EXPANSION AND DECLINE 215 



could not officially participate, it would be unwise to have any unofficial 

 representative in attendance." 79 



Teigan again stated his views on the idea of a third party in a letter to 

 H. W. Laidler, a prominent American Socialist writer. Laidler had ad- 

 dressed a letter to Townley which read in part: "We are particularly de- 

 sirous of finding out what changes in tactics, if any, you believe that the 

 labor movement and the minor political parties should make if they are 

 to do their most effective work." l Teigan, in replying for Townley, who 

 was not in the habit of answering correspondence, said: "In my opinion, 

 a change in the political tactics of the labor movement is absolutely neces- 

 sary to offer any hope of success. A political party, organized along the 

 lines of the British Labor Party, looks to me as offering the best means of 

 political expression for the working class. The Farmer-Labor Party is a 

 good start in that direction, though it may need a little 'revamping,' so 

 to speak, to make it more workable." !!1 A. W. Ricker, who later joined 

 Townley as editor of the Farm Market Guide, official organ of the Na- 

 tional Producers' Alliance, summarized the two divergent views develop- 

 ing within the League as "one the practical trying to get something 

 of the campaign the other the Utopian building a party. Party build- 

 ing at this time is impractical The country is in a state of flux ." 82 



Much uncertainty prevailed regarding the future of the League while 

 Townley was serving six months in jail on charges of disloyalty and sedi- 

 tion. Many had hoped that the jailing of Townley would make a martyr 

 of him and thus revitalize the League. Meanwhile Teigan had been cam- 

 paigning for a farmer-labor party. In January, 1922, he wrote to one D. C. 

 Dorman that labor was opposed to the balance-of -power plan, stating that 

 it had functioned along those lines for a number of years and received 

 nothing from it, and adding that "Gompers ... is a balance of power 

 man." The Minnesota Nonpartisan League reportedly favored the balance- 

 of-power idea, but it was considered unwise to pursue the plan if labor 



79. H. G. Teigan to W. C. Zumach, November 10, 1919; Teigan to Martin 

 Teigan, November 17, 1919. 



80. H. W. Laidler to A. C. Townley, November 22, 1920. This information was 

 gathered for the Socialist Review, which was sponsoring a symposium on the 

 "Lessons of Recent Elections." 



81. Teigan to Laidler, November 26, 1920. 



82. A. W. Ricker to Teigan, September 13, 1922. 



