Pine Bluff daily graphic. (Pine Bluff, Ark.) 1893-1942, 1908-04-19

tdt O. these mines He did nor %. i,
hu' lie United states See Corpora.
toH aoand Itself az q substitute 10
establish a $@u.o0o C00 steel .!aut at
Daiuth.
re newly created tax commission.
together with the state beard of equal.
l]ation, which preceded il CHE mem
: bers OF which were aupotnted NV
Governor lohnsonp. have in The four
years o! Governor J0hnSuns admins.
tfat1on Increased the assessed yalua.
non OF tie steel corporations iron ore
hold>h&s in Minnesota from t32 600 900
to sl90.000,000.
ne sieep1ng-car companies of Min.
hesota had never paid taxes in Min.
hesota III proportion 10 their earnings,
Inc governor recommended a change
III the system Of taxing these compnn.
les and a satisfactory law wa. enacted
similarly, rational law as 10 mort.
gage taxation Vas enacted.
Railway Regulation.
lak1hg up freight rates, Governor
Johnson in powerful speech 30 ex-
hSnsti'efy and eonciusi.sly barred 81.
lstlhE unequal and eYefbitant rates
that the railway companies voluntarily
made "A reduction OF ten per cent. ON
grain rates OF their lines in northern
Minnesota. BY order OF The railway
commission, reinforced by subsequent
legislation. this voluntary reduction
was followed Nv \ horizontal reduc-
ton in maximum freight rates of about
IL per cent, and there was created
a Lew class Of merchandise tariff in
which the rates were reduced about
70 per cent. The railways took these
reductions into the United States
courts, by enjoining the attorney gen.
erAl OF Minnesota from enforcing the
law. This action has opened up some
OF the most important litigation in.
volving 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 example of
Governor JOhnsons celebrity Of action.
Invited to address the Minnesota Edi.
torial association instead Of making
the usual platitudinous address ON
such occasions, he exploded the two
cent bomb" and urged that an end bs
put to the giving OF passes. He talked
on the same subject to convention
of commercial Travellers Immediate
~ the state was afame with this limo
vation in railway legislation. When
the legislature met. he asked for law
embodying this idea and the legisla,
ture quickly responded. Neighboriug
states followed with reductions, and
now throughout the middle northwest
the tWO-Cent rate prevails.
About the time Governor johnson
came into Office there Was wide
spread agitation for reciprocal demur
rage laws, which would compel rail
ways 10 allow shippers demurrage
charges for failure to deliver cars on
time. Governor johnson, ever abreast
of popular progress, recommended
such q law and got it.
Thanks to his initiative, the orders
OF the Minnesota Railroad and Ware
house commission are now immediate
~ effective. pending appeal.
In Defense Of Labor.
Governor Johnson. IN consouanco
with his thorough democracy. and
believing in equal rights has not been
neglectful of the interests of labor. He
desired free state employment lu
reau designed to eliminate the many
abuses that have marked private EN-
ploNment bureaus in the great labor
centers of Minnesota. Such bureau
was created and has been thoroughly
helpful and widely efficient
Since time imme mortal, that relic
OF feudalism. the common law doc
trine of nonliability eff employer to
employee for injuries occurring
through the negligence of a fellow
servant has prevailed in Minnesota, as
well as in many other states. This
ancient rule Of the common law" said
Gov Johnson. coupled with the other
rule generally referred to as the doc
trine Of the assumption of risk by
employees, has cast upon the individ-
ual la borer risk and responsibility
cut of proportion to the wages he re-
ceives.
During his term Of office Gov. John.
son has had to deal with one great
conflict between labor and capital
namely, the strike of the miners On
the Minnesota iron ranges. BY direct
personal intervention, by advice TO the
employers on the one hand and the
strikers on the other, the governor sue
ceeded, without the use OF state troops.
in preventing violence and bloodshed
In the forests and prairies of north
ern Minnesota are great extents OF
fertile land, which, owing to lack OF
drainage, have not been available for
cultivation. Thanks to Gov. Johnson,
additional legislation on this subject
was secured, and hundreds of thou
sands of acres of fertile land will be
added to the rolls Of the state 8
wealth.
Gov. Johnson believes in the NUM-