Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1872-01-11
PETITIONS, Bills, &C., PRESENTED AND RE-
rrppEn

Bath, in aid of the prayer of John Hayden
and ais, for charter for a railroad iron
4 Portland to Bath. Referred to committee Of
Railroads, Ways and Bridges.
BY Mr.. O'BRIoN of York-Petition of Port
lard, Saco & Portsmouth Railroad Company
| for authority to locate, continue, operate ant
maintain railroad from Kittery to Biddeford
Referred to Committee on Railroads, Way
and Bridges.
BY MIR. MAY of STANDARDIZATION o
Hiram lockwood and IL others to re-anne,
certain islands in the Cobbosseecontee Lake
in Manchester, to the town OF Winthrop. Re
| ferred to committee on Division of Towns.
| BY Mr.. SAWYER of Washington--Petitior
of w. p. j. Cummings and others to buflt
and maintain fish weir in the town of AID
olson with accompanying bill. Referred tc
Committee on Fisheries.
By Mr.. DUNNING of Piscataquis-Petition
of w. +. jerks and 50 others, citizens OF
Brownville for amendment of section 3s,
chapter 40 of Revised Statutes relating to the
yearly closetime on fish; also of B. f. Man
ter and 43 others. citizens Of Milo, for same
purpose Referred to Committee on Fisheries.
House.
WEDNESDAY, Jan. 10.
Prayer by Rev. Mr.. PENNEY of Augusta.
Papers from the Senate disposed Of in con-
currence.
A communication was received from Hon.
T. B. Reed signifying his acceptance of the
office of Attorney General to which he had
been elected.
| The Speaker Joined to the Senate Commit
tee on Printing and Binding, the following
gentlemen:
Messrs. Webb, Foster of Bethel. Pike,
Humphrey of Bangor, Wilson Of Hallowell,
| g Iyor cpH nj
iston.
Bill an act to authorize the Little Andres
coggin Water Power Company to increase
its capital stock, and bill an act to incorpor-
ate the Lewiston Bleaching and Dyeing
Works, were read three times, and passed to
be engrossed under suspension OF the rules.
| On motion of Mr.. FOSTER of Bethel,
ORDERED, That the Secretary of State be
directed to furnish the Messenger of this
House, one copy of the Acts and Resolves of
1871, for the use of each member thereof
On motion of MIR. PORTER,
| ORDERED, That the Land Agent be re-
quested to communicate for the information
OF the House, the number of lots of land con-
veyed to actual settlers each year since
1860.
On motion of the same member,
ORDERED, That the Committee on State
|
into the expediency of providing by law, tina
no settler on the public land of the State shall
in any way dispose of his rights or better
ments before he receives his deed from thu
State.
Mr.. WYMAs from the Committee on Man
ufactures, reported ought to pass on bill al
act TO incorporate the Orono Wooden Manu-
featuring Company. Read and assigned.
PASSED TO BE ENACTED-An act to incor
porate the Lewiston Bleaching and Dyeing
Works.
Mr.. PERKINS of Pennington, presented the
following:
ORDERED, That a joint select committee o
one from each county, on the part of tn
House, with such as the Senate may join, b.
appointed, to which shall be referred all pc
titions and orders for amendments Of tn
State valuation Of 1870.
q Mr.. PORTER had no doubt but what injus
tice had been done in the valuation of tn
property of the State, but he questioned til,
legal right of the Legislature to increase tn
valuation already made, though it may hav
, right to decrease. He moved that the orde
be laid on the table.
, Mr.. CARLETON quoted the old MAXIM ''h
that creates can Destroy" and applied it l.
a the case under discussion. The Legislator
is the highest Court of the State, and ha
power to even take away chartered rights
If the Legislature has right to do this,
i certainly has right to correct errors in
4 State valuation. There was no doubt abou
it, and therefore the order should pass.
r Mr.. LEBRoKE had the highest respect 10
). the gentleman from Burlington, (Mr. Porter
and tor the legal proposition which he ad
. vaneed, but that would be a matter to submit
to the committee for consideration, and event
a ually, perhaps, for the Legislature. Grea
, dissatisfaction existed in his county in regar,
to the State valuation, but he believed tina
4 the valuation of the county should not b
lessened, yet he thought that more equitabl
n and just distribution of the burdens of taxa
q ton could and should be made in that coun
Q ty. As to the order going to the table, as
. matter of courtesy to the mover, he wa
happy to consent, but would like to be pres
ent when it was taken up. Without castin
t any reflection upon the Commissioners, h
would simply say the valuation was wrong
and being wrong he was of the opinion tina
1 the Legislature has right to correct
y wrong if it exists.
' Mr.. PERKINS OF Pennington said he pre-
. sented the order, because he held in his han
Il petitions for the correction of wrongs in tn
valuation. He had letter from the Count
n Commissioners of his county upon the mater
and which went to show that inequalitie
b. existed in the State valuation He hope
that the order would pass.
k Mr.. PERRY Of Oxford said his constituent
. had an interest in this matter. He had n
doubt that Legislature had right to correc
f the errors of former Legislature in matter
of this kind and he quoted from the Consti
d tuition in support of his assertion He quote
r from the Journal of the House for 1870 t
a show that the Legislature did not regard it a
. a correct valuation, and that it left 1t to sub
e sequent Legislatures to make the necessar
: corrections. The Legislature of last yea
attempted to set matters right, but did not al
ford that relief which was contemplated b
the legislature of 1870: therefore, he hope
the order would have a passage. 1t is a
4 much our duty to come here and correc
these errors as it is to correct any othe
errors. 1t is the very purpose for which W
, are sent here. There are towns in this Stat
which will never be satisfied until these mat
tiers are settled.
Mr.. PORTER was not opposed to an investi
CATION Of the valuation of 1870, for he kne,
something about it as he had somethn
to do with the appointment of tn
commission, and the towns were all over
estimated. Everything was in an uproa
here, but it went by, for the reason that the