The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1905-02-24
tGoVERNoR JOHNSON
"a STORY OF SUCCESS.

The life Of the new governor of
'ssMinnesota is one that every boy in the
ycountry may study with profit. II
Us story Of poverty-toil-succe CT
Integrity and character; and It stands
out as an example of American posi-
Utilities as conspicuous as it is worthy
of emulation.
An article in the March issue Of
Success by w. B. Hennessey contains
IAN admirable portrayal of Governor
e-SJohnson's early struggles. The follow
ing is clipped from It:
When the elder Johuson( the father
Sof John A Johnson, governor of Min
nesota), was separated from his fam
-5ly for that family's good, there were
8siK children. How they lived on the
spare earnings Of the boy is known
only TO the breadwi1ner and his mo-
o-ther- The ordinary expenses of the
household ate up everything. Then,
+when death came, as it did three times
during the minority of the future gov
iernor. there were hearthreaking times.
Three of the children, girls, died.
Young johnson was tenderly devoted
Sto his young sisters. He devised little
pleasures for them. Ike family COW
was the steed for the Juveniles of the
ihousehold. Attached TO q harness
hfearfully and wonderfully made, the
kgenIle COW drew an old Red River
cart. loaded with the little JohnsOns,
Through the meadows of the Minnesota
-
wheels on the wooden Rxles gave no
tice to the neighbors that Johnson
was giving his little sisters ride. On
Sunday, when the stern work Of fight
ing of the wolf was given oveT-an
opportunity of which the wolf not III
frequently took advantage-the boy,
carrying one or two OF the children,
when the COW was out OF commission,
made excursions into the surrounding
country with the family.
For himself he had none of thel
things a boys heart craves-if he!
searned- or bought dainty it was taken
3 home to the little girls. They had
sgnothing but what he earned or bought.
syeThe independence of Mrs. johnson, in
which she was stoutly supported byl
-. her son, would not permit that the
children should accept the most trifi-l
Ding gifts.
Devoted as he was to the little girls, !
che boy suffered beyond telling when
death took the first one. But the
event helped in strengthening his
character. There was no time for
weeping, because extra money had to |
be earned 10 pay for the funeral ex-
: penses. Every hand and every pocket
book in st. Peter lay open 10 John A. |
johnson and his mother, at that time, |
but they took morning. MY boy Will
nay" said his Scandinavian mother
with the Spartan spirit, and the boy
SET his face resolutely to the work of
: paying.
The only credit the johnson family
ever accepted, after John became its
head. was from the undertaken, and |
for five years that gloomy parsonage, !
by reason of the three funerals, took /
what might be pinched out of the
: money needed for the living expenses
of Che family.
It was to meet this extraordinary |
demand on him that young Johnson
nut aside his ambition to study phar-
macy. and took a place in a general
store. where the work was harder hut /
the pay higher. The present need was
mis- handicap. He worked long enough
J to get even with the world, then went
back to the druggist, managed by
-.some means as he could compel, to
obtain a certificate, and registered
under the state law.
my certificate was No. 49," he said,
, .ssbut I never believed much IN hoo
, docs"