The Newark journal., 1908-05-08

70 De cnle1 executive or the highest order. Let us briefly review his career.
 John A. Johnson was born in St. Peter, Nicollet county, Minnesota July 2s, 1861, of Swedish parents. His childhood and youth were passed in great poverty. At 13 years of age. he was compelled to leave the public schools of his native city, in order to support himself and the parental fam fly. Though his formal education was thus early cut short, his self-education never stopped. A student at all times. a wide reader and thoughtful one. MT. Johnson, after some years of ob- scure toll as drug and grocery clerk and railway time-keeper, became at the age of 24 editor of the St. Peter Herald He soon became known as one of the ablast of Minnesota jour- nalists and was recognized as one of the leaders of journalism in a state re- markable for the number, vigor and in- fuence of its periodical press As a country editor, he was gradually drawn into politics and in 1898 was elected a member of the senate of the Minne- sota legislature, and his first public po- body From the first, he was identi- fled with various reform measures, which have since become law in Min. nesota.
 Wherever Gov Johnson has gone, he has impressed men as being a man of the Lincoln type. He has the fac ulty of making many friends and few enemies,
 Gov. Johnson's Legislative Results.
 The governor recommended a per manent tax commission The legis- lature gave 1t to him and the ink was hardly dry on the document before he appointed a commission so strong in its personnel that the Republican sen ate resolved by a rising vote to con- firm the appointments without delay. while the equally Republican house, though without the power of confrma- tion. expressed by rising vote its ap- preciation of the excellence of the gov ernor's appointments.
 In northern Minnesota are the great
 
 est iron ore fields in the world. The state of Minnesota owns extensive areas of these lands By leases they were largely in the hands of the Unit ed States Steel Corporation and the state was receiving only an fnsignifi- cant income from it's royalties. The l governor advised the withdrawal of O h du t1afy, l the legislature concurred.
 Minnesota has enjoyed but scant in- coale from the wealth of the privately 1 owned iron mines The governor recommended a royalty tax on the out l Eut Of these mines. He did not get it, but the United States Steel Corpora tion -ound itself as a substitute to establish a $20,0O0, GOO steel plant at Duluth.
 The newly created tax commission, together with the state board of equal ization, which preceded it (the mem bers of which were appointed by Governor Johnson), have in the four years of Governor Johnson's admins tration increased the assessed valua- tion of the steel corporations iron ore holdings in Minnesota from S32 ,000, 900 to s190,000, 900.
 The Sleepfng-car companies of Min nesota had never paid taxes in Min nesota in proportion to their earnings. The governor recommended change in the system of taxing these compan- ies and a satisfactory law was enacted. Similarly, rational law as to mort gage taxation was enacted
 Railway Regulation.
 Taking up freight rates, Governor Johnson in a powerful speech so ex- haustively and conclusively barred ex- isting unequal and exorbitant rates that the railway companies voluntarily made a reduction of ten per cent. on grain rates on their lines in northern Minnesota. By order of the railway commission, reinforced by subsequent legislation, this voluntary reduction was followed by a horizontal reduc- tion in maximum freight rates of about 13 per cent, and there was created a new class of merchandise tariff in Whlcn the rates were reduced aDout 20 per cent The railways took these reductions into the United States courts, by enjoining the attorney gen eral of Minnesota from enforcing ths law. This action has opened up some of the most important litigation in volying constitutional interpretation that has come before the supreme court in this generation.
 The TWo-cent Law.
 The enactment of the two-cent pas senger tariff law was an examnla of