The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1911-11-16
Delegate Commissions Feature
Of Executive Department.
FIRE PREVENTION CONGRESS
Thousands Of Citizens Made Happv by
Receipt Of Beautifully ScroIed
Parchments.

Nv. oOA, 4NOV 4t-1I is udIuly pos
sible that you have been overlooked
in the gratuitous distribution of dele
gate commissions which are feature
OF the state executive department
these days-I refer to those sheets of
executive parchment, with the great
seal Of the state attached, and bear
ing your name and that of his excel
lency's, beautifully scrolled together,
with the function at which you are to
represent the great state of Mime
sota-but if you have not do not worry.
The last time I looked in at the exec
utive quarters there were more
parchment sheets and to spare; Secre-
tary of State julius H. Schmahl had
replenished his rapidly diminishing
supply of gold seals and within easy
call of the commission mill sat a
young lady who could duplicate the
executive signature at the rate of fifty
"slgs' a minute if the occasion de-
manded it and defy criticism as to
detection between the original and the
copy at that. AS to the functions
we'll, Secretary Ralph Wheelock was
opening Invitations to send Minnesota
representatives to "get-back-to-the
farm" conventions and what not at
the rate Of four a day. And when they
failed he had other doings up his
sleeve-fire protection congresses,
conservation gatherings and other get
together things. That any one has
been overlooked surprises me, but, as
l said, do not worry; just wait; they
will come.
This is a rather coarse way of
speaking Of something that has grown
apace with no less than four admins
trations and which had it's inception
during the period when Dave Clough
was in command, but as a slight rec
ompense for the genius that invented
the game I take off my hat to him.
He is sure entitled to a niche, for he
builded we'll in providing way for
more than one hard pressed official to
lull rebellion. AS history records it,
and I will have to admit that history
in this case is rather vague, the gen.
eral distribution of gold seal dec
Grated commissions, with the big fel-
lows signature attached, had it. first
trial during the Dave Clough admin
lstration, but it was the Democratic
Kitchen Cabinet that brought the
scheme to state of perfection, with
the present administration close sec
ond. The cabinet" ground out COM
missions at every excuse and lowly
was the shack whose walls were not
decorated with the Illuminated bits of
paper, or poor the voter who could
not produce something bearing the
name of the immortal Johnson, and in
his own handwriting at that. Gov
ernOr Eberhart distributed over five
thousand commissions bearing his "sig-
nature for the conservation congress
OF year or more ago, with his latest
innovation, the Fire Prevention con-
gress, held last week in st. Paul, hard
pressing it for place. And both repre-
sent money we'll spent, for they
brought into being two propositions
of merit, and in the case of the con-
servation congress an appreciation
that figured strongly in the big vote
which the Mankato man piled I'D
against his rival. And in addition,
just think of the advertising.
\ !. !.
Poohooed as joke by his enemies,
but taken so seriously by one St. Paul
German that he mistook the DELEGATE
commission with the governors sigma
ture sent him as an appointment to
Janitorship at the state capitol, Gov
ernor Eberhart's fire prevention con-
gress, pulled off in St. Paul last week.
was one of the hits of the year. In
answer to nearly 5000 invitations sent
out, and each "signed" by the execu-
tive, over 600 interested voters from
over the state made answer and out
OF 1t all came an organization of inter-
est and profit to the state. True, the
politicians were in evidence and manv
Democrats were on hand to take
notes, but there were enough present
w OF1uCuCe Scuuluo interest IN the
subject and they went away feeling
that they had profted, even if the
cost came out of their own pockets.
What the next excuse for the official
signature will be I do not know, but
there is one thing certain, no harm
will come of it.
!. !. !.
No one down here seems to know
what is back of the move, but rumors
nave been rife the past week con.
Meeting Alvah Eastman, the we'll
known St. Cloud publisher, with the
Republican nomination for governor,
His candidacy was discussed by sew
eral in attendance at the fire congress
and later it crept into the gossip at
the state capitol. Friends who have
seen him since, however, say he re-
CARDS the whole thing as a joke, also
the talk OF his making the race for
congressman at large.
!. !. X
While on the s11hioct of candidates,