Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1879-03-20


General Court made law against the prof
anation Of the Sabbath, and appointed
tythingmen to enforce the law. They wer,
commissioned as follows: "You are here
by required to take notice that you ar,
chosen to be a tthlng Aan to have inspec
ton into and look over those families thai
they attend the public worship of God, snc
do not break the Sabbath"
In 1916, the people were again called tc
vote on the question of "severlng tn con,
nection of Maine from Massachusetts. II
was well known that large mai ority favor.
ed the proposition. When the votes were
counted. IL was found that the yeas" had
majority OF l622 A convention assvn-
bled at Brunswick TO draft a constitution
when an unexpected strong opposition ap.
| peared and the General Court dissolved
| the convention. This was a remarkably
cold season, aud was long after Familiarity
| known as eighteen hundred and starve to
| death" Only in very favored localities
| did vegetation escape destructive frosts.
| Very many families 'well-to-do In the
world" were pushed to the very verge OF
| pauperism
| Attractive stories were told OF the mild
| climate and rich soils OF Ohio and thou
sands were seized with an insane desire to
emigratc which caused the "Ohio fever :
More than 10000, selling their property
tor song, left Maine for the Hat, aIluviai
plains OF Ohio, where, amid the malarious
atmosphere, whole families wllted down
with chills and fever
In 1919. another effort was made for
separation. The whole number Of votes
was 1901. or these, but 7.l32 were nays.
I Ia Hancock county the vote for and against
separation was nearly equal, the yeas lead
Ing 80 votes only, in total vote OF l.5Sl =,
/ This vote was given on the fourth Mon
/ day OF July. On the third Monday OF Sep
tember delegates to the Constitutional
/ Convention were chosen. The delegates
10 the Convention met ut the Court House
in Portland, for the purpose OF drafting a
constitution, on the lth Of October, 1919
Hon. william klng was chosen chairman {;
Robert Z. Vo>e, secretary aud Wm. b.
Peters, ant-at-arms The Committee
of Elections reported that the returns are
defective from the towns Of Ellsworth, Or
land, Anson, Mercer. Standish, Bethel.
Buckheld, Hope, Knox, and Rome aud re-
monstrances have been received against
delegates-elcct as follows: Against Sam
uel Neally returned from Monroe, samuel
Davis, from Gouldsborough, Henry Nor
ton. from New Portland. WIN. Vance from
Calais, aud Isaac I.lllcy, from Dresden,
and they further reported, that these sew
eral persons are entitled to their seats.
lac delegates from Hancock county, not
includtng what Is now Waldo county,
were.
Deer Isle Asa Green and Ignatus Has
B,uehlll, Andrew Witham.
lreuton, Pct.r HAYNES.
Sullivan, George kenmau.
Goudsborough, Samuel Davis.
Bucksport. Samuel Little.
Eden, Nicholas Thomas, Jr.
Orland lIoratio Mason.
Ellsworth, Marx Shepard
Castinc. William Abbot.
II was duly reported that the style and
title OF the new state, shall be The Com.
moH'csaih of Columbus" After long and
spirited debate thi, inconveniently long
name was rejected by a majority vote,
10 members voting III the negative and ll2
IN the affirmative. \ motion to amend
the Constitution by striking out the words
Great Legislator" aud substituting in-
stead, the words, Sovereign Ruler" pro-
voked a prolonged debate The use or the
werd sorereign was Objectionable to many.
The constitution, aS prepared by the
convention, was submitted 10 the people
with the following result in favor of its
adoption lO,S99 opposed, S73, Total vote
HE, OF which 1852 were rejected be-
cause not legally returned. BY the return
from Bncksport il did not appear that any
votes were given. The following towns
voted not to adopt the constitution Bib,
hill, Brooksville, Sedgwick, Kittery, Shap-
4f'-A anu r6ilDip1 anu ltJCClth. the It,
turns from Biddeford, Cornish, Limington.
Minot, Gushing, Friendship, Hope, Bucks
port, Eden Mcnroe, Trenton, Cherry field,
Columbia. Chesterville, Hallowell, Jay,
Malta, Readtield. Turner, Bingham, Fair
field, New Portland, New Vineyard, War
saw, Atkinson, New Charleston and Fox
croft.
The first Monday In December was the
day when the towns voted 10 adopt the
constitution On the first Wednesday of
January. 1920, application to Congress
was made for admission into the Union
The territory OF Missouri had applied for
admittance at the same time.
The act severing the connection of Maine
from Massachusetts was to 60 into effect
on the 18th OF March, after which time
Maine would be simply territory. But
an unexpected obstacle-that OF slavery
was in the way. Maine was refused ad-
mittance without rider" which rider,
was. that "slaves escaping into Maine or
Missouri. may be latefg,ly reclaimed aud re-
Conveyed 10 SlaueTy" All of the members
(76) from the Slave States, and IA from the
Free States 80 in all, with 81 opposed,
voted in favor of the wicked rider"
Weeks passed, weeks of acrimonious
struggle, during which the Southern sup
porters of slavery, and their Northern al
lies employed their characteristic crafti-
ness to admit Maine as a Slave State, or
not at all. Finally trade was made. The
notorious Missouri Comprorn Use was adopted
and on the goth OF March, 1920, the Dis
trict became the 22nd State of the Union.
The election for State Officers was held
on the first Monday of April. The Legis-
lature met at Portland, on the last We'd
nesday of May holding a session of 80
days.
Among the first acts of this session was
the adoption of a State seal. The moose
and the pine, were chosen for the central
| figures of the design. At one side sailor
and an anchor. on .he other side, a farmer