Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1878-02-12
NO. 81.
Remarks of Mr.. CUrran of calais.

| Mr. SPEAKER.-As my friend from Milford has
expressed some sentiments In which | heartily
concur aud as have informed myself at the hear
iugs and by Inyestg CATION, of some facts connect
Ell with this matter, for his sake and for the sake
| OF many other members who desire to know the
| iacts, will state them as briefly possible. If
mistake anything | trust the opponents of this
| JIll Will not hesitate to correct me.
| The gentleman from Thomastou, (Moore) has
III tnat the passage of this bill would be the cre-
| alton Of "a one man power" and a great mauy
| personalities nave been dragged into this discus
on along witl political paitisan considers ations
| neither ot which should influence action. 1t
| Is not an uncommon occurrence for communities
| Jt people 10 ask for an act like this precisely as
| these petitioners have done, and it is a common
| event for legislatures to incorporate towns the
| ,oi OF which is entirely owned by one man. for
| nave here list OF six towns Incorporated in the
| past few years under just such circumstances. In
| nearly every legislature whose doings have fol-
| lowed have noticed acts of incorpor alton some
umes Tor school and at other tunes for election
purroseN, of c"mm N ties sstt ed upon townships
| and II C, owned wholly b. man.
IL l. not done lu ANY Case 50 mucu for the own
of the soil as tor the benefit of those living up
| on 1t, for wherever men live, whether upon their
own aud or that of another, they must have laws
| 10 soyern them and forms OF governme Mt and Off
| cials chosen by them, to conduct their common
| lHnrs and conserve their common interests. As
| the gentleman fom Ihomaston remarked, the
town government Is an old institution. l need
not enter inlo dttsiled statement of its purposes
aud the principles upon which is based, for every
man knows that ii Is out larger form of that still
| older Institution which we call q family. As a
| iamlly a number of individuals having common
sot ial, domestic and business interests so a town
Is but lumber oi famies, greater or less, having
ike int, rests IN common.
| The mOst important point Is that there should
| be, 10 considerable extent at least, such iden-
tty of interests and pursuits and such a similarity
| OF circumstances that tue general affairs of citi-
zens can be hsrmoniously controlled under
| general management, so that each Individual may
| receive u lar share oI the benefits Tor which he
| pays taxes and no no ole may be unduly taxed
tor the beueht of his fellow citizens
| And now let US see what the facts as to
| these people who live on hurricane Island and
| who AK TO constitute a town bv themselves. This
| lslano has long been part of the town of Vinal-
| haven. ln 1870 1t was not inhabited to any great
extent, and the people living there were so few in
number and their business 50 unmpoitant that they
| needed government OF their own. But since
| that time Gen. Illson has developed there a large
| granite business in which thousands upon thous-
| ands of dollars have been invested The granite
business with Us, Is yet but IN its infancy. IL is
one Of the great industries 10 winch Name must
| look Tor It's future prosperity 1t Is business for
which this State has greater facilities, for which
| nature has endowed her more richly by far than
| aty other section. Ont of the barren rocks and
GRAM hInls, men have begun to gather tremendous
| fortunes, and those who engaged in the pro-
motion of this Industry are doing great service
TO the State as well as to themselves, for they
making valuable that which was worthless, are
adding largely TO the taxable property of the
| State and furnishing new employ ment Tor labor.
such men are emitted 10 our encouragement and
protection, and the interest Of every man in Maine
demands that We shall not require any of them to
bear unjust or unfair burdens.
| Hurricane Island, which six years ago
naked rock washed by the ocean, four miles of
which stretch their waves between the island and
the other portions Of the town of Vinahaven is,
to-day, sceue of bustling activity where the in
dustry and ingenuity of men have planted com
| munuy lager than the population IN each of for
| y dlH reut towus IN this etae, and where out of
| the before valutless rock pen nave hewn a taxa
bic valuation Of $50 900 which also is greater than
the valuation Of any one of over fifty other towns
| III Maine. The permanent population OF the
island j. 800, AID at tunes it Is much larger There
are ll9 ,choO children. l05 polls AMI the island
people pay TAX Gu $4,000 cf property. Ii gen.
tie men have any doubt to whether this island
| has sufficient population and valuation to warrant
its Incorporation a town, they will readily see by
| consulting tue Year Books IN their desks that in
both these respects it is far al cad of over forty
towns which are already Incorporated.
Such has bee II the grow Of hurricane Island in
the las seven year nd though d sire to avo any
consideration OF persons IA the discussion L cannot
refrain from saying that / wish Gen. Tlllson or the
| 'Oue man power dreaded by my filend from
| IhomHstou would 20 INTO every village and town
| IN the State, and carry on its netarous and mslien
| work, II the results are the as they have
| been ON this Island.
Now what Is the situation of the people on this
| island and what their connections with and rela-
tons to the toW OF Nualhaven from which they
ask to be set aparti The settlement of the town
i Mt what is cal ed CarveIs Harbor. 10 reach
this poiut citizens of tue l,laud must 90 nearly
four miles III open boats, and it is admitted that
the water Is often 80 rough that such a voyage is
peilous If Rot impossible The Island people pay
about $1,000 a year their part of tue tax OF
Vinalhayen he town has It's schools, fire de-
partmenl, police, so dlers monument and all the
ntsi t.N4Fn Vallx haxra aal
these sre at CaIver's HaIbor aHd have been part
ly paid Tor by the tax payers Of the Isand.
Now will aUy one lell me how the children on
| the Island are to get across four miles of ocean to
| attend school : Will any one tell me how the fire
engines will get over these four miles of water to
| put out fire. the Island And this difficulty
exists relation to ali the interests Of these peo
lie. These four miles OF water stretch out an To-
sutmounta5le obstacle in the way of the islanders
receiving any benefits from the streets, schools,
ile department any other OF the institutions OF
| lnalhaven, which tue Islanders are compelled to
help pay. They pay $1,000 Il year and II Is ad
mited that all they get IL return Is about $500
| worth Of schools per year. Thus they contribute
| annually 500 TO the town of Ninalhaven for
which, the very nature Of things they cannot
receive any benefit, in return. Even admitting
that this comes solely out of Gen. Till,on, ask
is it fair that he should thus be compelled to
tribute to the support of other people
am opposed 10 the division Of towns as a rule,
but am not iu favor OF esisating in opposition
TO tue hNt0 facts Ut nature, and 10 TINS Case the
| Almighty has divided this island from the rest of
| Nmalhaven so ehectually that for all the purposes
| of town governments 1t might as well be at the
| North Pole The people OF the Island have not
and eAnnot have any social or business relations
with Nlnallasen. They have no interests IN COM
mon aud so divided tney that letter from
Carver's IIa bor one part Of Vinalhaven in order
to reach TINS island which Is part of the same
town, has to be sent from the Harbor away off to
| Rock aud and from th,re to The Island. These
are some of the facts, and to my mind they con-
| Itue as clear case can be imagined why the
town should be divided IN law as 1t is in fact in
nature aud in business interests. The gentleman
from Ihomaston virtually comedies this, for he
bases his opposition 10 this BID not upon any dis
pule OF the facts have given nor upon any de-
bial of their perunenCy to the Issue, but solely
aud entirely upon the cry that it creates ''one
man power, and that it Is SIN direct opposition
and dangerous to republican institutions TO incor-
pOrate towns whose territory is all owned by one
mau.'
Why, sir, he apparently iorgets that the very
ba is OF our republican institutions IS that every
individual shall have his rights, that he shall not
be taxed for benefits he Cannot receive, or in the
old phrase If revolutionary times, THAT taxation
without representation Is tyranny, suppose no
man but Geu. Tllson had any property or rights