Page:History of Goodhue County, Minnesota.djvu/1232

 1064 HISTORY OF GOODHUE COUNTY promoted to that of chairman. In this capacity he managed some of the hardest fought political battles in the annals of Minnesota and never failed to lead the party to victory. He has been secre- tary of the railroad and warehouse commission of Minnesota. From 1888 to 1889 be was private secretary for Gov. W. R. Mer- riam; from 1880 to 1892 for Knute Nelson; from 1892 to 1896 for David M. Clough. At the election of United States senator in 1901 he was urged by many friends to become a candidate and had he accepted their offers at the proper time it was freely as- serted that his chances of success would have been of the best. As it Avas he received a handsome complimentary vote. Mr. Bixby had charge of the senatorial campaign of Knute Nelson which he conducted in his usual vigorous, honorable and effective manner. Mr. Bixby was at one time prominently mentioned in connection with a cabinet position as secretary of the interior, an appoint- ment which, according to the newspapers, was practically within his grasp had he cared to lake it. Probably Mr. Bixby's most distinguished work, however, has I n done in connection with the Five Civilized Tribes, so called, in the Indian Territory. These tribes are the richest people in the world, and when condi- tions 1) came such that immediate supervision and adjustment of their affairs by the United States governmenl was necessary. Mr. Bixby was named as a member of the so-called Dawes Indian Commission, of which he was either acting or actual chairman from May 2, 1897, when he was appointed by President William McKinley, until July 1, 1905. when that commission was abolished and President Theodore Roosevelt appointed Mr. Bixby as com- missioner, a position he retained until July, 1!>07. when the affairs of the Five Tribes, having been reorganized and placed on a satis- factory basis, their supervision was vested in the Department of the Interior. The stupendous task which -Mr. Bixby performed only those who Avere with him in the work can fully realize. Op- posed by all kinds of clever men and powerful interests who, without sanction of law. had secured control of mineral and other valuable rights belonging to the Indians, he adjusted matters where several millions of dollars were concerned, with an honesty and fearlessness that was as unswerving as it was intelligent. During this period. Mr. Bixby came back to Minnesota for a couple of months, gathered up the tangled threads of a Repub- lican political campaign, which, nearly over, seemed almost hope- less, and carried it to a successful conclusion. Upon his return from the South in 1907. Mr. Bixby and a number of friends pur- chased a controlling interest in the "Pioneer Press" of St. Paul, and Mr. Bixby became the general manager. He at once devoted his energy and ability as a newspaper man and organizer to mak- ing the "Pioneer Press" the best paper in the Northwest, and this