The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1906-08-15

= The presence of Albert L. Cole at
the Republican headquarters the past
week has stimulated matters good
deal and caused numerous callers Mr..
Cole makes a decidedly favorable i'm
preston upon every one who meets
him personally. There is nothing Of
the granGstand about him and no in
dication of playing to the galleries for
political effect. Just a plain, matter
of fact business man who is very much
In earnest in doing what is best to ad-
vance the public interests and one
who can be safely trusted with the
helm of state.
A great deal of surprise Is felt and
expressed over Governor Johnson's in
terview in the Dispatch of few days
ago, relative to the merger wherein
he expressed a desire to do all in his
power to have the railroad rates re-
duced and the dissolution of the "mer-
ger" as ordered by the United States
supreme court made complete. He
even went SO far as to intimate that
If the railroad and warehouse commits
sion did not comply with his demands
he would remove them. AS the result
of that interview the members Of the
railroad commission have been inter-
viewed and all agree in saying that
Governor Johnson has never called
upon them officially or unoficially or
regulate railroad freight rates in Min
nesota. In Iowa, where the governor
does things, the railroads earn $1,700
per mile. In Minnesota, where the
governor does nothing, the railroads
pocket $4,000 per mile. The surprise
should have the temerity to again be
q candidate with such a record for his
first term.
No member of the legislature ever
made so vigorous record to prevent
ing taxation and buying pine land at
the nominal sum of $5-the price of
purely agricultural land-or to go I'M
punished for timber stealing as did
Albert L. Cole And still some Of the
mild Republican papers and the out
and out Democratic ones are asserting
that Mr.. Cole is a representative Of
the lumber barons" and that they
desire his election as governor. Let
us look at Mr.. Coles record in the
legislature.
He introduced and secured the pas
sage of bill.which offersa reward of
two hundred (200) dollars to any one
who will produce susceptible proof of
timber stealing. Every "lumberjack''
cutting the stolen logs knows what his
employer is doing and this reward is
suffic ient to cause him to make the
exposure.
Formerly the valuation Of pine lands
for taxation was made by some local
man or men residing in the county.
The pay was merely nominal and they
did the work in the easiest manner
possible by never going to see the
land but by just sitting down and
guessing at the quantity Of pine I'm
der Mr. Coles reform the state auditor
sends trained cruiser, whose reten-
ton of his job depends upon the faith
full performance of his duty. He is
required to go upon the land itself
and ascertain what pine actually ex-
lists and, in connection with the local
appraisers, enable them to determine
the basis for taxation. Mr.. Cole also
secured legislation requiring the taxa
ton of logs in the counties where
they are cut. The custom has been
for the big lumbermen to buy some
ones bark mark" for 81 and not reg
lister or record the purchase and when
the logs reach the booms where the
assessor can see them point to the
"bark mark as evidence that they
belong to some one else and are tax
able, if at all, in some other county.
Even more-a lumberman would buy
a few million feet of some one else's
bark mark" and then go into the
woods and cut 10000 900 or 40, 1000, 900
more feet. giving the same ozark
mark" float the logs to market as the
property of the other fellow and thus
avoid all taxation.
Mr.. Cole also secured legislation
which provides that trespass on state
%ip,hor lands paxor o,+fou,1 v,I;l.