The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-10-19
Misplaced Credit.

Misplaced Credit.
the legislature in which Mr.. Cole
served his second term, sent in a mes
sage, as the custom and the law pro-
vide. 81 In that message, among other
things, he called the attention of the
of loWlands in the north that could be
he urged the legislature to redeem the
ment that # would drain the swamp
lands that had been given to it for
that purpose. Thereupon Mr.. Cole ap
peared as the champion of drainage.
I In the same message, the governor
urged the need of greater attention to
good roads, and thereupon Mr.. Cole ap-
peared as the champion Of good roads.
He also urged that steps be taken to
attract to Minnesota the stream of i'm
migration that is going to other states
and to Canada. Thereupon Mr.. Cole
became a champion Of immigration
Duluth Herald. - - !
Our Duluth contemporary is doing
! it's best to add to the hilarity Of the
campaign. The foregoing is worthy
of place in the joke book. Of
course, Governor johnson IS friends are
out to claim everything that has hap
pened in the last, two years as; cam
paign thunder. That is their business,
but they really ought not to trifle
with the intelligence Of the public.
| Governor Johnson s recommendations
referred to were made in recognition
of movements started years before he
became governor, movements in which
A. l.. Cole had had a prominent hand.
When in the legislature himself, the
governor voted against drainage ap-
preparations, and it simply won It do to
claim that he is the father of drain
age. That is "to laugh" The state
had been appropriating money fol
drainage for years before that message
was written. In previous sessions
Senator John A. johnson had opposed
: the appropriations, and A. L. Cole had
worked for them.
When in the senate, Governor John
son was not a pusher for good roads
A. L.. Cole assisted in the fruitless at
tempt to pass highway commission
bill in the 1908 session, his first expert
ence at the capitol. He was gooe
j. roads advocate, like thousands Of
J others, before that message was writ
}, ten, and the message did not tell hin
}. anything that he did not know al
ready. ~.~s, r~
AS to immigration, A. L. Cole was :
supporter in 1903 of the bill intro
duced by Representative John L. Ole
son, creating a state immigration bu
:. reau. That bill failed, of passage, blu
the contest stirred public sentiment
and Governor johnson incorporate
: the idea into his message. It was n
:. new thing to Mr.. Cole or to any Of tn
! other members. - i.
A. L. Cole was a worker in each o
g the three causes mentioned, sbefor
Governor johnson dignifed them wit
mention. Having said his say, tn
= governor did nothing more. A. I
!, Cole resumed work in 1905 where h
. had left off at the previous session
and by his energetic labors got results
e He. introduced the bill for a compr.
i. / hensive system Of drainage, an ide
r which had not occurred to the govern
j. or, and followed it to passage. He i,
j. troduced another immigration burea
It bill and was successful in getting it e1
v acted. He also fathered the law pu
f ting state land purchasers on. hom'
l. stead basis, another idea which did NJ
It originate with the governor. Mr.. Co.
was a. member of the subcommitte
l. which took up the highway commi
d sion bill introduced by Representati1
lc. Ole Peterson, and himself made II
d final draft of, the bill which harmo
r lied differences and resulted in LAY
a He never played the part Of traile
seeking political glory and strutting
:, borrowed plumes+ He went ahead al
got results, and it does seem that
- should be conceded credit for what ]
accomplished, even by partizan opp
t. nents. i: + =.