River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1909-09-23

and finally the governor was appealed
to to send troops.
Instead of doing so, he went him.
self. He stopped first at Duluth, saw
the officials of the steel company and
got their promise to avoid trouble if
possible He went on to Hibbing and
hunted up Petriella, sat down with
him and had quite a talk and gave
him plainly to understand that the
strike must be conducted peaceably
or the National Guard would be sent.
He went on to other towns and gave
the same admonition to strike leaders,
local authorities and mine superinten-
dents. He made a speech in Eveleth
in which he said that the men had a
right to strike, had right to organize
and had right to induce others to
strike, but that any other man who
wanted to work had a right to do so
without interference, and the state,
if necessary, would back him up.
The governors attitude was so sim
cere to both sides that the strike very
soon ended in a peaceable manner
without the interference of state
troops and he thereby avoided much
of the trouble that has arisen from
industrial disturbances in other states
where the militia has been called out.
Governor Johnson's conduct of his
office during his two terms was such
that campaign funds were unnecessary
after the first election and the cam
paign literature consisted of a post
card carrying his picture and the le-
gend, Zone Good Term Deserves An
other"
Campaign of 1908.
The third campaign was merely a
repetition of the same story, although
his plurality was reduced somewhat.
The republican leaders decided that
Johnson's nationality was the balanc-
ing point that made his reelection in
evitable and decided to put up a
Swede against him, and so nominated
Jacob Jacobson. Their choice was
undoubtedly wise, as Mr.. Jacobson
polled a much larger vote than Cole
was able to get and cut down John
sons plurality to 28,139, while Taft
hart for lieutenant governor, who had
encouraged Johnson to make the first
race for governor, was elected by 55,-
STA on the republican ticket.
Presidential Possibilities.
Governor Johnson's first election in
republican state was not taken seri-
ously by the democratic party at
large, as he was an unknown man and
it was thought that his election was
merely an accident. When he was
reelected the second term by such an
abnormal majority, it was just at the
time when the national party was
thrown into CONSERVATION by the over
whelming defeat of A. B. Parker and
the party leaders were looking for a
new man who could harmonic the
warning interests of the Bryan, or sill
yer, and the Cleveland, or gold, wings
of the party.
In such a crisis the name of John
son spread through the land and it
was not long until good fight was
started for the presidential nomina-
ton in 1908. He was handicapped,
however. by the fact that he was still
an unknown man outside of the north
west. He became convinced himself
after the urging of his political man
ager that he might become a pres
idential possibility. He set out to ac-
complish this by the same old meth
DDS that made Johnnie Johnson a lead
er among the young men of st. Peter
and made editor Johnson a leader
among the older people, few years
later. He began travelling through
out the country on the Chautauqua
circuit making his strongest appeal
through the south, which section was
more or less dissatisfied with both
elements in the party. He went
among the people as John Johnson the
governor and not as John Johnson, a
political aspirant.
He talked to them of his policies
along lines that the people at large
were pleased with and on topics en-
tirely foreign to political matters.
The result was the same as it had
been in his earlier years at home.
Everyone who heard him became his
friend and spoke of him as a friend
and acquaintance and felt that they
knew him and sympathfzed with him.
Mr.. Johnson's friends and managers