Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1914-09-24
HELLSTROM MAN
OF THE PEOPLE
DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE FOR GOV.
ERNOR OF NORTH DAKOTA HAS
RECORD WHICH PROVES HIM TO
BE FRlENp OF THE PEOPLE AT
= 80 - ST. M: r-Ns 81. p, 9 I
Was Farmers Friend
When He Was Warden
MIsMGpa

When He Was Warden:
NJ I; E E.5;;iaVsss.~ So u AT-~
"If the people of North Dakota arr
looking FOR q governor with the back
bone OF a 5ellyfish, then don't vote for
me-" is a warning made by Frank O..
Hellstron, democratic nominee for
governor Of this state in opening the
campaign this fail. -~~,"~-
This statement is characteristic OF
the man. AS he says, he never was
when he was warden, and he never
will be as governor, merely a rubber
stamp for the political Bosses"
Frank O. Hellstrom is a self-made
man. He has gained his large per,
sonal following in North Dakota be-
cause he never made a promise but
what he fulfilled 1t, because he never
turned a deaf ear to his friends when
they were in need Of his services, and
because he hasn't simply used his
friends to further his own interests
and then dropped them when they
were no longer necessary for his ad.
vancement.
Born OIL q farm, he spent most Of
his life on q farm. Educated for the
legal profession, he graduated from
the Kansas law school in 1892. And
then he devoted much OF his time to
the cultivation of the soil in his old
home in Douglas county, Kansas.
cracy, MT. Hellstrom early was recog.
nized as a leader, and in 1896 he
stumped the state Of Kansas for VIII
liam Jennings Bryan.
When he came to North Dakota II
was in connection with the farm ma
chinery business and for several years
was manager Of the Fargo branch Of
the Northwest Thresher company. 1t
will be said Of him by that firm that
during his incumbenoy as manager the
company saw it's largest years of bust.
ness in this state, which proves Mr..
Hellstrom's ability as a business man,
as also does his record as warden Of
the p~enitentlary.
When John Burke was elected gov.
ernor of North Dakota in 1906, with
the members Of the board Of control
he began looking around for a man
who would be suitable for warden Of
the penitentiary.
The wardenship is perhaps the most
important office in the state, outside
of the chief executive, and this Gov
ernor Burke realized. He we'll knew
that it was not simply q plum to give
to the man who needed to be taken
care of by his friends because he had
spent all his money on the party or
to any men as 8 reward for any special
favor which may have advanced the
governors own interests.
Governor Burke realized that under
the Sarles business administration, the
penitentiary had fallen into a deplor'
able condition. Instead of being self
supporting, as they can be made to
be, ths institution vas a great finan.
cjal burden on the state Burke want
ed to find some mar of sound business
ideas who would make an honest effort
to decrease this debt In two years
time. for it was then uncertain wheth.
er the Burke administration would be
sustained at the close of its first term.
With this idea in view, he asked
Frank O. Hellstrom to help him show
the people of North Dakota the value
of an economic administration, one
which was really laboring for the in
terests of the people. He asked Mr.
Hellstrom to take charge of the peni
Tertiary and try to lift the great bur
den off that institution. At first Mr.
Hellstrom was loath to accept He
realized what it meant. But finally
persuaded, he went at it In a manner
that has reflected everlasting Credit
on the state and the Burke admins
t%ration.
What was Mr.. Hel1strom's record a.
warden? Even the most strongly par
tisan republicans admit it was the
best in the history Of the institution
The first thing he did was to abolish
the whipping post, the form of capita
punishment that prevailed in every in
stitution of the kind in the land. II
that reform Mr., Helistrom was the pic
neer. Since then how many states
have followed his example and done
away with whipping posts and al
forms of capital punishment in one
way or another, either by Legislative
enactment or otherwise? Mr.. He'll
strom set the pace that has grown in
to a widespread movement.
His next act as warden was to es
tob1loll III 1AAlOl ~ obSll,
that brought him a national reputation
and gave The state Of North Dakota
much prominence. The Burke admin
lstration's opponents at once predicted
that Mr.. Hellstrom's policy would b.
disastrous, that the country would b.
overrun with escaped criminals, tina
1t would undo all the courts and thu
p%enitentiary had eve done, and wha
not. Have they not all been bitterl,
disappointed? The Hellstrom polio.
ha&Sproved such a marked success il
this state that Warden Talcott, tn
4 gift of a republican administration, ha
made no effort to change it in that re
spect. The Hellstrom policy has prov
! en- so successful that nearly ever,
4 state prison in the United States ha
adopted it.
A When Frank Hel;stroEl became wal
4 den of the penitentiary, it was bun
4 dened with debt. There were sigh