Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1913-05-21
WOODROW
II|,S0lN
The Story Of His Life
From the. Cradle to
the White House
By WILLIAM BAYARD HALE
Copyright, 1s11, 1872 by Doubleday. Page
-,| Il Co.
CHAPTER XI.
Ono Year Of a Progressive Governor

lT1 HE platform upon which Gov
ernor Wilson had been elect
l%%S| ed had promised four princi.
80 pal things, which probably
not a man in the convention that
adopted it expected to see realized
the direct primary, corrupt practices
election law, public service commits
sion with power to fix rates and an
employers liability and workingmen's
compensation law. The governors in
augural address-a remarkable docu-
ment. vibrant with the spirit and the
consciousness Of new age, new alike
in politics and in the very elements Of
social and industrial life-made it clear
that he regarded the platform prom
Uses as binding.
The new governor Of New Jersey
had little respect for the doctrine OF
"the three coordinate branches, as it
had been pedantically exaggerated in
practice"
1t is not necessary here to 60 fur
Their into Mr.. Wilson's ideas of re-
that the American plan Is capable Of
natural improvement). except to re-
mark that he attributes the upgrowth
Of the boss system. with its extra
legal extra Officially leaders, largely to
lhe absence Of constitutional provision
FOR official leaders and to add that be
had determined to be. as governor. an
official leader-the chief of bis party
In the state, the party put into power
by an overwhelming vote Of the people
the leader, therefore. responsible not
only for administering the routine
business Of the governors Office, but
for seeing that the policies Endorsed in
the party platform on which he had
been elected were embodied in legis-
lation. During the campaign he had
explicitly requested that no man vote
for him who did not want him to be
the party leader He had warned the
electorate Of the state that if elected
he meant to be an Unconstitutional
governor" as the constitution was in
stantly interpreted to forbid his taking
part in legislation.
What was the situation that con-
fronted this hopeful governor?
His party had a majority on joint
ballot Of the legislature, but the SEN
ate, without whose concurrence no
bill could become law, stood Repub-
lican ~ to 9. Democrats were in
majority Of AZ to Is in the assembly,
but many Of the party's representa-
tives were connected with the old or
ganization and resentful of the college
presidents advent into politics. The
governors triumph in seating Mr..
! MARITIME in the United States senate
over ex-senator Smiths candidacy had
not ended the war between him and
| the old organization. It had given
him prestige, it had heartened the
friends Of good government. but it
had even more savagely embittered
the old leaders and engendered sullen-
ness among their still faithful follow
ers. eve gave him the senatorship,"
they said among themselves, "but that
is the end. We've done enough. II
he asks for more he'll find out who is
running the state Of New jersey
The state of New Jersey had been
run" for years by the allied corpora
ton interests.
The way in which a situation 80 dis
couraging was forced to yield the sur
prising results it did yield is full of
promise to men of hope
Governor Wilson relied from the start
on the merits of the bills, on public
sentiment in favor of them and on his
power to force the open discussion of
them. He would not permit them to
be done for in secret conferences; there
should be public debate. He would
make his own arguments for the bills
SO that all the state should hear him.
and he would compel the opponents to
give the reasons of their opposition
publicly. The doors of his office stood
always open, and he encouraged sena-
tors and assemblymen to make it a
habit to come to see him and talk
things over-familiarly, but never Sc
cretly. Those who did not come he
sent for on one pretext or another, and
|
up. He told them that he had no
patronage to dispose of, no promises
to make and no warnings to issue, but
he should like to have them consider
the bills on their merits and let him
know where they stood.
Heretofore Republican governors
had consulted Republican members,
and Democratic governors had consult
ed Democratic members. Wilson con-
suited members of both parties. He
talked to them all alike of the good
Of the commonwealth To Democrats
he added arguments based on the plat
form promises. He made it clear that
he considered himself chosen party
leader, but he gave no orders-he
would not be a boss. The nearest
that he ever came to threat was IN
the suggestion to few stubborn op-
ponents that they debate the question
with him in public in their own dis
tricts. From time to time the COVER.
nor issued public statements regarding
his measures. In one he expressed the
fear that he might have to name the
men who were preparing to be faith
less to the platform promises and to
betray the people. E.. )
On the opening Of the legislature,
i Jan. 10, 1911, it was with difficulty
that sponsors could be found to intro.
duce the governors bills. Few believ.
] ed that q single one Of them could be