The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1914-05-07
VIM. F. LEE IS PRO-
Testing TOO MUCH
BEWARE OF MAN WHO is CON-
TINUALLY CALLING STOP
THIEF"
CLEVER MACHINE POLITICIAN
MASSES OF PEOPLE PLACE BUT
LITTLE CONFIDENCE IN
HIS CLAIMS.

The attitude taken by the so-called
"anti-machine" crowd in their attack
on Gov. Eberhart would be amusing
if there were not serious side to the
question.
They are charging the governor
with everything that is amiss with the
affairs of state, forgetting that gov
ernor has no power over the legisla-
ture or any other state official, except
those directly appointed by him. The
one great cry is that Eberhart is a
machine" candidate and that this
machine" dominates his every Off
cial action. Yet the real facts not
only disprove this charge, but make it
absolutely nonsencical.
If there ever was a governor in
Minnesota whose nomination and cleo
ton were secured by spontaneous
manifestation of popular opinion, Mr..
Eberhart is that man.
At the Duluth convention held in
1906 he was nominated for lieuten-
ant-governor in a hot contest over u
field consisting of some of the strong
est and ablest republicans in the
state, and although the republican
candidate for governor met with a
crushing defeat at the polls by plur-
atty of 72,328, Mr.. Eberhart was cleo
ted by normal republican majority.
In 1908, so satisfactorily had he
performed the duties of the second
most important, office in the state
that no other name was presented
and he was renominated by acclama-
ton, receiving the full republican vote
at the polls, Notwithstanding the re-
publican candidate for governor, the
Hon. J. F. Jacobson, one of the
strongest candidates ever presented
by the party in Minnesota, was de-
feated after a hot campaign by plur-
atty of 27,S79.
Following the death of Gov. john
son Mr.. Eberhart automatically be-
came governor under the constitution,
and in June 1910, at the largest and
most representative convention ever
held in Minnesota, he was unani-
mously nominated for governor, being
the second lieutenant governor to re-
ceive such an honor in this state and
the only one to be nominated without
opposition. In the fall election he was
elected by plurality of 60,3O6, being
with one exception the largest plur-
atty ever received by any republican
candidate for the office.
In the the spring of 1912, answer
ing the defiant challenge of his oppon-
ent who claimed that his machine"
dominated the state central commit
tee and through them the convention
delegates, Gov. Eberhart called the
legislature together in extraordinary
session and that body enacted the
statewide primary law with second
choice provision which made the
choice of minority candidate impos-
sible. At the primary, in field OF
five strong candidates, he led his near
est competitor by 21,831 first choice
votes, and when the second choice
votes were cast up he was an easy
majority winner.
There never was claim put forth
with less foundation than the one
made by the governors opponents
that he is machine" or minor
ity" candidate, as the records show he
always submitted his candidacy, both
for nomination and election, directly
to the people and they have always
responded with majority vote in his
favor.
In the beginning Of the present
campaign for governorship three re-
publicans announced their candidacy
in opposition to the present incum-
bent: S. G. Iverson, James A. Peter
son and VIM. E. Lee. AS grapevine
politician at least, Mr.. Lee was far
ahead of the others. By and through
his suggestion a conference" of re-
publicans was proposed to select a
gubernatorial candidate. The fact
that the attendance was limited to
the opponents of the state admins
tration robbed it of all claims of be-
ing a republican conference" and
Continued on page eight