IAGenWeb Project

Iowa History

       An IAGenWeb Special Project

 

Join the IAGenWeb Team

 

     

The Iowa Magazine, 1918

Published Every Two Months by

The Greater Iowa Association

Davenport, Iowa

Vol. 2            December ---1918            No. 6

 

Page 6 (cont. from page 5)

 
spread their doctrines broadcast, arrogantly and unreserved?

     Do you think all the I. W. W. members and red-flag Socialists and pro-Germans who were convicted of interference with our war program and of disloyalty, should be released from the penetentiaries?

      If you do, join the Non-Partisan League of North Dakota, -- for all of this is included in its most recent platform.

      The Non-Partisan Leader -- the official weekly paper of the league -- in its issue of November 30, 1918, says:

      "What are we going to do with our political prisoners, -- men and women who ran counter to general public opinion of the sedition law during the prosecution of the war? ** They are not criminals -- far from it. The great majority of them are men and women of culture and conscience, with the courage of their convictions. They are now in jail -- thousands of them -- some of them for terms as long as thirty years, because their consciences would not let them shed the blood of fellow men, even though those fellow men were Germans.

     "You were more practical (italics are ours) -- but the same God that gave you your conscience, gave these political prisoners theirs, and their offense was merely in being true to it. Now the war is over, the necessity for their imprisonment is over. We can even afford to be generous. **

    "If the offense was conscientious objection to the war -- or was liberal ideas (italics are ours) which led him too far in criticism --let us pardon him. Let us leave the locking up of political heretics to the old world countries.

     "Let us free our political prisoners."

     In its issue of December 7, 1918, the Non-Partisan Leader makes an even stronger plea for the immediate release of these "political prisoners." One of these "political prisioners' is Kate Richards O'Hare. Judge Martin J. Wade, of Iowa, sentenced her to the penitentiary. Mrs. O'Hare, in a speech in North Dakota (where the Non-partisan League is in absolute control of the state government), said, among other things:

    "That any person who enlisted in the army of the United States for service in France would be used for fertilizer, and that is all he was good for; and that the women of the United States were nothing more t=or less than brood sows to raise children to get in the army and be made into fertilizer."

      The same Non-partisan League is now organizing in Iowa. What do you think about it -- you loyal Iowans who love your homes and who gave your sons to fight -- perhaps die -- for the cause of democracy?

      What do you think of it --you whose daughters served so unselfishly as Red Cross nurses?

      Just a year ago the Non-partisan League of North Dakota sent forty of its agents over our northern border to "organize" Iowa, and control the 1918 elections to our legislature. These forty agents scattered into forty of our counties and began preaching their doctrines of class prejudice. They told farmers that all merchants and manufacturers and bankers were organized against the farming business -- and that it was time for the farmer to organize and fight back.

      The Greater Iowa Association, representing as it does, all classes of business, and having in its membership more farmers than any other single class of business, realized that propaganda of this sort was harmful to Iowa and was seriously retarding the various war activities in which our people were engaged. It therefore held community meetings in sixty counties, within forty days --turned the spot-light of truth upon the misrepresentations of the Non-partisan League organizers appealed to the fairmindedness of the people -- and the organizers went back to Minnesota and North Dakota, post-haste.

    Six months later, Jim Pierce, publisher of the Iowa Homestead, thinking he could increase the circulation of his newspaper and also establish himself as a political dictator, undertook to act as sponsor for the Non-Partisan League in Iowa -- and invited Townley to send back his organizers. Within a week half a dozen counties were being canvassed by the agents of the League.

    As all of the officers and employees of the Greater Iowa Association were at that time giving all their service to the Third Liberty Loan campaign in Iowa, we appealed to the State Council of National Defense to consider the league as interfering with the prosecution of essential war work. The Council of Denfense directed the league to discontinue its propaganda until after the war. The league defied the Council of Defense and refused to discontinue its creation of class prejudice.

      In the meantime Jim Pierce, who was then a member of the Council of Defense, grew bolder, forcing the council to expel him, through the following resolution:

        "Mr. J. M. Pierce, a member of this council, has elected to oppose and defy the honest convictions of every other member of the Iowa State Council of Defense upon this matter.  He has made his choices between this body and the Townley organization, and has elected to lead in the organization of the Non-partisan League in Iowa, in defiance of the solemn appeal of this council, to the patriotism of those interested in establishing the league.

     "To cover his real purpose and design to shield himself against the stigma which must attach to the man who in these times will support this league, he attacks the Great Iowa Association and some of its members.

     "This council refuses to have the matter diverted into a controversey between the Non-partisan League and the Greater Iowa Association. The question at issue must stand upon its merits.

    "We condemn the Non-partisan League and those who would now force it upon our people by a campaign -- already organized by Mr. Pierce -- the very nature of which cannot help but divide our forces -- arouse class hatreds and weaken our fighting force.

    "Mr. Pierce in order to hide his anxiety for the establishment of the Non-Partisan League speaks more of  'Farmers organizations' than he does of the Non-Partisan League.  This council and no member of this council to our knowledge has ever opposed the organization of farmers. They would welcome any organization of farmers which was patriotic and which did not have upon 

 
     
cont. on Page 7

 

~ scanned and contributed by Steve Harken

 

Iowa Magazine Index

Home