182 THE GREEN RISING 



minal elevators. His name was Arthur C. Townley. 

 He was thirty-five years of age at that time. He 

 was reared on a western farm by native American 

 parents. He was a high school graduate and for a 

 short time taught a country school. He became a 

 farmer in the extreme western part of North Dakota, 

 and, by his reading and practical experience, be- 

 came thoroughly familiar with the problems con- 

 fronting the grain farmers of his state. However, 

 having become completely discouraged over the out- 

 look for agriculture in his state, he gave up his 

 farm, became a plasterer's helper, and traveled in 

 many parts of the Northwest as a laborer. After 

 this experience he returned to North Dakota and 

 engaged in flax farming, where he became reason- 

 ably prosperous. 



This in brief is the background of the man who 

 became the leader of the Nonpartisan League and 

 for a time exerted great influence over the farmers 

 and industrial workers of a large section of the Mid- 

 dle and Far West. 



Before he left Bismarck, after the hearings before 

 the legislative committees, Townley became defi- 

 nitely convinced that the farmers were ready to 

 organize and that they would desert readily the old 

 political parties and leaders if a program were form- 

 ulated that would promise relief from existing con- 

 ditions. He decided to assume leadership and to 

 direct the policies of the proposed organization. A 

 temporary office was established at Minot, a small 



