The Sauk Centre herald., 1916-08-10

among Minnesota Republican cohorts
it was regeneration, or a disintegra-
tion, depending on the angle of your
viewpoint. 1t was victory for new
men and new ideas and brought in a
new regime of control. Naturally,
when under the hocus pocus provis-
ions of our inexplicable election laws,
the successful candidates assembled
to select the men to manage the cam
paign practically new State Gen.
tral committee was chosen and Eric
L. Thornton was made chairman.
A prominent Democratic paper in
southern Minnesota rather flippantly
inquiries "Whoinhell is Eric Thorn
ton?"
Mr.. Thornton, we admit, is compar-
atively unknown in Minnesota politi-
cal circles, but the people will in the
future, and very near future, come to
know him well. He is a conner and is
built of the material out of which
congressman, governors and United
States senators are made.
AS we have known Eric ever since
he was creeper, and his father be-
fore him, and as the Herald is widely
read by the best people, we feel it in
cumbent upon us to supply a preIim-
mary introduction Of the young chair
man.
In the by-gone years, and lot of
years have gone by since that time, a
young captain of volunteers, fresh
from the wars, located with his young
bride in the then frontier town of
Benson, as the station master of the
Great Northern depot. The Captain
was a bundle of dynamic energy and
he mighty soon outgrew the narrow
confines of the railroad station and
branched out in business for himself.
He started a hardware store, estab-
lished farm machinery depots in Ben
son and other towns, later organized
the Bank of Benson and engaged in
other lines of business, accumulated
a comfortable competency and reared
a family of eight children, five boys
and three girls.
Captain Thornton was welF known
in Central Minnesota as a sturdy un-
compromising fighter for Republican
ism. He was one of the men who
placed US in nomination for congress
in the Fergus Falls convention in
1894, and always supported us to the
length of his cabletow as: long as we
remained in public life. This, in it.
self, is sufficient guarantee Of the
soundness of his POLITICAL judgment
and the keenness of his political dis
cretion.
Eric L. is the third child of this an
ti-race suicide bunch. He was born
i'll Benson in August, 1878, distin-
guished himself among his Rid asso-
ciates as a scrapper and base bal
player, graduated out of the public
schools, annexed a diploma from the
St. Paul College of Law. Although
his father was able and willing tx
maintain him, young Erie took the
night course and maintained himself
by working as reporter on the Pho
neer-Press while the process of an
nexation was taking place, and finall!
settled down in his native town to- tht
practice of his profession.
He is red-headed, left-handed
square as they make them, straigh
as plumbline, conscientious as ;
priest, patient as a f1sh-hawk, self
confident as divinity student, keel
as Damascus blade, industrious as
mole, stubborn as a Missouri mule
methodical as clock, pugnacious a
a Prussian and persistent as a bul
terrier pup.
He has the gift of organization
amounting almost to genius, an un
canny knowledge of weak politica
spots and an intuitive knowledge o
how to strengthen them.
In 1897 he married Miss Jessi
Dinsmoor, a popular Austin girl an
at present writing has an embry
short stop and second baseman in hi
| family.
Eric has served three terms a
county attorney Of Swift county, on
term as mayor Of Benson and at tn
last primaries was elected delegat
from the Seventh district to the Ma
tional Republican convention, distanc
ing all his competitors. His officis
capacity has been marked with care