The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1908-07-09
ome, ron the. .wealth. of the prlvat.ly

Duluth.
The newly created tax commission,
together with the state board of equal.
ization, which preceded 1t (the mem.
bers of which were appointed by
Governor Johnson), have In the four
years OF Governor Johnsons admins
tration increased the assessed valua-
ton of the steel corporations iron ore
holdings In Minnesota from S92, 00O, 900
to 10000 200.
The sleeping-car companies Of Min
nesota had never paid taxes In Min.
nesota In proportion to their earnings.
The governor recommended q change
In the system OF taxing these compan.
les 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 conGlusively barred ex.
listing 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.
ton In maximum freight rates Of about
IL per cent, and there was created
new class Of merchandise tariff In
which the rates we're reduced about
20 per cent. The railways took these
reductions into the United States
courts, by enJoining the attoFSey 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 Johnson's celebrity OF action.
Invited to address the Minnesota Edi.
torial association, lRstead Of making
the usual platitudaRous address en-
such occasions, he exploded the two.
cent bomb" and urged that an end be
put to the giving OF passes. He talked
on the same subject to q convention
OF commercial trayelers.a Immediate
ly the state was afame with this limo
walton in railway legislation. When
the legislature met, he asked for d law
enbodving this idea and the legisla.
turs quickly responded. Nsighboring
states followed with reductions. and
now throughout the Middle northwest
the twO-cent rate prevails.
About the time Gsverasr Johnson
saRe late efaee sheEs was wide.
spEead agitSasa fer Eplf1ss6al deaa4sr.
rage laws, which w5t1a csmpel rail.
ways to aAow shippers -dsmurrage
charges for failure 10 deliver ears On
time. Governor Johnson, ever abreast
or popular progress, recommended
such law and got 1t.
Thanks to his Initiative, the orders
Of the Minnesota Railroad and Ware.
house commission are now immediate.
ly effective, pending appeal.
In Defense of Labor.
Governor Johnson, in eonsonanee
with his thorough democracy. and
believing In equal rights, has not been
neglectful OF the interests of labor. He
desired a free state employment bu.
reau designed to eliminate the many
abuses that have marked private em.
ployment bureaus in the great labor
centers OF Minnesota. Such a bureau
was created and has been thoroughly
helpful and widely efficient.
Since time immemorial. that relic
OF feudalism, the common law doc.
trine OF non-liability of employer to
employs for injuries occurring
through the negligence of a fellow.
servant has prevailed In Minnesota AZ
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 nv
employees, has cast upon the fndiyid.
ual laborer risk and responsibility
out OF proportion TO the wages he 70.
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 states
wealth
Gov. johnson believes In the mual,
ctpal ownership OF public utilities. and.
following his suggestion, a modified
form Of the Illinois Mueller law was
adopted by the Minnesota legislature.
UndeE tits provisions a municipality
may bond its street railways or other
public utilities to pay the cost OF the
G4tchase and operation OF the same
Minnesota, leading agricultural
state, has long had to contend with
The cordage trust, which has a practi.
cal monopoly of the binding twiae
used In harvestinT. For many years
the state has had a twGe plant In
which prison labor was eMployed.