The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1892-11-04
AN HONEST MAN.
That In the Kind OF One John y.
Rich Is.


Ex-Governor Luce In the course Of
his speech at Bad Axe said: Occasion
ally we hear people say that John T.
Rich has been an officeseeler. This
neither deny or affirm. 1t is possible
that he has sought the office of super
visor of his township, and of repre-
sentative and senator in the Legislature
and seat in Congress, all of which
positions he has occupied. OF this /
know not, but do know that he never
sought by himself, or through another,
the position of railroad commissioner,
and this is one of the most responsible
offices he has ever held.
"When the people of this state had
elected me to the high Office of gov
ernor of the commonwealth had but
one single ambition, and that was to
give to all of the people the best pos
sible administration of affairs. This
was only to be secured by the selection
of the very best men to discharge the
various duties devolving upon them,
and the most important position to be
filed by appointment from the gov
ernor was railroad commissioners. The
law clothes him with extraordinary
powers, and l wanted first OF
all things an honest man, and
man who would always possess
possess the courage of his convictions.
/ wanted a man who would faithfully
and bravely guard and protect the
rights of shippers and of the people
everywhere within the limit of author
lty conferred upon him by the laws of
the state. i wanted man who would
be considerable of the feelings and in
terests of the men who run the trains;
of the engineers who drive the iron
horse out in the storm, through tun-
nels and over bridges and into whose
safe keeping we trust our lives and
our property. And in relation to his
conduct in this regard / wanted man
who would be kind but firm. wanted
a man who would have due regard to
the rights of the men who own the
roads. They have contributed to the
development and prosperity of this
great country, and l did not want a
man to hold that high Office that would
nag, annoy or needlessly interfere with
their business and rights.
Wanted al, Honest Man.
"For the purpose of securing a man
who possessed all these varied qualifi-
cations, my mind went racing
over the state, canvassing the
qualifications of many friends OF
whose acquaintance l was proud, and
every time that would reach anything
like conclusion, the choice fell upon
John T. Rich. / knew him from the
sole of his feet to the crown of his
head, and knew him to be brave,
honest man who discharged duties
fearlessly and with fidelity that was
worthy of emulation.
Did Not Solicit the Position.
she did not ask for the position; dc
not know that he thought of it, but
telegraphed him to come to Lansing,
told him what kind of a man l wanted,
and wound up by saying: My opin-
ion is, thou art the man. The posi-
ton was accepted. l watched his
course with solicitude, and say without
hesitation that no man in this, or any
other state ever discharged the COM
plicated duties of railroad commits
sioner with greater wisdom and fidelity
than he. He was as quick to respond to
the call of the poor and unknown when
complaint came to him as he was to the
call of the rich or powerful. There
was no point in the state SO remote
that when complaint came from ship
pers, farmers, or others, he did not
reach it on the first train and in.
vestigate carefully the situation. And
believe on all occasions he used all
the Judgment and discretion he was
master of in adjusting difficulties. II
anyone suspected that railroad bridge
was weak either he or his assistant
gave it immediate attention.
81 say this here tonight because a
disposition is manifested in some quar-
tiers to make an effort to create
prejudice. But, responsible as l am
solely and alone, for his appointing Mt
challenge the most careful scrutiny
and searching investigation into every
official act performed by him during
the four years that he held the i'm
portant position of railroad commits
sioner. He was faithful to the inter
ests of the people; he was kind to the
men who run the trains; he was honest
with the railroad companies. There
was nothing more to be demanded OF
him. He served faithfully and well, az
he will in the executive chair, posi-
ton which he will occupy after the
first day of January 1897