19173 Expansion of the People s Council 



As a matter of form, during the meeting I was 

 asked to act as treasurer -pro tern. To this I demurred, 

 saying that I was about to leave for California and 

 could undertake no responsibility; being pressed, 

 however, as a courtesy I consented to the temporary 

 use of my name, but stipulated that I should not be 

 asked to handle any funds. Several days later, suf- 

 ficient time having elapsed to permit the selection of 

 some one else, I sent in my resignation from Washing- 

 ton. Acceptance of this was postponed from time to 

 time on various pleas, and to my growing embarrass- 

 ment. For though the Council extended its opera- 

 tions into fields wholly foreign to my activities - 

 by affiliation with various societies of protest, socialis- 

 tic and anti-British- -I was widely advertised in 

 large type as the only officer, thus appearing as the 

 head and front of the movement. Nothing was 

 farther from my wish, even had the organization 

 retained its original character as most of the founders 

 understood it. 



Finally, having protested without avail at the 

 unwarranted publicity, I felt obliged formally to 

 disclaim responsibility through the press of Minne- 

 apolis, where the Council was preparing to hold its 

 first convention and elect ''permanent" officers. 

 Accordingly, by telegram to my sister, a resident of 

 the city, I asked her to hand to the newspapers my Appeal 

 statement "in view of extraordinary unwelcome 

 prominence given my name, over repeated protests, 

 in connection with affairs of the People's Council." 



As is usual in similar groupings, the extremists 

 ran away with the organization. Meanwhile reckless 

 talk on the one hand and intolerance on the other had 

 stirred up a good deal of bitter feeling, and the 



c 739 : 



