The Portland daily press., 1867-01-26
q be Governor salary.


not arise here in my place for the purpose of
making what IS usually termed speech, or to /
to discuss the subject under consideration at
any considerable length, Tor am unacoustom-
ed to this kind of business and am well aware
that 1t does not lie within the compass OF my
faculties so to do. But, sir, stand here from
sense of duty which feel that owe to my
self and to my constituents, to oppose the pass
age of this bill in concurrence, and 70 o, en;ei
my solemn protest against this species u i7
lation. -, H. 1885,.
/ believe, sir, we were not electeu 10 come
here for the purpose of creating large ana ex-
travaoant salaries and thereby burden the |
already over-taxcd peope oi inc state
with unnecessary and unwarranted outlays.-
Sir while Will admit that the salary OF the |
Governor is inadequate to the Office of chief |
MAGISTRATE OF this State, and that it should be |
raised to some extent, yet, Mr. Speaker, itdoes |
not follow that we should go to the other ex-
IRENE and double it at this time when the |
State and municipalities of the State together
owe from twelve to twenty millions of dollars |
And, sir, what have we to pay that enormous
sum with? L will refer you, SIR to the State
Treasurers report FOR an answer to this in
quiry, when he tells us that the industrial pro- |
ceeds of the people is the only resource and |
Tor one, do not wish to tax them to the utmost
Of their ability, and thereby create greater
desire on the part of unworthy politicians TO
fill the chair of State. .st ..H
Now, Mr. Speaker, let us compare notes and |
see how we stlnd relat yely with oher States |
Take, if you please, the New Engisnd states,
leaving ont our own State, and we lind tae av-
erage salary of the five States to be fifteen
hundred and twenty dollars as their Governors
salaries, three of which pay one thousand dol
lars each, one three thousand five hundred dol |
lars and one, one Thousand one hundred dol |
lars. These statistics l have taken from the |
manual upon our desks, and now, sir, are we so
much in advance of them as to double the ay-
erage amount they pay? L, in all honesty,
think not and do believe that the tax PAYERS
of my district think so too, and the people of
the State will hold us all to strict account
ability for our doings in this direction
Mr. Speaker were to follow out my own
personal feelings in regard to this matter, and
regardless of other things and our present be-
loved and heroic Governor were to receive its
benefits, should be likely to vote as high as
any one of the honorable members of
this House; he sir, was the first and the only
candidate of Somerset County in the State
convention at Bangor, and had the honor of
being one of the delegates from said county
But, Sir, my judgment tells me it is not right
and therefore cannot vote in that direction,
and shall not. /, Mr. Speaker as well your
self feel proud of the mottoof our beloved State
and rejoice at her record? Yet Sir, do not
myself wish to take the lead in expending
the peoples money in profigate manner,
and thereby set that example for other States
to follow. Sir, L wish to call the attention of
this House to the noble sentiments of our pa
triotic Governor when speaking of a mOnu-
ment to commemorate the virtues of our
dead heroes. He says: But when so many
widows and orphans are crying for bread, and
patiently by, hopeless of any active part in
the countrys rejoicing for one feel that our
first duty is to these" I sir heartily indorse
these philanthropic sentiments, and do be-
heve this House will also indorse them
Mr.. Titcomb of Augusta, spoke at some
length in support of the amendment and the
bill. He read list of the States and the salar-
les paid to the Governor of each. In one or
two instances the amount was different from
that given in the remarks Of the gentleman
from Athens In Massachusetts the salary is
$4,000, having been increased to that sum in the
year 1864 In tbrty-fOur States the aggregate
amount is $100,6S3 49, and the average is $2Y61-
n. There are some considerations to be brought
into the account in connection with this state
ment. The salary of the Governor of Califor-
MIA, $4,000, is payable in gold. Many States
have Lieutenant Governors whose annual SAL
airy orper diem pay should be charged to this
account. InNew York the total expense of the
Executive Department is $17,400, including
rent of and taxes on the executive mansion,
private Secretary. Clerks, Messengers, &c. The
sa'ary of the Governor of Illinois is bur S15OO as
in Maine, but this is doubtless owing to Con-
stitutional restriction which goes further than
o similar provision in the Constitution OF
Maine, and forbds the Legislature eyer to in
crease it. He mentioned facts to show the i'm
possibility of Governor OF Illinois living on
the salary allowed, in the city of Springfield.
On motion of Mr.. Perkins of Kennebunk-
port, it was ordered that the vote on the
amendment shall be taken by yeas and nays.
Mr. Brown Of Hampuen, spoke against the
bill. He thought the Legislature should act
just as the people under similar circumstances
would. The people do not pay high salaries
They do not pay their ministers well and he
himself had become somewhat unpopular for
endeavoring in his own town to obtain an in
crease of the salary Of minister. He did not
agree with the gentleman from Augusta (Mr
Ttcomb) in the idea that the men he had men
toned had gone away from Maine because the
salary of public officers was not sufficient
They went from other motives. He had never
fr1cI nfyf IN
serve as Governor because the salary was not
sufficient, and he did not believe that any one
had ever SO refused. He had heard no COM
plants that the Governors of Maine were not
honorable, statesmanlike and in every way
worthy to be its Chief Magistrates, notwith-
standing the alleged meagerness of the sala-
While denying the force of bringing other
States as a criterion for US, he had been unable
to find any authority for the figures of the gen.
teman from Augusta. His authority in MAX
ing somewhat similar table was the Ameri-
can Almanac for 1864. We should remember
too, that prices are now falling, and the rela-
tive value of the salary will be all the time be-
coming greater. ST.
The main question he conceived to be how
the people would have us vote on this question
and he was very certain they would not favor
this increase. The usual habit of business men
is to get all the service they can out of their
helpers and to get it as cheaply as possible
Ihey Will eItainly not thank us for increasing
salaries when we already get for what we pay,
so able officers as we now have. The object of
the Republican party is to follow out the wish
es of the people, and if it aband ms and betrays
the people, another party will arise which
will be forced to do So
Mr.. Hale of Ellsworth, thought this matter
should be looked at in as broad a light as DOS
sible, and while on the one hand we should
avoid running into any extravaganza, on the
other hand we should be willing and anxious
to pay fair price for the labor we exact. 1t
is objected to this proposition that it will add
to the already heavy burdens of the people.
fri hat will oil on,
ton, but SO very little as to be scarcely percep-
tible. 1t is distributing the paltry sum of fff-
teen hundred dollars among all the people and
all the wealth of the State 81.
He hoped TO see many a governor chosen
from the ranks of those with Only moderate
means. lie wanted to have the privilege of
voting for such without feeling that he was i'm
posing too great a burden upon them. 1t had
been said that prices are falling He had not
seen any signs of it yet, and believed that we
must expect high prices of all articles of ne
cesSity for generation to come.
~. M. Brown of Hampden spoke in further Oh
position to the bill. afrs : f. @
Mr.. Hutchinson of Harmony suggested that
the passage of the bill might be an injury to
the members of the House, and to the party
the most of them represented in coming cleo
tiOns.
Mr.. Shepley of Portland felt called upon to
defend his own constituents and those Of the
gentleman from Hampden, from the unius.
1mputatlons cast upon them by him. He be-
heved that the people would say, if this cues
ton we're presented to them that the laborer is
worthy of his hire. His colleagues from the
city OF Portland and himself were unannons
in support of this bill, and their constituents
viii be called upoa to pay one eighth of the
whole amount. The business men and people
of Portland pay fair rate of wages for fair
days work. 1t makes no difference whether
their employees be rich or poor. He believed
1t was the same in Hampden and all over the
State. They are honest and just, and they
seorn meanness He thought the gentleman,
from Hampden misrepresented his oonstitu- |
ents when he feared that they would reproach
him for compromising fair work with fair
wages. ~ Fl iijlfl0 - |
Mr. Brown OF Hampden, called Mr.. Shepley |
TO order. He did not make any such state
ment. ~ ~
Mr.. Shepley said that he thought the gentle.
man complained of becoming unponuiar he
cause he advocated fair wages for his minister
Seriously, the simple question was whether the
present salary was adequate and if NOT To what
amount should it be raised? II Is adm;ttaS
that no person without private fortune can
support himself respectfully as Governor with
the present salary. There is not a man in the
State suitable to be Governor Of Maine whose
services are not worth more to private indiyid-
uals that the State pays its Chief Magistrate
Corporations pay more to their agents, banks
more 10 their cashiers, many merchants more
to their book-keepers than the salary of our
Governor. A parish in Portland has called in
vain for pastor during the past year, offering
70 per cent higher salary than the amount pro-
posed by the amendment. If the Legislature