The Ely miner., 1911-08-25
Resignation Of Attorney General
Simpson Well Staged
WISE ONES ARE GUESSING
Believed There Is More Behind His
Retirement Than Appears on
the Surface.
Especial Correspondence.

st. Paul, Aug. 22-Well, the eX.
pected has happened. Attorney Gen
eral George T. Simpson is a private
citizen-at least he will be Jan. 1.
1912. That is the date fixed in his
letter to Governor A. o. Eberhart an
nouncing his retirement Assistant
Attorney General Lyndon A. Smith
will succeed him at that time. OF
course it is old news. Twin City pa
pers have been full of the fact, but
far be it from me to slip anybody
the ancient. l mention the happening
simply because l feel the Twin City
dailies did not cover the affair as it
happened. 1t was the most spectacu-
lar resignation of a public officer that
has occurred in the history of the
state. The whole thing took his ex-
cellency, A. o. Eberhart, by surprise
and at the close it had the balance
of the official family gasping. They
are still wondering what is behind the
whole thing. There is a general
hunch, but no one wants to give it
official endorsement.
= !. !.
Nothing in the line of as good press
work has ever been pulled off in the
history of the state capitol. For a
month the daily papers, also few of
the weekly publications, had been
specializing. One enterprising re-
porter went so far in his surmises
that he was barred from the official
presence mean the attorney gen.
more eager, and his colleagues shared
in his desire to make good. Wednes-
day it broke and Immediately there
was gathering of the newspaper
clans. "At 10 O'clock my resignation
will be in the hands of the chief ex-
ecutive,' spoke the attorney general.
His excellency did not arrive until IL
o'clock, but that did not prevent the
Winona man from giving gratuitous
distribution to a four-page letter tell
ing his reasons for retiring. Every
daily paper in the Twin Cities had
that letter ten minutes later.
i. - i.
These details are perhaps burden
some, but they are necessary. When
the hour of IL arrived, and with it
the announcement that the governor
was ready to receive visitors, it was
solemn .conclave that crossed the
space between the two departments
Mr.. Simpson led the procession and
in his wake came Assistant Attorney
General Lyndon A. Smith and two
reporters. A messenger was securing
the white marble pile for the remain
der of the scribes. Governor, l came
to tender my resignation" "Oh,
yes" answered the governor, you
mentioned it yesterday. l am sorry;
our relations have been so pleasant" /"
Discussing his contemplated resig-
nation Attorney General Simpson
asked yours truly only a week ago
what would be the probable recep-
tion by the press of his action. There
was only one answer, THAT you had
cleared the decks for a try at the
Republican gubernatorial nomina-
ton" Il guess you are right" an
swered the Winona man. Mr. Simp-
son did not include this prediction as
to his future in his written explana-
tion covering his reasons for resign
ing, but he stood for private inter-
view in which he declared that he
was out of the political game for
good. Nothing would change his
mind. Still he was not adverse to
discussing what he could do if the
pressure became too great But
enough of this. Figure out your own
answer. You are not the only one
who is guessing.
One cannot but admire President
Taft for his consistency, which in
cludes his nerve, in vetoing the ac-
tion of congress in the matter of the
wool schedule, but what about those
leaders who have been backing his
ambitions as far as state delegations
from the Northwest is concerned.
Their feelings at this time can be i'm
agined. State Chairman E. E. Smith
templated action, he making the point
that it was unwise. He prefaced this,
however, with the belief that the ma
tion would yet applaud the PRESIDENT s
nerve. Another to take issue, strange
to say, was Governor Eberhart, and
now we have no less an element in
Minnesota politics than the staid and
deliberate Pioneer Press taking issue
with the president In double COL
umn editorial, following the news
from Washington. it declares that Mr..
Taft will have to answer to the people
for his action. Shades of Joe
Wheelock! Did anyone ever think
that it would come to this?
+ i. i.
Six Minnesota congressmen-six
note that-voted to pass the wool
schedule over the presidents veto.
They were Anderson of the First dis
trict, Davis of the Third, Lindberg of
the Sixth, Miller of the Eighth. Steen-