The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1904-09-22

and it's newspaper organs and the
republicans for a commission to regu-
late all corporations. is not whether
George Turner's Montana road Is a
jerkwater or IS miles long. The sa-
lient feature is that it Is of enough
consequence for the Northern Pa
cific to lease it. and that lease makes
George Turner a party in interest
with the transcontinental railroad
which has a greater mileage in this
state than any other road. Having
such party interest with one Of the
roads which Jim Hill proposed to
merge, could George Turner consist
emily have done so very much in fur
nishing thunder to the Roosevelt ad-
minlstration in suppressing the
Northern Securities company? Tur-
ner on the platform has confessed to
having been of counsel to the Cana
dian Pacific, which even now con-
templates entering the state Of which
he aspires to be governor for the
sole purpose of regulating all rail-
roads in this state. Is it reasonable
that any man with Turner's record
Of switch and shunt made during the
past few years on all questions touch
ing politics in this state, will forget
old associates or old associations
say Is months old-just the length
of his ierkwater road? The forget
fulness would be just as jerkwatery,
and the chances are mat someone
would be willing to pay for lease
on it,
That is not all. The we'll known
friendship between Turner and Lob
byist George Stevenson has not been
bursted by the strain of Turner's
campaign professions Of doing hard
work to regulate the railroads. Three
times has Turner's home city been
visited by this king of Olympia rail-
road lobbyists, and to him has been
delegated the task Of trying to de-
velop strength for Turner in Pierce
county and the city Of Tacoma. Mel
Their Turner on the stump nor his
faithful morning organ Of this city
ISOLATED with Stevenson. The Spokes-
anReview has been silent on the
matter of those three visits of the
kingpin lobbyist here, but it is not
ignorant of the quality of the Ste
venson work. for that paper in it's
issue of January s. 1901. had these
words in special from Olympia as
the members of the legislature were
gathering: headquarters are estab-
lished by George Stevenson of VAN
couver. the well known railway lob
byist, In the Temple flats" But
Turner needs the lobbyist now, and
the Turner organ is not telling the
public very much about Turner and
his relations with Hobbies and rail-
roads,
In addition to this the names of
George Turner and J. w. Goodwin, the
present chairman of the state dem.
ocratic committee appear in the
official prospectus of the Alaska Gen.
trail Railway company, as directors
of that corporation. In those same
pages Turner is described as one of
the big corporation lawyers and the
man who made the LeRoi mine IA
nous. He is also declared by the
prospectus to be general counsel for
the Alaska Central. The Alaska Cen
trail may be outside the confines of
this state, but it is expected to do
whole lot of business with the
transportation companies within this
state.
Such a railroad record as this
right in view at this time and not
a matter as far back as the days of
the constitutional convention when
the Spokesman-Review says he did
such valiant work for a railroad
commissioners more than jerkwater
and more than IS miles, and the vot-
ing public understands fully why the
Turner organ of thic city has made
no mention of it.