The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1891-07-24
THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER.

NdTlduC0 Will lIc UluUu, DIS W DTlUS
forth clear, concise and full explain.
alton of the true situation from Secre.
tary Reeve in last evenings Minneap
oils Journal.
If Mr.. Hunt was the only party un.
der fire in this matter the FREE PRESS
would treat the attack with silent
contempt, but the fact that Mr.
Reeves integrity has been brought
into question, and the position OF
Messrs. Ward and Furlong wholly mis-.
represented for the single purpose OF
creating prejudice against the super
intendent by bringing politics and Pc.
litical motives into field of opera
tion where there is no place for either
and where neither exists, this paper
offers no apology for reproducing in
its entirety, the article from the jour.
nal, to which reference is above made.
Here it is.
1t develops that the talk about max
ing a Minneapolis exhibit at the
worlds fair is wasted, for under the
rules of the fair no such exhibit can
be made. 1t also develops that the
talk about having Minneapolis well
represented in the state exhibit is
wasted, for under the rules Minneap-
oils can not exhibit her industries or
her products. All of these displays
must be made in the regular way
through the regular departments, in
order that the spirit and purpose OF
the fair may be carried QUITO show
our national progress.
This bit of information was given to
the Journal to-day by Commissioner
Reeve, in an interview with him on a
report published IN ST. Paul paper
to-day relative to the election of L.
p. Hunt, Of Mankato, as superinten-
dent of the state fair exhibit.
This statement says: minneapolis
will have an exhibit at the world IS
fair. When L. p Hunt was elected
of the exhibit, the
possibility became certainty. Few
people know how hot the fight was
over that appointment of a super
intendent of the worlds fair exhibit. "
And there was more to the effect
that G. w. Field, of Minneapolis, had
been defeated by Mr.. Hunt through
the desertion of MessrS. Reeve, Ward
and Furlong. and that the defeat was
further assisted by the votes Of Gov.
Merriam and National Commissioner
M. B. Harrison, of Duluth. When
the statement was shown Mr.. Reeve
this morning he laughed heartily and
said, THAT is the worst jumbled state
ment / ever read" And then he con-
tinued:
''The article says the contest was
close and evenly divided. That is not
true, for there was never a ballot ia
ken in. which Mr.. Fields name figured.
| am sorry that he insists he was de-
feated, for did my best to save him
that humiliation by keeping his name
In the background when / found that
every other member Of the commits
sion was unanimous for Mr.. Hunt.
The statement that there was a tie
vote on Mr.. Field has no foundation
for Mr.. Field did not figure
1t all in tie vote that we had. 1t
was this way:
son the 18th of June the commits
sion met in Chicago, all being present
except Gov. Merriam and myself. 1t
was voted there unanimously to ten
Ter the position of superintendent to
Mr.. Hunt-unanimOuS mind you,
Furlong, Ward and LaDue voting for
Hunt. At the meeting last Friday,
when Hunt was elected, the proceed
ings were like this. When the ques-
ton came up as to whether the action
Of the commission in Chicago relative
to Mr.. Hunt should be ratified, a mo-
tion was made to defer vote on that
until the next meeting, and the ballot
was 3 to 3. That is where the tie vote
came in, and neither Mr.. Hunt nor
Mr.. Field figured in it. This was re-
for it was plain that the
feeling was unanimous for Hunt, al
though Mr.. Montfort and Mr.. LaDue
were absent: but as these gentlemen
voted for Hunt in Chicago, it is mere
assumption to say either one of them
had changed his mind and was a Field
man. Mr.. Hunt was accordingly un-
animously elected, l voting for him.
1t would have been extremely foolish
for me to have antagonized the country
and Mr.. Hunt simply to cast one vote
for Mr.. Field. l was pledged to Mr.
Field, this article says. This is how
l was pledged: Mr.. Field came to me
and said if l would assure him would
vote for him he could secure a vote on
that. | replied that [ could assure
for l didn't know whom l
would vote for. That was the pledge.
will say, however, that / did expect
to vote for Mr.. Field, until l saw how
useless it was to attempt it, and so
the fact is that Mr.. Field never ap-
peared in vote. Any statement that
l was called into the hall, ETC., is I'M
true, for did not leave the ROOM"
SIS there any ground for the state
ment that the selection of Mr.. Hunt
was for political reasons?"
ut is simply absurd. The warmest
supporter of Mr.. Hunt was Mr.. Har-
rison, of Duluth, and there isn't a
stronger Democrat in the state. Mr..
Furlong is a Democrat, Mr.. Ward is
Democrat and | am a Democrat. We
all voted for Mr.. Hunt, who is Re-
publican. That doesn't look like poll
tics, does it? / know Gov. Merriam
and he never mentioned
Mr.. Hunt to me, so that does away
with that. The fact is, politics was
not thought of, but the question was.
where is there good man? and Mr..
turlong, a Democrat, proposed Mr..
Hunt. He was elected with the right
TO remove reserved to the COMMISSION
1T any time if he cannot perform the
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