The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1900-02-02
A CAMPAIGN MOVE.

Commenting upon the move of Gov.
Lind's fusion board of railroad commits.
sioners asking the the railroad officials
of the various railroads of the state to
appear before them and show cause
why there should not be general re-
duction of freight rates, particularly
on coal to western and southwestern
stations, the st Paul Dispatch calls to
mind that only few weeks ago the
same commission authorized an ad-
Aance in the rate on coal from Duluth,
the distributing point, to the twin
cities. And the dispatch further says:
I'm considering the action of the
commission in this matter it must be
borne in mind that the commission is
not acting in response to any specific
complaint of overcharge recently made,
but processes to be moved by complaints
during the session of the legislature a
year ago, why should it have delayed &C.
ton until now? The coal for the pres
emit winter has for the greater
part has been shipped, and long before
decision can be reached the people
will be paying freight on cold storage
products instead of fuel"
Of course it will be put forth by the
defenders of the fusion commission
that the board has just been reorganiz-
ed on fusion basis But this is an
excuse that will not wash The major.
ity of the board has been in the hands
of the fusionists for year, and yet it
has not in all that time lifted a fin
ger for the relief of the people, nor at
tempted to. Any legitimate reduction
of freight rates will meet the en-
phatic endorsement of the public and
the press. But it has taken Gov.
Lind's board a long time to get it
through it's head to make move in
this direction, and it has sud-
denly been awakened to the fact,
on the eve of campaign, that it should
get a move on itself, or it would be ever
lastingly too late-for political effect.
If the commission really wanted to get
lower coal rates for the general public,
why did it not commence this work
last spring, when the call for it was
just as apparent as at present and the
public would have had some benefit
from it during the present season. had
it been successful But coming as it
does at this time, it will be regarded
by the public, as the Dispatch says. as
more of a campaign move, than a real
desire to serve the people. Gov. Lind
promised great things when he was on
the stump. They have all failed of
realization. He pictured the state gov
eminent under the control of the Re-
publicans, as mass of corruption, but
as governor he has been utterly unable
to reveal any corruption whatever.
The state prison had been one of his
objects of assault during the campaign,
but he re-appointed Warden Wolfer
and agreed to an increase in his salary.
Violent was the denunciation of the
state grain inspection department, but
he was forced to acknowledge on the
dismissal of the chief inspector. that he
was one of the best posted grain experts
in the country. Nothing wrong was
brought to light. and the only thing
accomplished by the r-formers has been
to demoralize the grades and increase
the inspection fee, which is paid by the
farmer, from Is to 25 cents per car. Nc
corruption by Republican officials has
been found anywhere, though his pub
lie examiner has been industriously ex-
aiming the books of the various state
institutions. Hence the firing of this
gun after a year of inactivity, and
though it may result in the securing Of
a lower rate, it would rebound with
greater crt dit to the reform admin
stration" had it not been forced to dc
it as a political move in last desper
ate effort to save itself from the whirl
wind of public disapproval that il
coming.
+ Il AIA 4 L. Il