The Montana nonpartisan. [volume], January 18, 1919, Image 1

About The Montana nonpartisan. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1918-192?

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Official Publication oi the National Nonpartisan League in the State of Montana
THE MONTANA NONPARTISAN
VOLUME 3 ,, O GREAT FALLS, MONTANA, .ATURDAY, JANUARY 18, 1119 NUMBER Z
LG U EERS "STICK'"
.PITE OF COPPER CROWD'S GANG
LEAGUE DELEGATION FORGE AHEAD
LEAGUE'S WAY I
RATTLES GANG
Kept Pre Sets Up
Feariul Howl.
The Helena Independent and
its followers in the newspaper
world have made a terrible howl
about the alleged failure of the
Laegue delegation to stick to- 1
gether. They have devoted
headlines and captions galore to
the circumstances surrounding
the League nightly caucuses.
They have been abusive to the
point of libel and nothing seems
to be too coarse or too rank for
them to attempt to foist upon the
reading public.
League members and friends
know of course that this is noth
ing but the howl of a disappoint
ed enemy. The very fact that so
much noise is made about the al
leged splitting of the League
simply conveys to the mind of
the reader that the gang press
are making the wish, the father
of the thought. If they only could
split the League delegation up
into powerless individual units
how they would rejoice, if the
League caucus was a failure how
they would dance in glee, but the
facts are that the League is ful
filling its purpose and its legis
lative delegation working togeth
er in splendid style.
er In splendid style.
Gang Press Says Un-American
The discipline and order that pre
vails amongst the Leaguers is the
worst pill the old gang have to swal
low and that the nightly meetings,
open and above board for the discus
sion of legislation are a splendid suc
cess has pretty nearly reduced Big
Biz to prostration. Here is an of
fice where men and women, farmers
and labor men meet with such of the
interested citizens as are present to
go over the needs and desires of the
public. Un-American yell the Cop
per Crowd, where do we come in?
This altogether wrong it's not done
that way.
Secret Diplomacy Shot to Pieces.
What worries the Copper Crew is
that instead of getting together be- I
hind closed doors and plotting some
thing which shall fasten the shackles
of exploitation on the people tighter
than before, the Leaguers gather in
the open and go over what they in
tend to do. The copper politician
knows from experience that publicity
is the last thing the rulers of this
state desire. That in the white light
of public scrutiny it is impossible to
pull off any of the skulduggery for
which they are famous, so they af
fect to scorn the Rubes who are act
ing in daylight and instruct their
press to turn on the most turgid line
of abuse possible in order to discredit
these newcomers who insist upon dis
cussing in the open.
League's Open Forum.
That any set of legislators should
be so lost to the rules governing poli
tics heretofore, as to invite all and
sundry to confer with them and hold
an open forum for the discussion of
popular measures has almost brok
en the hearts of the Copper steerers'
It is an outrage upon the perogative
of the Gang and they are full of gall.
An Open Forum to bring before the
public the meaning of legislation be
fore it is passed or introduced into
the house or senate does not go with
the Old Gang at all.
The Way the Gang Do It
Frightened out of their wits at this
new thing they are busy trying to
head it off so they have cooked up
something of which even a child in
politics would be ashamed and which
is nothing but a standing Insult to the
people at large and the farmers In
particular. They now hold "meet
ings" in the the lobby of the Placer
for all those who are "interested in
farm legislation," but when any real
farmer attempts to get into these
precious affairs they are rather im
politely refused admission.
A case in point came to light the
other day when a well known farm
er who is not an elected member of
the house or senate but is nevertheless
vitally interested in the affairs of the
state as are all citizens, attempted to
get entrance to one of these gang
meetings he was told to beat it. The
man was sore all through and with
good reason. However, that's how
the gang are working and it behooves
all Farmers and Wage Workers to
rally around the League delegation
who are conducting their affairs in
the open, above board and with the
clear knowledge that they have noth
ing to hide.
PRETTY SCANDAL
BEING PROBED
I Put on Your Gas Mask
Press dispatches carry the infor
mation that a pretty scandal is devel
oping around the contested election
of some of the Butte delegation.
The Republican central committee
having found that an honest man can
not apparently be discovered within
their own fold, have engaged the ser
vices of Wellington Rankin who will
present the case for the Republicans
and it is whispered that the revela
tions will even outdo anything of the
kind that has ever been ventilated in
this corruption ridden state.
It seems that there is a great deal
of evidence to show that those cham
pion election manipulators who are
known to exist in Butte, and whose ac
tivities have in the past nauseated
even the heelers, have outdone them
selves. Wholesale charges of fraud
and deliberate stealing of ballots are
being made and with good reason ap
parently.
The Nonpartisans and Labor men of
the state who have suffered for years
under this form of brigandage, of
course, are not surprised for it has
been so open and flagrant in the past
that they are pretty well used to it,
but in this case it is not a Socialist
administration of Butte from whom
the election has been stolen, but from
real honest-to-goodness, dyed-in-the
wool Republicans, hence the noise.
Those in the know assert that Doc
Lanstrum is properly outraged by the
manner in which oodles of votes were
e. stolen from Miss Rankin and feels
oe that something ought to be done
1- about it. The doctor ,of course, is
s, not loosing any sleep about the Lady
a- from Montana but is pretty sore him
e- self and is out with his hatchet for
Lg the bunch who were so clumsy as to
- pull the deal and not get away with
rs it.
ie Progressives all over the state how
eo ver, feel a little encouraged by the
Ie development and are expecting a rev.
P- elation which will forever stop the
? mouths of the mud-slinging tribe who
se have in the past howled about the oth
er fellow in order to divert attention
from their own rank and disgusting
is activities. Let the show go on.
®- I
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IT nAPPtNtD AT ~eLeNA
IEll|lllllllHlfIUh illlllllN H IIIIIIillll llIIIIIll IIIIIllIii ilHiH lmNIIIIi1
The Task Set For League
Legislators
A Herd Law
A Nonpartisan Election Law
A Mine License Tax
To Provide Management and Finance
for a State Elevator
To Exempt Farm Improvements From
Taxation
Creating an Industrial Commission for
Compensation Purposes
A Hail Insurance"Act
For a Constitutional Convention
A By-Monthly Pay Bill
al
iinmmonPmmumnuummwwumn~
HELENA HIGHBINDERS HORRIFIED
RESORT TO EVERY TRICK IN PACK
LEAGUERS LISTEN AND LAUGH
Leaguers Open Forum Caucus, Working Havoc
With Gangs Nerve
The sixteenth legislature of the
state of Montana opened a few
days ago with a bright promise
for the future. This promise did
not lay as the gang press said in
what was foreshadowed by the
governor's speech, but in the fact
that the Nonpartisan league del
egation were present for the first
time in the history of this state.
The governor's speech tinged
as it was with pompos phrases
and half hidden threats showed
plainly the apprehension and ner
vousness with which the Copper
crowd are filled and indeed there
is every reason for their feeling
for the presence of sixteen far
mer-labor members pledged and
determined to make good their
pledge to the League member
ship, brings no comfort to the
mind of the professional politi
clian.
The gang press also has de
voted a large portion of its space
and a great deal of black-faced
type in an endeavor to persuade
the general public that the Lea
gue delegation went to pieces the
first day of the session and that
it exists no more. It does not
matter that these stories are ab
bolutely false, they merely show
the desperate straits which the
copper crowd find themselves in,
and it must give them a great
deal of pain to realize that in
spite of all their treacherous ink
spilling, the League caucus is
held every night in a proper busi
ness like manner with minutes
kept by the recording secretary
and open to the suggestions and
discussion from all who are in
terested.
Introducing Bills.
The governor's speech foreshadows
a good deal of legislation which the
Copper -crowd hope to get through
and against which a good deal of op
position is expected. He for in
stance, told the legislature in so many
words that county divisions by legis
lative enactment would not be tol
erated. He further stated that po
lice force should be enlarged and em
powered to do all sorts of things the
Copper company desire and under the
spacious excuse of combating an
archy recommended legislation for
the purpose of destroying the princi
pal weapon of organized labor in
strike periods. The response to this
demand was so sudden that it is said,
notoriety hunters fairly swarmed
around the door of the committee room
in order to be first to present this
bill. The welcome task (from a poli
tician's point of view) fell to Wash
ington J. McCormick of Missolula,
who gave notice of introducing a bill
which would even make, if the origi
nal draft is not modified, the wear
ing of the "We'll Stick" Button a
criminal offense punishable by one
year in the penitentiary.
Gang After Supreme Court.
Since the election of Chas. H. Coop
er to the supreme court, the Copper
crowd have felt that they were not
likely to receive any favors in that
direction and that cases coming be
fore the chief tribunal would be ad
Judged on the merit involved and not
with an eye to pleasing the sixth
floor of the Hennessy Building. They
now therefore give notice of the in
troduction of a bill intended to en
large the supreme court by two, hop
ing thereby it is suspected to upset
the present status by electing some
one more favorable to Copper than to
the administration of justice.
Memorial Introduced.
The house ,nd senate both voiced
their sorrow 1ir the sudden demise of
Colonel Roosevelt by adjourning for
the day and by the introduction of
resolutions and memorials comment
ing on the same. The women mem
bers also gave notice of introducing
memorials to the United States Con
gress supporting the woman's suf
frage amendment while someone from
Butte put forward the idea of the
freedom of Ireland, at which the
house laughed.
The League Delegation.,
The moment that the League
delegation appeared at'. Helena,
the gang press began its campaign
of abuse and villification. It en
deavored to create the impression
that the League had failed. It
pictured D. C. Dorman as a ring
master cracking a whip and
holding a hoop and whose vic
tims refused to jump through.
It seized upon the death of Col
onel Roosevelt and did not scru
pile to use the fact of his de
mise to further their end.
The Helena Independent print
ed in full his Billings speech in
which the unfortunate man weak
ened and nearing at his end,
turned spitefully upon the Organi
zation which would not do his
bidding or promise him its sup
port for president and abused it
like a fishwife. It conjured up
from the foul imagination of the
Associated Press distorters of
current events, the most vicious
inventions they have so far pro
duced about the Russian situa
tion and published them side by
side with the most infamous lib
els about the League.
The Lobbyist.
Or were they less inactive in
and around the lobbies of the
house or the hotels. Their agents
were everywhere, weasel-faced
and soft-tongued, cajoling, flat
tering, lying, backstabbing, abus
ing, . complimenting offerang
bribes, threats or rewards as the
occasion served, or the principal
in question appeared to need.
So keenly do they realize the
threat to continued copper rule
which lies in the eighteen good
men and true who make up the
League delegation and so much
are they concerned to annul the
very evident power which these
eighteen wield, that they have en
deavored to form a rival group
whose business shall be to be
fool the electorate and confuse
the issue by introducing fake bills
about the time and under the
same title as the genuine Lea
gue bills. This new formation
dominated as it is by rival poli
ticians need not alarm anybody,
but since it is to be used by the
gang press for the purpose of be
clouding what is going on at Hel
ena, the League members would
be well advised to form no con
clusions until the Nonpartisan
reaches them.
The League Headquarters.
The League management have
opened offices in the Pittsburg block
in Helena where the League dele
gation meet nightly for the discus
sion of all bills to be presented to
the legislature and after a thorough
going over of whatever matter is be
fore the meeting, action is taken
only by a majority vote. These meet
in which the general public partici
i nwhich the general public partici
pate and where many valuable sug
gestions and ideas are put forward.
It is this open establishing of Demo
cracy in a department of public buai
ness previously looked upon as the
individual concern of some Copper at
torney, which shocks and horrifies
the gang press and which they call
un-American and unpatriotic. How
ever the Leaguers have shown them
selves to be adamant to either the
blandishments, the threats or the
abuse of the opposition and are now
busy formulating the legislation
which shall, if passed through the
house and senate translate the Lea
gue program into reality.
Bills to Be Presented.
Among the measures which the
League will father or assist in pass
ing are the following: A real herd
law; an election act making it pos
sible for candidates to be nominated
without enduring the misery and ex
pense of such a primary and general
election. A mine license tax. A bill
providing for the appointment of a
manager of the state elevator of Mon
tana and providing for the expendi
ture of money appropriated by law
for the building of the elevator. An
act for amendments to the constitu
tion of Montana exempting farm im
provements from taxation. A com
pensation act with generous pay
ments to injured people and cover
ing vocational diseases. A Hail in
surance act with proper provisions for
a fund to sustain it. A bill calling
for a constitutional convention and a
fortnightly wage bill which the rail
way workers are introducing.