The herald-advance. (Milbank, S.D.) 1890-1922, 1908-05-01
indictment"
CONDENSED
Charges That We're Formally Brought
Against Crawford Many Weeks Ago,
Gut Not Yet Answered by him

Oul NUl III AlISWtTtu w uilll
COe l. Crawford, in his speech &C
cepting the nomination for the terri
tcrial council at Harold, October 4.
platform resolution:
Resolved, That all classes of pro-
perty in the territory should bear
equal share of taxation"
He went back on that pledge. went
back on the platform, and went back
on the convention which nominated
him, by voting for the iniQuitous
gross earnings bill, by the terms OF
which the Northern Pacific was re-
lieved of paying taxes on vast hold
ings of realty. The record of Mr..
Crawford's vote may be found on
pages 160-6l, council journal of pro
ceedings. The vote was cast March
5, 1889.
According to the official record of
the proceedings of the territorial
council of March Z, 1889. Mr.. Craw-
ford, two days following his vote to
exempt from taxation every alternate
SSStiOl VI ldllu cIuUI dCcu III IN u
thern Pacific and grant, voted
against the antitrust bill. as shown
by the council journal, pages 1855.
The same bill came before the South
Dakota senate in 1890 and Senator
kittredge voted for it and Mr.. Craw-
ford again voted against it. tSee
page s14 of the senate Journal.)
In 1889, the territorial legislature,
by unanimous vote, repealed the
gross-earnings law. When the rail-
road company awoke to the situation
it fastened it's lobbyists to Bismarck
and sought to nave the law ~re-enact-
ed. 1t provided a free j%unketing trip
for such of the members as would
accept its Inequalities. MIR. Crawford
TOOK the trip. Soon thereafter MI.
company, as planned by it's lobbyists,
to e-enact that unjust law. His vote
is recorded in the council journal Of
March 3, 1889, pages 760-61.
The last year of Mr.. Crawford's
service as a member of the senate
especial subserviency to the interests
of the railroads. Mr.. Crawford was
present at the meetings Of the board
only when railroad assessments were
under consideration, n hen he
moved and voted in several instances
for heavy reductions OF railroad
valuations, as clearly shown by the
record of the proceedings OF he
board for 1896, pages 46 and AZ. With
in sixty days after retiring from this
public Office Mr.. Crawford became
the state attorney for the Northwest
err, railroad.
In 1890 the lower branch of the
CTrth Dakota lppiSlaturp naSN ed a
memorial to congress tor a consti-
tutional amendment to elect United
States senators by popular vote. 1t
was known as House Bill SO. The
same day, March 81 that it passed
the house, it was presented to the
senate and was referred to the COM
nlittee of the whole. The following
day it was reported back without
recommendation, and the report was
adopted upon the motion OF Coe l.
Crawford, and the bill was thus put
to sleep, (See senate journal. page
the senate on this memorial, and no
attempt was made by Mr.. Crawford
to have the same passed. This is the
memorial which Mr.. Crawford's
anonymous literature accuses Sen
ator Kittredge of voting against.
the retirement Of Mr.. Crawford from
the state board of assessment and
equalization. he frequently appeared
before the board to ask for reductions
in railroad assessments, or to prevent
material increase OF such assess
ments. His position as a former
member of the board necessarily had
weight in considering railroad valua-
tons, for his own record as a men,
Der of the republican party and Office
holder under it was in line with his
pleadings as a railroad attorney and
lobbyist. And yet Mr.. Crawford
railroad valuations for the purpose OF
taxation were determined by Senator
Kittredge during all those years!
Coe I. Crawford voted against the
bill ito establish and maintain q
Soldiers Home in the Territory Of
s pat0' to this sn Bin ps are foand ON %'l pages Ts
45O-54 of the council journal of 1883.
In 1885, Abe Van Osdell intro
dnced a bill to require railroads to
pay taxes upon their lands the same
as ordinary persons were required to
pay aa namely T,e u POI wa .ne defea assessed sea
it gave rise to general discussion.
Two years later a bill to repeal the
gross-earnings law passed the lower
branch of the territorial legislature
only to meet the fate Of being abb
~stracted on it's way to the upper
Dakotas aire with agitation. and as
a result legislative conventions ad-
opted resolutions demanding equal
taxation. The convention which
nominated Mr.. Crawford at Harold,
October 4, 1888, passed a similar reso-
luton. The legislature which con
yened In 1889 unanimously repealed
the law on January "a. Forty days
later. on March 5, after the Northern
Pacific had provided a great free
junketing trip, Mr.. Crawford voted to
re-enact that vicious law. His vote
is recorded ON pages 76O-61 of the
council journal.