Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1913-10-31
Co.'S OF OFFICE
35EI.iiNG HEAVY
Men y.A9 Know Discuss Meth
DDS Past and Present,
IS LI@.TE0 TO $4,000
Wise Onss Say That Is Not Sufficient
70 Make the Race for
Governor.

CuSSlng the cost OF running IOr puDLlc
Office the other day at the Merchants
hotel and the talk naturally centered
on the big prize, the gubernatorial
nomination. The bunch was one
prominently identified in a managerial
way in days gone by. One of the
number had figured in the conflict OF
a year ago. Under our present pri-
mary law" said one member of the
group, "$17 900, / believe, is the limit
Of cost for a man seeking the govern
Orship, of which $1,000 can be expend-
Cd by himself No man can success
fully make the race for that amount
Of money and the men who drafted the
law knew as much when they named
mat figure Postage alone will con.
sumo the limit OF expenditures permit
ted by Law" And so the talk ran.
9he concensus of opinion was that
$4,000 was little enough, but that
a35, 900 or $40, 900 came nearer being
the amount Of money needed to take
. proper ling at the highest Office
in the gift Of the people. AS to the
minor Offices, such as state auditor,
secretary Of state and the other ex-
acutiVe positions, it was agreed that
ehe expep iiture of the first years
salary, $4,000, for campaign purposes
was necessary, The bunch held that
It could nC& properly be done for, less.
The amounts named, though, were
held to have only to do with nlen try.
ing to break into official life, as those
In office had "a lead of fully Is per
cent and consequently could get by
with much less The organization
and those drawing a per diem from
the state through the grace of those
In Office was factor that only lavish
expenditures on the part Of those on
the outside could overcome. Con
tinuing his talk on expenditures that
the outside world knows little of the
one with the latest managerial expe
Fience declared that it was the so
called progressives who represented
the heaviest tax on candidates treas
.Ury. 81 know it" he said with some
bitterness, 'sfOr it was these fellows
who got the bulk of our money AMI
they gave nothing in return. 1t has
made an organization man of me, for
in the ranks you will find hundreds
Of men willing to help, their only hope
OF reward being the success of the
party or possible future recognition in
some wa Your talky progressive,
the one who is always yelling Down
with the gang has only one rule and
that is the coin. He would be on the
other side if he could, but the other
side would not have him That was
our experience and it cost my people
$3.50 and little in the way Of re.
turns to show for it," In telling Of this
experience l am necessarily conceal
ing names and am not relating some
of the secrets that were passed around.
These fellows did not tell all they
knew, but is was enough, and | give
it to you so that if you have the itch
you can in way figure out the cost
Continuing this subject of the cost
of running for Office under the pres
ent primary law one gubernatorial
candidate Of bygOne days tells me
that proper poll list for mailing
purposes cannot be obtained for
cent less than $4,000. Letters sent
out on three different occasions to
voters throughout the state by one
candidate who figured in the last
gubernatOrial struggle depleted his
bank roll to the extent of $4,000.
Workers represent at least $4,000. r.
C. Dunn, who figured in the campaign
of 1905, tells of how one piece of mail
sent out by him for the purpose of re-
futing falsehOods which were being
circulated by the enemy cost him S1O,-
900 for postage alone. And so it
goes on down the line, a touch at
every turn of the road Talk as you
please and pass all the laws you want
to, Oficeseeking is money spending
game and every new law only adds to
the cost. Only the wealthy or those
backed by wealth can play it, The
laws as they stand now are against
the outsider. Progressive measures
their trainers called them, but | miss
my guess if there will not be Just as
great a clamOr in the near future for
their repeal as there was for their
passage.
!. i. K
Though several Minnesota suffra,
gists have come out openly for Mrs.
Pankhurst, the English militant, and
her methods, the rank and file of the
women in Minnesota who are agitat-
ing the ballot for their sex do not
take kindly to Mrs. Pankhurst's adj
mission to the United States. They
believe she will hurt the cause. Mrs.
Eugenia B. Farmer, press chairman
aR the States Women's Suffrage asso.
citation, looks on the thing with alarm.
A. l.. Ward of Fairmont, prominent
politically in the Second district, and