The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1932-07-15
BY G.. B. WOLL.AN.

st. Paul, July Il, 1932.-State legiS-
lators, newspapermen and hundreds OF
state fair visitors will miss familiar
figure at this falls Minnesota state fair,
that of Col r. A. Wilkinson, Lake
Elmo, former Great Northern land
commissioner and attorney, state legiS-
lator and in recent years Commissioner
o. P. B. Jacobson's right hand man
in the state grain inspection depart
ment.
This almost 80 year old Civil war
veteran died week before last shortly
after being injured in an automobile
accident.
Col. wilkinson hadn't missed attend
ing the state fair in more than so
years, record not even approached
by an other Minnesotan, it is believed.
His large form, topped with high
gray derby (Which he kept especially
for wear at the fair for Is years. his
close cropped white vandyke beard and
his twinkling eyes and genial smile will
be sadly missed at the legislative and
editorial headquarters at the fair, which
was always his hangout.
Deeply interested in political affairs
from as far back as 1856, when as a
boy he heard one of the famous
Lincoln-Douglas debates in northern
Illinois, Col. Wilkinson nevertheless was
not what one would call an office
seeker He served a term in the Wis
consin legislature, together with the
late Sen. Knute Nelson, in the latter
sixties, and then didn't hold any major
public office until elected to the Mime
sofa house from Washington county
some so years later.
During his several terms in the
Minnesota legislature he became one of
the most influential members, being
progressively minded in spite of his age,
keen student of economicstaEd poll
tics, ready and powerful debater and
perhaps the best parlamentarian ever
boasted by our legislature. Besides, he
was abundantly endowed with the
saving sense of humor, which also made
him a most delightful storyteller- his
stories being principally true ones about
political and other happenings of the
long, long ago.
One of these stories, which gave me
such laugh when I first heard him
tell it some years ago, had to do with
his pet" organization, the Minnesota
State Agricultural society, commonly
known as the State Fair Association.
Some 40 years ago, when the society
was made up largely of Twin City
business men, the annual meeting was
held at the old Merchants hotel, st.
Paul, which was political and conven-
ton headquarters for a couple of
generations. An evening session was
being held behind closed doors, but the
sounds Of bitter debate could easily be
heard downstairs in the lobby by the
cub" reporter of the Pioneer Press
sent to cover" the meeting.
Not venturing to crash the gate,
the young reporter remained in the
lobby near the foot of the broad stair
way. Soon Col. Wilkinson came out of
the meeting room and down the stairs.
(The bar in those days was just off
the lobby, only few feet from the
stairway, as the old timers will recol-
lect.)
Accosting the colonel, the reporter
asked him what the row upstairs was
all about.
"Oh, nothing much" replied Col.
Wilkinson, with a telltale twinkle in
his eye, "it's just about some farmer
who's trying to break into the agri-
cultural society"
Speaking of the state fair, incident
ally reminds me that in normal election
years there's somewhat of a lull,
politically speaking, after the primaries
until just about fair week, when the
fall campaign begins to get under way.
There may not be so much of a lull
this year, however, because OF the
presidential election and it's prohibition
question "by-product" and also because
of the muddled situation within the
ranks of the Democracy in the state.
The jumpers have control OF the
state organization by reason of their
victory in the primaries, while Joe
Wolf, regular" national committee
man, has been placed in charge OF the