The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1935-10-10
Minnesota NelUs and
Comment
BY r. w. HITCHCOCK

cupying free Office space in the new
state Office building, while at the same
time the Big Three were wanting the
taxpayers of Minnesota to build another
state Office building at cost of some
100000, is now occupying quarters on
the third floor of the state capitol
The association is an organization of
state. county and city employees which
began to do business January LIST, 1880
H. L HOLSTER is its secretary.
At a recent meeting of the Interim
Tax Committee an embarrassing ques-
ton was raised.
Searching for additional revenue
other than from sales tax, the COM
mittee secured an estimate on what
could be raised by increasing the in
come tax in Minnesota to 80 per cent.
Which will the taxpayer pay first"
someone inquired. ats per cent of his
income to the federal government or 80
per cent Of his income to the state?"
The Minnesota Soldiers Home, loca-
ted in beautiful spot on the banks
Of the Mississippi in Minneapolis. is an
exceedingly worthwhile institution which
seldom occupies the spotlight. In Au-
gust of this year the home had popu-
lation of 428 of which 146 were women
and go were men. In the home is one
survivor of the Sioux War, seven men
and six women from other Indian cam
paigns, "a veterans of the Civil War, or
as they say in the south, Of the War
Between the States, and wives and
1O1 widows of men who served in that
civil struggle so many years ago. From
the Spanish American War there are
"a men, 6 wives and 10 widows. The
struggle on the Mexican border has
contributed one man and one woman to
the home The number of World war
veterans in the home Is growing, with
I65 men and Is women there at present.
Among several very charming ladies
in the home are two in particular
Mrs. Elizabeth FELTON,, who. according
to the best information obtainapie,
was 100 years old last June, and Mrs.
Della Whitney Norton who is Sc and
still able to sew fine seam. Both
ladies are sprightly and are delightful
to visit with.
The new hospital at the home Is an
inestimable boon to these veterans.
most of whom are in the twilight OF
life.
At a recent political meeting Mrs.
Marian LIE Sueur IS said by press re-
ports to have characterized herSeh as
the member OF the State Board OF Ed
ucation rejected by "the best Leg1sla-
ture money could buy" Close contact
with the Legislature convinces the
writer that if money bought any mem
bers of the Legislature it was not mem
bers of the majority group, and II MIS-.
LIE Sueur knows of any members OF ner
group who were bought she should, In
the interest of good government, re-
duce her loose charge to specific IN
stance.
More culpable than Mrs. LIE Sueur IS
Harry Peterson, Attorney General OF
Minnesota, If the same press report Is
to be believed, for Mr.. Peterson trctted
out an old canard that has ofnclay
been disproved and made to do duty
on the political front.
Mr.. Peterson, according to the pubic
prints, called the deal by which the
Mountain Iron mine went to private IN
terests one of the biggest steals IN
the history Of the state. Mrs. LIE Sueur
was peddling a vague SANDER, but the
Attorney General was making sta1e-
ment which an official OF his hlgn pos
ition should know IS untrue.
This canard about the loss TO the
state of $1,000 600 by reason OF the
rape of the Mountain Iron mine" was
oficially disproved many years ago.
The whole matter is set out in detail IN
william Watts Folwell's History OF
Minnesota, volume 4, pages A to 49,
Minnesota has never lost a foot OF
iron ore lands that it has ever owned.
The facts are these:
On February 9, 1884, VIM. Braden,
state Auditor, filed a list mo. % OF
land selected in lieu of school sections
sf6 to So. Four years later he filed an
other list mo. I'D selecting other lands
and cancelling eleven previous lists in
cluding list No. 9 because these lists
did not comply with instructions issued
by the federal land Office.
In 1897 State Auditor R. G. Dunn,
charged the state had lost s12,000,OO
by reason Of this change of lists, the
Mountain Iron mine being on list 9,
but not on list u. The Legislature OF
1897 appointed the Governor, David M.
Cough, the Attorney General, Henry
w. Childs, and State Auditor Dunn to
make a complete investigation. They
engaged w. P. Warren and Henry C.
Bel6en as conSuls. After thorough In
vestigation this committee unanimously
reported that the state had no rights,
that no title had been acquired by the
state by the fling of indemnity Lists OF
lands, that such lists were merely ap-
plications which the Secretary Of the
Interior might allow or diSallow His
order only conveyed title. The state
never owned the Mountain Iron mine
lands.
It was physically impossible that State
Auditor VIM W. Braden could have
known that iron ore existed on the lists
which he filed The Merritts, in one OF
their expeditions, discovered iron ere
near what was later the Mountain
Iron mine on November 16, 1890, al
most two years after Braden had filed
his substitute lists.
Instead Of the state losing by reason
~ thea 1isfe of lien lands IL gained