The nonpartisan leader. [volume], February 01, 1917, Image 6

About The nonpartisan leader. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1915-1921

Image provided by: State Historical Society of North Dakota

                
Bideration that the conditions that
existed then are reversed now, and that
this movement does not spring from
the same conditions that existed then.
In those days 50 per cent of the wealth
of this country was owned by the farm
ers—today only 20 per cent. Today
10 per cent of the people. own more
than 90 per cent of all the wealth of
this country, while the other 90 per
cent have to be contented with only 10
per cent of the wealth. Does the gen
tleman know that the consumer today
pays $1 for the articles that the pro
ducer only gets 50 cents for? Have not
the people of tTiis state for the past
six years by overwhelming majorities
time and again voted for what we are
now trying to give them in House Bill
44? They have given their word they
want these things, and we are going
to give them to them."
FARMERS' MOVEMENT
•TEMPORARY PREJUDICE"
Mr. Tenneson declared the house of
representatives was neglecting its duty
to the people by. considering- const® tu
tional questions and ought instead to
be enacting laws that the Republican
platform did not call for a new consti
tution. and that the whole League con
stitution is characterized by the de
sire to "turn the financial resources
of this state over to someone."
"A short time ago I listened to the
addresses of two governors," said he.
"One was entirely concerned with get
ting us out of debt the other was the
exact contrary—a desire to plunge us
into debt."
The suggestion that the members
were really Republicans and not Non
partisans was carried out in the
speeches of Mr. Moen, Mr. Mack off and
Mr. Blanchard, all contending that
there was "no plank in the Republican
platform that called for a new, consti
tution." Mr. Mackoff, after a lengthy
argument concluded by saying:
"House Bill 44 is the greatest fraud,
the most colossal insincerety that was
ever perpetrated on the puttfic."
His colleague, Mr. Blanchard, closed
with the statement that the entire
League movement was "actuated by
temporary prejudice, and is the sudden
outburst of the poison that issues from
the soap box on the street corner."
Mr. Divet declared that the League
plan will fail because it is legally
faulty, in his final argument Friday,
using these words:
"The method embodied in House Bill
44 is an idle, useless ceremony that
will be wiped out by the supreme court
of this state the first time it gets hold
of It"
PATTERSON DEFENDS^
FARMERS' PROGRAM
From the League side, one of the
most fiery speeches came from Patter
Bon of Renville, who said in part:
"They talk about the vote for
Frazier being only 14 per cent, but
-they do not say anything about the
285,000 little children of North Da
kota, who can not demand through
the ballot what they want the
children who want better homes,
better schools, better churches
and who are not getting them,
though we have demanded these
things time and time again. The
gentleman from Stark is here now
with a bill asking that a new school
r.
be established in his county, and
the only reason it can not be done
is because we are financially em
barrassed. Oh, we raise enough.
That is not the trouble. But, gen
tlemen, there is a stream of gold
that goes out of this state every
season to Minneapolis, to Duluth,
to Chicago and to other big centers,
and we are powerless to stop it be
cause of our constituion. We
have found that the only way we
can stop it is to band ourselves to
gether for a new constitution.
"I am surprised to see gentle
men of such wisdom as the oppo
sition here making the angel-faced
arguments they have for the sanc
tity of a constitution.' I am one of
those "suckers." I have a 14-inch
walking plow at home, and I walk
behind it. There is no carpet on
the floor, and there are no pictures
on the wall, and I can see the blood
fading year by year from my wife's
face because of the hardships she
endures, and her longing for these
/things which she can never have.
I can go to that old bureau drawer
and dig out the papers yet. that
show how little we have made since
we came to North Dakota many
years ago—and then I come down
here to Bismarck and I see gentle-
SINCERE CONVICTION,
ON MAJORITY SIDE
Read how your representatives at Bismarck faced the gang and voted them down in the house.
Read the rollcall on page 7 and learn who your friends and enemies were on this history-making
rollcall. It is now up to the senate. Will the senate serve Big Business or the people. We shall see.
This is House Bill 44
FIFTEENTH SESSION, LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF NORTH DAKOTA.
HOUSE BILL NO. 44
Introduced by A. M. Hagan.
A BILL
A Concurrent Resolution
1 WHEREAS, The people of the State of North Dakota desiring to
2 improve the economic conditions under which they live and to broad-,
3 en the scope of the functions, duties and powers of certain depart-
4 ments of state i£nd government, and to that end did in the 1916 gen-
5 eral election emphatically declare in favor of a state owned and
6 operated terminal elevator system, and state owned and operated
7 flour mills and other things of alike nature to the end that the people
8 of the State of North Dakota should be enabled to control to a larger
9 degree the marketing of the products of this state and should con-
10 serve to those, whose labor produces the same, the benefits and
11 advantages of such production, and whereas the constitution of this
12 state at this date prohibits the doing of those things by this legisla-
13 tive assembly which are necessary to successfully carry out the man-
14 date of the people as expressed at the polls, and this legislative
15 assembly being mindful of the duties imposed upon it and the high
men on this floor throwing dirt in
the face of the people who are
making this state. Mr. Speaker,
when the roll is called I shall vote
aye on House Bill 44."
16 trust and confidence reposed in it by the people of this state and with
Harris of Mercer county, recalled the
Tise of Minneapolis from the days,
when he said he was a boy there, be
fore the mills and elevators were built,
and declared that the $300,000,000 valu
ation which these industries represent
were obtained from the farmers of. the
Northwest. He closed with these
words:
17 intent and purpose, and with an eye single to the faithful perform-
"We have prospered some, but they
have prospered more at our expense
and we want them and shall have them
divide with us. Gentlemen have talk
ed here for several days against our
plan, but with all their talk they have
offered nothing*better. They have cau
tioned us against undue haste, and
would have us shed crocodile tears
over the sacredness of the constitution."
L". L. Stair derid'ed the proposals for
delay and scored the contentions that
the League plan is not following prece
dent
"If Christopher Columbus had waited
for precedent," he said, "I wouldn't be
here today, but one foot would be in
Ireland and the other in old Germany.
•. If the patriots of the Revolution had
followed precedent there wouldn't be
any North Dakota. Who were the con
servatives of the -Revolution? They
were the merchants and lawyers and
business men, too cowardly to fight
but when the farmers had won the vie
tory. these lawyers and merchants and
18 ance of that trust, the legislative assembly has prepared a proposed
19 constitution reading as follows:
The above is a photographic reproduction of the first page of the bill for
the emancipation of the farmers passed by the house at Bismarck, January 26.
business men were right on the front
seat to help make a constitution that
would let the minority rule the major
ity. The gentleman of Grand Forks
said yesterday that this same house is
assembled under "very unusual condi
tions.' I agree with him. We are. And
I can tell him what those "unusual con
ditions' are. We are here today be
cause 83 per cent of the voters of this
state couldn't get what they wanted
from this body. That's, why I'm here..
My neighbors knew my grammar
wasn't good, but they knew my prin
ciples were right The gentleman from
Grand Forks also said if someone
should come up here to North Dakota
from Indiana or Iowa or some o' them
seaports and start to set out an orange
grove, we would tell him he was out
of the orange belt. What he meant,
gentlemen, was that you are out of
your place. You ought not to be here
trying to meddle with laws. But the
trouble is we have been sending our
oranges down here, and they have been
producing lemons."
CHURCH SHOWS
LEGALITY OF PLAN
SIX
at)aesaaaa
Church of Benson county declared
that he came to the legislature with the
idea that the people of North Dakota
might have to wait two years, for ful
filment of their program, as Governor
Frazier thought, but that a new way
had opened up and that he .would stand
by the League aijd the governor" it'
elected.
"We were sent here for a very defi
nite purpose," said he, "not an abstract
purpose. We represent the entrenched
farmers against Big Business and we
are seeking the aid of the state in
helping us to build up this purely agri­
•aSa
855SS55F'
cultural" state. When I came it
with the idea that it would take at
least two years to get what we wanted,
but a new way opened up, and it looked
as though possibly we could get it in
one year. I grasped at that chance,
and I am here to stay with it until we
get what we came after. For if it will
be good for us two years from now, or
four years, it is good for us now."
Mr. Church read from the opinion of
League attorneys who had prepared a
brief to support House Bill 44, and he
also referred to the opinion of Attorney
General Langer, which he, along with
Governor Frazier, had requested sev
eral days ago.
E. E. Cole of Fargo delivered a
speech that was frequently interrupted
with applause, declaring the justice of
the peoples' cause, and answering argu
ments of opponents. He said thai the
"greatest patriotism In the world is to
bring comfort and welfare" and quoted
from Goldsmith, the two lines:.
"Sweet Auburn, lovliest village of the
plain,
Where health and plenty blessed .the
laboring swain."
"That's what they want" he said,
"health and plenty. That's all they
want, and they are going to. stay here
until they get it"
MAIN OPPOSITION
ON BOND PROVISION -.1
The main argument,directed against
House Bill 44 during its discussion in
committee of the whole, was against
section 172 of the printed bill, providing
that the state or any of its subdivisions
could guarantee bonds in excess of the
$500,000 debt limit, if these bondsjwere
amply secured by first mortgages upon
lands and by mortgages upon state
owned industries.
Representative A. G. Divet of Wahpe
ton led the figh]t against the measure^
declaring his purpose to persist until
he found the "limit." The section does
not provide a limit, League members
explaining during the' debate on this
section that the constitution as pro
posed "would give the people a chance
to defeat any extravagance that a
legislature might try to imp'ose upon
them under the section, by applying
the referendum contained in the bill
itself which requires only 10 per cent
petitions. But Mr. Divet, assisted by
B. G. Tenneson of Fargo, H. A. Mack
off and H. J. Blanchard of Stark coun
ty, declared the bill should contain a.
bond limit within this section, which
would amount to restricting the people
in how far they could go by their own
vote in building state-owned plants.
Before- Mr. Divet's motion was put
Mr. Tenneson announced if Mr. Divet
were voted down he would introduce
another motion with the same purpose
in view. The first form of the motion
was that the state be limited- to $1,000,
000 and the sub-divisions of the state'
to $100,000 in bonds issued against
state-owned plants in excess of the
general bond limit of $500,000.. else
where provided. This was voted down
without debate on the part of League
members. Mr. Tenneson moved that the
state be limited to $1,000,000 and sub
divisions to 10 per cent of their assess--•
ed value.
MINORITY TRIES TO
DELAY BY DEBATE f.t
It became plain that the minority
was going to start a filibuster hy offer
ing all kinds of amendments and try
ing to lead League members on to an
endless debate. Every member of the
house was familiar with every provi
sion of th6 bill. There was no doubt
about anything. The League majority
was determined to put the bill through
without allowing jokers to be grafted
onto it and without taking up weebs of
useliess time in hot-air argument Thmr
were there to pass this bill, to carry
out the mandate of the people express
-ed last fall at the polls for- the imme
diate carrying out of the League pro
gram, and they stood shoulder to" 'v.
shoulder to redeem their pledges. The
League majority was at least deter-i-~
mined that one farmers' bill should get
through the North Dakota legislature
meaning what it said and without
amendments annuling its force and ef
feet the usual fate of such measures
after the politicians in the legislature
get through with them.
Mr. Divet got the floor and moved as
an amendment that the bond limit
against state-owned plants be placed
at $2,000,000 for the state and, in city
and county-owned utilities, 10 per cent
of the assessed valuation for all sub
divisions. When this had likewise been
voted down, Mr. Tenneson took his
turn again and renewed the motloij in
(Continued on page 13)f|fe^'j
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