistic order. There li nothing Utopian In the professions o! tho league's president. In his speech at Cooper Union ho said: "There is a great difference between raising wheat or potatoes and han dling them. Somebody gets more for handling ono bushel of wheat than we get for ten bushels. We decided tlint If the farmers would handle the wheat they raised they would get $r:.,000,0(") a year more out of tho wheat cror and that would be 11,200 for ever-' son of a gun of a farmer In Nort'i Dakota. "We propose a most thorough eo- operation with the workers of the clt; , and wo are going to divide fifty-fifty, i We will do this through State owned ' elevators, State owned flour mills anrt pacMng plants. What wo are after In North Dakota Is this $55,000,000 that $1,200 apiece. We have got to have T If wo don't get it we cannot rtay li North Dakota. The most important part of a man's business Is what hi gets." POLITICS structed all Its members to contribute no money to the Republican organize tlon. Most of the members obejed th Instructions and as a result nm in more or less hot water lu thru p. tlcular district station houses. How tho matter will end it ' ttn possible now to ray. Tho hot headet members of the association are .ioi' ing for a wholesale resignation from the police forco at once. Wisei .ail counsel negotiation with the araitin." tratlon and a general walkout on ccmher 31 unless the demands tf th association aro sranted. 1 Men Johns of tho association indicated th.it tho latter is tho course that v '' ' taken. Meanwhile, the efforts of tho aiini lstratlon and particularly of Dire r Wilson to btamp out the rebellion -soclatton are being watched wlt'- : torest by tho public and by pol leaders In tho city. It appears on' matter of a weok or mnro before "v cause of tho protesting bluecoats nuv be taken up by tho Penrose faction o' the Republican party and some t-ort of crisis forced upon the Smith aJm'.n's tratlon. If thu Mayor and his advisers :n thu City Councils aro forced to grant th" demand for increased pay it Is l ' upon as certain that a dclugo of ' ' demands for Increases will po . from every department of th" ' government. Already the cmp' " of the Water Bureau aro en tno path for more pay. If the poh moro money theso omployet'b w 1 u light to more also, and then w follow in quick succession len ' from the Fire Bureau and fr m ous groups of employees In thn i -partment of Publlo Works. In consequence of a series of traordlnary events this rnovenic becoming the very crux of the -tlon in Philadelphia, both inl and financially. For that reaj' u administration officials aro rxrn ' ''' to make a desperate effort to break ' Policemen's Association in order fcavo themselves. Observors soe In the movement i other lever which eventually wi.l used to help threw from pewer ' present administration and the Varo leadership of the city which suppr ' ' It. Certain It is that the reolt ' one of tho signs that point more less convincingly to th probability chuotlo conditions in the city govfi tnent during the next year condlt which may finally nraash nn ndi" lstratlon that has been In pcrpe' hot water almost since the day U f Into offlca.