SPIES BELIEVED TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR BREAK-IN OF REP. BAER'S OFFICES
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) The Washington Times reported on November 19, 1920 that the offices of Congressman John Miller Baer* of North Dakota had been ransacked during the night. The offices were located in the House Office Building here in the Nation's Capital.
The Congressman reported that all of his private papers had been rifled through but that nothing had been taken. Several notes with sarcastic comments written on them were left behind.
Mr. Baer was the first Representative to be elected by the Nonpartisan League** and he believed "spies" were responsible for the break-in. His secretary said that "big interests were after the scalp of the Nonpartisan League and all it represented."
*John Miller Baer (1886-1970) was born in Black Creek, WI & educated at Lawrence University. He moved to North Dakota in 1909 where he became a cartoonist for the Non-Partisan Leader until 1917. JMB served in US Congress 1917-1921.
**Nonpartisan League was founded in 1915, a faction of the Republican Party, on behalf of small farmers & merchants. It favored state control of mills, grain elevators & banks.
SOURCE
"Congressman Baer's Offices At Capitol Rifled," The Washington Times, November 19, 1920, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
