The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-06-08
Commercial Club Members
Want Minneopa Ground.
WILL SEE THE AUTHORITIES,
Committee Is TO Act; Talk Of Man
damusing The Attorney General;
the "AIphabet' Road.
From Tuesdays Daily

From Tuesdays Daily.
The Commercial club took no half way
ground last evening in framing its at
titude on the Minneopa park matter, in
view of the stand taken by Attorney
General Young The matter came up
when President HiXon called for re-
port from the committee on the park
matter. Dr. Andrews, chairman of the
Board of Trade committee. read por-
ton of a letter received from Attorney
General Young, as follows:
"All my acts in reference to the park
are subject to the approval of the gov
ernor, and your proposition amounts to
asking the chief executive and the chief
law officer of the state to violate the
terms of the act in question, and do
by the legislature to make them legal
in order to crafty the desire of your
committee for haste. 1t ought to be
very serious case which would move
the governor and attorney general to
exceed their authority, even technically.
The bane of official life is the failure to
abide by the law.
''We had practically agreed, orally, to
follow the suggestions of your commit
tee so persuasively presented, but now
we are informed new complications have
arisen over which your committee even
has failed to agree.
81 do not share your fears that the
land cannot be acquired after the next
session of the legislature. The land is of
little value for any other than park
purposes, and the state will still have
the right of eminent domain. Under the
circumstances, and on more mature re-
Fiction, we have concluded to postpone
any action on the park question until
the law is changed so as to correctly de-
scribe the land to be acquired for the
purpose"
Dr. Andrews said that as the attor-
the attorney general is compelled to
bring condemnation proceedings in case
the land cannot be bought in Il manner
satisfactory to him. He felt that il
was now up to the people of Mankato
to see whether the attorney general is
the servant of the people and of the
1 L 1 4 A
carry out the will of the legislature. He
can refuse to accept the committees re.
port, but in that case should proceed tc
condemn the land. The committee had
not been able to get an audience with
him, although possibly Buck or his at
torney has. The committee had not
urged undue haste.
Arbitrary and High Handed.
President HiXon said that he consid.
cred the attorney generals act a very
arbitrary and high handed piece of bust,
ness. The committee should take imme,
date steps to be heard, and should be
heard. The attorney general has no
right to set aside the act of the legisla
ture. 1t is plainly evident that he is
against the park, and he had gotten in
a very untenable position. We should
not beat about the bush, but should de-
mand that the law be enforced and con
demnation proceedings be begun at once,
if nothing better can be DONE The COM
mittee has put in a good deal of time,
and has secured a better proposition
than the bill called for. The state
would get greater acreage and IA
more beautiful tract of land than if the
boundaries named in the bill were to be
followed 1t is ridiculous to think that
legislator who voted for the bill
would kick on this. He had heard it
talked in Mankato and st. Paul that
the attorney general was trying to stave
the matter off until the next legsla-
ture meets. when he hoped the park
proposition will be killed. His reference
to haste was entirely uncalled for. When
he refuses to give an audience to a rep
resentative club of citizens it is time to
know the reason why.
DIR. Andrews said that Governor John
son has favored the park project all
along, and he did not think that he
shares the attorney generals opposition.
Rev. Z. l.. Heermance moved that the
committee be requested to 90 to ST. Paul
as soon as possible in the name of the
club and the citizens of Mankato and Sc
cure the state park, the club to pay
the expenses. He thought that an au
dience might be gotten through the gov
ernor.
DIR. Andrews said that if Buck would
withdraw his trivial reservations and
leave the proposition identical with that
of Orange Little it might be arranged,
for the attorney general; governor and
state auditor were favorable to that.
President Hixon said that he had
heard that Buck had made the state
ment that he had gone as far as he
would go.