Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1870-02-11

Commissioners, warrant of County Commits
sioners and warning officers return has been
sent in to the Secretary of States office, and
been recorded.
] have before shown that his construction is
wrong, both by the reason ofthe case, and by the
Statutes then in force, and now add the con-
struction of this States officials heretofore, by
again referring to this return of Silver Ridge
Plantation, which contains none ofthcsc things,
and whose returns of votes were for several
years received here and counted, and add a still
stronger proof than all others, which is this ::
that the Governor recognized this very Cyr
as an organized plantation, when he drew lis
warrant for $50 since the September election
for the purposes of education in Cyr planta-
ton. Will the gentlemen say that the Gov
ernor probably did it under a misapprehen-
sion of the facts. Let me answer him. Gov
ernor Chamberlain does no such thing. With
out question he consulted the facts and papers
in the office, and acted in the premises accord
ing 10 his construction of the law, at least the
presumption of this is with us. One thing is
sure, he drew his warrant for the money for
Cyr plantation, thereby recognizing il rs such.
Ii we, by our votes in the question before us,
recognize it, then that 500 will be appropri-
ated for the objects for which it was drawn.
otherwise this State will have perpetrated a
trick on the innocent taxpayers of Cyr, by
calling them plantation in your general laws,
voting to pay them out of your treasury $50
if they will raise an equal sum, receiving suf-
ticieut proof that they have complied on their
part, to draw the money from the treasury,
and then at this late day coolly say to them,
1--WE have been mistaken, we thought all along
that you was an organized plantation, but your
officers in their returns, neglected to dot their
is and cross their is, and we find that If we
count your votes it will disturb the seat of a
member of the Legislature, so we will return
the funds from whence they came, "a trick
say, that would make an honest man blush for
very shame at the thought of such a truck
ling, cowardly act, by a body of men called
by the name of the House of Representatives
of the State of Maine. Mr.. Speaker, we shall
not do it.
This answers all the reasons alleged in the
majority report why Cyr plantation could not
be counted, but the gentleman from Augusta,
alleged on this floor, that notwithstanding all
Cyr has done since August 1868, yet her or
ganzation is not perfect, because she under
took to organize under an old warrant of the
County Commissioners. This is taking us
behind the records, which, as a legal gentle
man, he knows he ought not to do. But, Mr..
Speaker, admitting it to be true that she did
use an old warrant-though no proof of that
Idtt Is sIlOWu~NHde uUSs II al w ny yiet
this, for an illustration. The town of Holden,
if you please, IN 1867 elected its board of
sclecnnen in 1868 they issued their warrant
for the March meeting; the original was kept
and the meeting was held under it, and the
same officers were elected for 1868. The
next March they take that same warrant,
change the dates, and the officer makes his
copies, the inhabitants meet and act under it
would not that be a legal meeting? any one
here doubt it? That is this case. no more. no
less. To raise such objections indicates
weakness next to a surrender. There is as
much proof that the County Commissioners
were consulted, and consented to its second
use as that it was used.
These are all the objections to the legality
of the organization of the plantation of Cyr,
that have heard argued, If objections at
all, they are mere technicalities; and if tech
nicalites are to be the rule in settling this
question, then, Mr.. Speaker, / will cite this
House to the minority report, over the sigma
ture of Edwin b. Smith, chairman of the Com
mittee on elections, a man of high legal at
tainments, a candidate for our suffrages to the
responsible Office of Attorney General of this
State, position that he would have filled with
credit to himself and honor to the State, in
which he says that not one plantation in the
Madawaska Representative district have COM
plleu Will tNc stdtutts III tittI
and therefore upon strict legal rules should
not have their votes counted. l yesterday
examined for their errors, and found the state
ment in the minority report to be correct.
leave other gentlemen to point them out.
have answered, ! think, all the points
raised by the gentleman from Augusta. Permit
me, Mr.. Speaker, now to say, that gentlemen
have, so far in this discussion, overlooked the
strong point of the case which is this: What
must the inhabitants of a township do in order
to rote and hare their rotes countedf Sec. Il,
chap. 4, Revised Statutes, and chap, l03, laws
of 1868, declare Chere reads.) hold in my
hand the evidence of strict compliance with
these requirements, not one missing, and the
authenticity of none denied. The question is
not, what must townships dot for they are
not required to comply with all the statute
provision for all purposes, in order to vote and
have that vote allowed, but what must they do
to vote and have a right to demand that that
vote shall be counted?
But Suppose we assume that Cyr has not
technically complied with requirements, we
only place her on an equal footing with the
other plantations in this district.
But, Mr. Speaker the constitution has made
us the judge of the elections and qualifications
of our members, with no right of appeal, and
that single fact is to my mind one of the
bound by legal technicalities in our investi
cations and decisions, but by what is right,
proper, just, and consistent under all the cir
cumstances surrounding each individual case.
district technical rules were to be applied, there
are members in this House to-day who would
have indefinite leave of absence-one such
sits near me-and as in our case it makes no
difference in the result, whether the strict
rules of the courts, or the more broad and lib
eral policy be applied, either of which must
seat the contestant, let us establish here and
now, by our votes on this question, this prin-
cipe which is in keeping with our history and
our Demo cratic institutions, ''that in all casse
free from fraud, effect should be given to the
choice of the people as manifested at the bal
lot box, whatever it may be, regardless of all
technicalities."
The speech occupied two hours, and was
listened to with marked attention.
The debate was continued as follows:
Mr.. WmIDDEN had not designed DISCUSSING
this matter, but he thought some things had
been introduced calling for reply. The
right is conferred upon us by the Consti-
tuition to decide between these twom We
20 Ind, 49, ba; Ia nj;