The Duluth rip-saw. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1917-19??, 1918-07-27

1T is firmly alleged that the cor
rupt practices act was badly bro
ken at Morgan Park on election
day. It further is strongly limited
that if no citizen makes formal
complaint, the matter will be ta-
ken before the next grand jury.
The most apparent violations
were the carrying Of passengers
to and from the polls and the dis
play Of campaign emblems and
cards, thereby influencing the vo-
tiers. Aside. from that, a real in
vestigation. would, it is believed,
show an improper use of money
and other means to influence the
voters in favor of Fred D. Knight.
Mr.. Knight is storekeeper for
the Minnesota Steel company. His
campaign was made in the. name
of the Good Fellowship club of
Morgan Park. There is ample
proof that he was backed and
pushed by the local representa-
tives of the Minnesota Steel COM
pany and that trusted employees Of
that corporation managed many
Of the election day doings and au-
thorized certain expenditures that
were met. by the corporation that
dominates that neck o. the woods.
The attention Of the entire city
was called to the unusual stunts at
Morgan Park on election day by
an editorial in the News Tribune
last Monday morning which, un-
der the title of Private Prop
erty," said in part, viz.
At the entrance to Morgan Park,
the Minnesota Steel company of the
United States Steel corporation has a
sign: Private Property; Dangerous
Thoroughfare." At the school elec-
ton on Saturday Morgan Park cast
600 votes for it's own candidate and
marked no other candidate, though
three were to be elected./
The sign and the vote belong to-
gether. They set the Steel, corpora
ton property off as strictly private
and in no sense part of Duluth.
Morgan Park has Gary school. It
was put there against the wish of the
former school administration by the
then board. When three of the men,
bers of that board were candidates
for reelection they got less than 60
votes in that precinct.
Their school,, however has had
earnest support from the present adj
mintstration and the entire city school
system has been moving rapidly
along the underlying Gary principle
of vocational training and the develop
ment of each child's natural ability
and talent. ... g.,
In spite of this, the United States
Steel local representatives, acting
after a conference, put a candidate
into the field at the eleventh hour for
this election. Their employees quit
work and canvassed for votes, not for
three candidates, but just for this
one. All day long, contrary to law,
they had automobiles bringing in
voters.
The votes they control\were for the
one man and no other. 1t was straight,
fair notice to Duluth that they had no
interest in Duluth's schools as a
wholeS in the school system nor the
city's children outside their own 'pri-
vate property Fortunately their
candidate-an excellent man-was
defeated, and the corporation has but
one member of the board from it's dis
tinctive family.
1t was this vote that very nearly
cost the city of Duluth dearly, more
dearly than many of it's people know.
This example of an especial brand of
citizenship has also cost the corpora
ton dear in public sentiment.
Resentment over the failure of
the Knight supporters to vote for
candidates of the Autocrats and
the consequent election Of DIR.
Schaibly may have had much to
do with the publication of that
editorial, but it was enlightsuing,
just the same.
A study of election returns
shows that 1925 ballots were cast
in the Morgan Park voting pre-
cifct. Of all the votes cast Fred
ID. Knight received 791. Frank
Crassweller received 157, J. G..
Armand Is, John G. .Schaib!y 81,
G. F. Colman l03, L. u. Young
"a, John N. Peyton So, and Will
Liam j. Farmer 81.
| Only "a out Of S25 voters had