The Sauk Centre herald., 1909-02-18


Minneapolis people inquire what his
view of needed improvements at the
university. The Duluth members
shake their hands and look dubious.
They have learned that he has been
talking tonnage tax and they don't
see on what grounds he should seek
favors from them; and the chances are
that Mr.. County Member finds that
he can't be certain that he will get
his bill through unless he consents to
vote for the capitol approach scheme,
the state fair Improvements, the uni
versity appropriation, and against the
tonnage tax. 1t is rather difficult to
say to what extent the condition
which exists is responsible for this
fact that no measure of public i'm
portance, five except the state prisa:
on bill, has been yet seriously consid-
cred at the present session, unless, as
in the case of the bill for county agri-
cultural schools, it owed its author
ship to member of the tri-county
delegation. AS to the state prison bill
it was naturally favored by the local
tiles which would furnish the contrac-
tors, the material and the labor for
the big two and a quarter million job.
To the tri-county delegation the fact
that the prison will furnish farmers
with cheap twine and ultimately, per-
haps, cheap harvesters is merely an
incident in which they have no spe-
cial concern.
Towhat extent these considerations
weighed with Mr.. Saugstad when, the
other day, he inaugurated the move
ment to get the representatives of the
country districts together 1 do not
know, nor am / certain that he him
self fully appreciates the significance
of the willingness of country men,
bers to join the organization he pro-
posed. His ostensible purpose is not
to form an offensive and defensive al
lance, but to cooperate for the adj
vancement of legislation affecting ag-
ricultural communities. Possibly he
may have also hsd in mind a declara-
tion of independence of the tri-county
delegation. Doubtless, however, the
movement owes something of its pop
ularity to the hope that it may be
possible to get majority for some of
the bills proposed without the MEM
bers being compelled to commit them
selves to the tri-county program.
OF the new organization Mr.. Saug-
stad has been made president and
Leonard Virtue of Steel county secre-
tary. A committee has been appoint
ed which is derisively designated by
the city members as the farm
ers' steering committee, as follows:
Jno. Saugstad, Jno.. Rustad, d. j.
Murphy, r. L. Mork, /. Baldwin, A.
X. Ware, J. Spence, A. Anderson, A.
Rowe, J. b. Goodspeed, Alex. Mcneil,
J. A. Sampson, E. E. Lobeck, N. j..
Holmberg, C. NJ. Bendixen, T. II.
Horton, T. NJ. Ferguson, II. A. Put
nam and G. ii. Mattson.
OF these it will be noticed that three
members, Rowe, Goodspeed and Nc
Neil, are from the tri-county delega-
tion, but Goodspeed and Mcneil repre-
sent rural communities, and Rowe, one
more or less so. At all events he rep
resents the blind pigs of the Midway
district, which if not exactly an agri-
cultural product, have at least an ag-
ricultural name, and therefore make
him eligible. However, the tri-coun-
ty members are very much in the mi
nority and may, if necessary, be disre-
garded.
The ST. Louis delegation and those
who oppose tonnage tax shied at a
test Of strength in the house the 9TH
er day when in a aresolution it was pro-
posed by Rodenburg to send delega-
tion to Duluth to see what the steel
trust had done in the direction of full
filling the promise made two years ago
to erect complete plant at Duluth.
What Mr.. Rodenburg's purpose was |
do not know, but there is one thing
quite certain, that the tonnage tax
people regard such ajunket as useless,
and think they have had dquite enough
of steel trust promises and steel trust
Establishments. 1t soon became ap-
parent that those who favored the
tonnage tax would to a man vote
against the trip to the alleged scene
OF the alleged iron works and the Steel
Trust people fell over each other to
get in line. Mr.. Congdon, who is re-
garded as holding a special commits
sion from the Trust made about his
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