380 



MICHIGAN. 



MINNESOTA. 



Political. The Republican convention for nom- 

 inating presidential electors and choosing delegates 

 to the national convention met in Detroit, May 3. 

 The resolutions approved the administration of 

 President McKinley, and instructed the delegates 

 to vole for his renomination. The convention for 

 nominating State officers was held at Grand Rap- 

 ids, June 27 and 28. After reaffirming allegiance 

 to the principles for which the party stands, the 

 platform denounced trusts and combinations to 

 control prices, expressed sympathy with the Boers, 

 declared in favor of equal and uniform taxation, 

 and said further: 



" We favor the prompt repeal of all special rail- 

 road charters granting to any railroad in the State 

 special privileges. 



" \Vc condemn the corruption of State officials 

 that has brought shame and disgrace to the State, 

 and we demand the vigorous prosecution of all who 

 are guilty." 



For the nomination for Governor there were six 

 candidates Aaron T. Bliss, Justus S. Stearns, 

 I). M. Ferry, C. S. Osborn, James O'Donnell, and 

 M. I). Campbell. Mr. Bliss was chosen on the 

 nineteenth ballot. The remainder of the ticket 

 was: For Lieutenant Governor, O. W. Robinson; 

 Secretary of State, Fred M. Warner; State Treas- 

 urer, Daniel McCoy; Auditor General, Perry F. 

 Powers; Commissioner of State Land Office, E. A. 

 Wildey; Attorney-General, Horace M. Oren; Su- 

 perintendent of Public Instruction, Delos Fall; 

 Member of State Board of Education, J. H. Thomp- 

 son. 



The Democratic convention, May 1, chose dele- 

 gates to Kansas City, who were instructed for 

 Mr. Bryan. The nomination of C. A. Towne for 

 Vice- President was recommended. The resolutions 

 censured the administration for its colonial policy, 

 saying: 



' We believe this policy has been dictated to 

 and forced upon the administration of President 

 McKinley by the mercenary combinations known 

 as trusts. The trust is supreme in political as in 

 industrial activities. In both it is an unmixed 

 public evil. The economic advantages of industrial 

 combinations are entirely lost to the people and 

 swell the profits of arrogant and conscienceless 

 magnates, who feed on the vitals of their victims. 

 We request our delegates to the national conven- 

 tion to urge upon that body the selection of the 

 most practical and effective of the many plans 

 for curtailing the powers of the trusts, and to 

 pledge the party to specific legislation upon the 

 lines adopted." 



Further, they declared against a large standing 

 a mi v and in favor of just taxation and municipal 

 ownership of public utilities, a national income tax, 

 and direct election of United States Senators. 

 They expressed sympathy for the South African 

 republics, and condemned " the present Republic- 

 an administration in this State as the most cor- 

 rupt and scandalous in the history of this common- 

 wealth." 



The second convention was held in Detroit, July 

 25 and 26. The nominations were: For Governor, 

 William C. May bury; Lieutenant Governor, Jona- 

 than G. Ramsdell; Secretary of State, John W. 

 Ewing; State Treasurer, Charles F. Sundstrom; 

 Commissioner of the State Land Office, George 

 Winans: Auditor General, Hiram B. Hudson; At- 

 torney-General, James O'Hara; Superintendent of 

 Public Instruction, Stephen H. Langdon : Member 

 of the State Board of Education, James McEntee. 



The platform said in part: 



" We denounce the last Legislature generally as 

 the crowning infamy in the hi-tmy of the Repub- 

 lican party in Michigan. We denounce it specific- 



ally for its failure to submit to the people the con- 

 stitutional amendments relative to taxation de- 

 manded by the State grange and farmers' clubs; 

 for its failure to increase the specific tax on rail- 

 roads ; for its failure to pass the mining tax meas- 

 ure; for its failure to repeal the special railway 

 charter; for its failure to pass the anticolor oleo 

 law demanded by the State grange and dairymen 

 of the State; for its refusal to submit to the peo- 

 ple the constitutional amendment providing for the 

 so-called ' initiative and referendum,' and for which 

 submission every Democrat of both houses voted; 

 for its refusal to pass the measure for the regula- 

 tion of freight and switching charges." 



At its convention, late in August, the Prohibi- 

 tion party made the following nominations: For 

 Governor, Frederick S. Goodrich ; Lieutenant Gov- 

 ernor, Trowbridge Johns; Secretary of State, Reu- 

 ben C. Reed ; Treasurer, John F. Eesley ; Auditor 

 General, William D. Farley; Attorney-General, 

 Walter S. Westerman ; Superintendent "of Public 

 Instructio David S. Warner; Commissioner of 

 State Land Office, Gideon Vivier; Member of Board 

 of Public Instruction to fill vacancv, Samuel W. 

 Bird. 



The platform declared against any act legaliz- 

 ing the traffic in strong drink, and censured the 

 present administration for " its shameless bargain 

 and sale of public interests for private gain." 



It censured the past Legislature for the attempt 

 to pass a law allowing the sale 01 liquor upon a 

 great national holiday. The sincerity of tax re- 

 formers was questioned as long as they are silent 

 concerning the liquor traffic. It reindorsed woman 

 suffrage and said there should be no application of 

 public moneys for sectarian purposes, closing with 

 an appeal to voters, especially those who follow 

 Jesus and honor his Church, to unite with the 

 party in killing the liquor traffic. 



The People's party nominated D. Thompson for 

 Governor; The Social Democrats, Henry Ramsey; 

 and the Socialist-Labor Party, H. Uhlbricht. 



The result of the presidental election was: 

 McKinley, 316,269; Bryan, 211,685; Woolley. 11.- 

 859; Debs, 2,826; Barker, 833; Malloney, 903. 



Republicans were elected to Congress in all the 

 12 districts. 



For Governor, Bliss received 305,612 votes; May- 

 bury, 226,228; Goodrich, 11,834; Ramsey, 2,709j 

 Uhlbricht, 958 ; Thompson, 871. 



The State Senate in 1901 will stand: Repub- 

 licans 31, Democrats 1 ; the House, Republican- !)>. 

 Democrats 10. 



The proposed amendment to the Constitution, 

 permitting the enactment of laws for assessment 

 and taxation of the property of railroad, tele- 

 graph, telephone, and express companies and cer- 

 tain other corporations, upon its cash value, in- 

 stead of specific taxes upon earnings, was carried. 



MINNESOTA, a Western State, admitted 1o 

 the LTnion May 11, 1858; area, 83,3(i."~> square miles. 

 The population, according to each decennial cen- 

 sus since admission, was 172,023 in I860: 4:J!t.7<>6 

 in 1870; 780.773 in 1880: 1.301,826 in 1890; and 

 1. 7.-)l. :i!)4 in 1900. Capital. St. Paul. 



Government. The following were the State 

 officers in 1900: Governor, John Lind ; Lieuten- 

 ant Governor. Lyndon A. Smith: Secretary of 

 State, Albert Berg; Auditor, Robert C. Dunn: 

 Treasurer, August T. Koerner: Attorney-General, 

 Wallace B. Douglas all Republicans except tin- 

 Governor, who was elected on a fusion ticket 

 of Democrats and Populists; Commissioner of 

 Insurance, J. A. O'Shaughnessy ; Adjutant Gen- 

 eral, George C. Lambert: Chief Grain Inspector. 

 A. C. Clausen, till August, when he resigned and 

 was succeeded by Edward S. Reishus; Chief Justice 





