The St. Joseph observer., 1920-08-21
THEIR EARLY CAREERS
WERE MUCH ALIKE
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the boy. The nearest high school was
at Doniphan, fifteen miles away, and
hither he directed his steps, almost
r,nuioSs, in search OF the potent in
strUctiOns and information which
proved so necessary in after years to-
wards shaping his successful cours..
Naturally endowed with pluc.. ysa.-
| gy and determination young AtNnsns
completed the high school coursa a..
was ready for the task of tcachirg g.
rural school similar to the one in
which he acquired his first thirst FOR
further cnlightcnment. The savings
, from his salary as a rustic instructor
the young man devoted to meeting
the expenses of a course in the Cape
! Girardeau State Normal School and
he graduated from there with honors
and degrees sufficient to enable him
to take up pedagogy as vocation.
promising, especially law and politics,
and he soon mastered enough knowl-
edge of the. former to be admitted to
the bar.
Young Atkinson Enters Public Life
The Introduction of young Atkin-
son into real public life occurred when
elected county clerk OF Ripley county
when he was % years old. when
the term expired he was reelected.
In 1902 prominent democrats Of Rip
| ley county, highly impressed with the
| legal ability of young Atkinson start
ed him on his career as a statesman
| by sending him to the legislature
where ne speedily gathered in fresh
| political laurels by the efficient and
skillful manner in which he discharg-
cd the trusts and important duties
county returned the youthful diplo-
mat to the Legislature. During that
term Atkinson rendered such impor-
tant assistance to Governor Joseph
w. Folk in bringing about the pass
age Of important reform measures
that the states chief executive advo-
Gated that Ripley county, more pleas
ed than ever, gladly sent him back
to jefferson City for a third two years
in 1906 to complete the good work
! This trip, further and more important
honors were thrust upon Ripley
county's youthful diplomat through
his selection for the exalted honor of
speaker of the House.
In 1909 when former Governor Ell
| lott W. Major was elected attorney
Atkinson as his first assistant, a po-
sition he effectively held for four
years, during which period he per-
sonally directed and won the fights
| Missouri wagcd against the powerful
| oil, lumber and beef trusts, defeating
/ these unlawful multi-millionaire com
| bines at every stage and on every
| point first in the lower courts and
| then into and through tho Missouri
/ supreme court and, finally, In the
| United States supreme court. These
hard fought legal battles won nation
al fame for both Attorncy-Gcncral
/ Major and his chief assistant, John
/ Morgan Atkinson. On this legal rec
ord and we'll earned reputation as a
jurist Elliott W. Major was elected
. this chief executive took office in
January, 1918, he first appointed At
kinsun to the position of state petrol
cum inspector with the understand
ing that hc would completely rehabil-
late and bring up to date the antique
statutes which then governed that de-
partment, a task which this legal OK
pert quickly accomplished Atkinson
was then called upon to draft an ap-
propriatc measure creating the pres
ont state public service commission,
"a deed ne performed so well that this
department not alone paid its own ex-
penses during the first three or four
years Of it's existence but also turned
an annual surplus into the general
revenue fund OF Missouri
Appointed Chairman Public Service
Commission
When the public service comm lssion
was created by the legislature, Gov
cruor Major made Atkinson not alone
a member but also chairman of this
important body a position he he'd
down with credit to himself and the
state uutn June, 1916, when he re-
signed to make the race for the demo-
cratic nomination for governor. In a
field of seven candidates Atkinson
ran second, being defeated for the