The Portland daily press., 1881-02-19
AUGUSTA.
Continuation of the Insane
Hospital Investigation.
SWAN TO BE EXPELLED
FROM THE HOUSE.
Debt of the State Prison to be Paid.
Especial Despatch to the Press.l

Especial Despatch to the Press.
AUGUSTA Feb. IS.
The bill relating to civil actions in behalf of
the State, which has passed the Senate and
will go through the House, provides that any
action in behalf of the State to enforce the COL
lection of any State taxes upon any corpora
ton, or to recover any damages due the State,
may be brought in any county.
The bill reported relating to the Clerks CT
the Supreme Judicial court provides that they
shall make extended records of proceedings in
court, in all actions contested by an issue Joined
before the court or jury in actions of howage,
cases in equity, real actions, libes for divorce,
petitions for partition, petitions to enforce
liens, and actions upon mortgage.
The report of the Fishery committee giving
leave to withdraw to the petitioners who want
ed to prohibit the taking of mackerel with
seines within the jurisdiction of the State was
accompanied by minority report that prohib-
its the taking of mackerel in all bays, harbors
and inlets and rivers where the entrance is not
more than two nautical miles in width under
a penalty of not less than 800, nor more than
$500, with lien on vessels or steamers or ap-
paratus used unlawfully. 1t provides that
net for meshing mackerel of not more than one
hundred meshes in depth shall not be deemed
seine.
A resolve was presented to-day relating to
procuring and finishing the set of lithograph
maps of the northwestern boundary of our
State 1t provides that as but $50 of the $150
appropriated for this purpose last winter, has
been expended, the balance shall be again ap-
propriated for this purpose that full set of
maps may be deposited in the State library.
The committee have reopened the matter of
appropriation for the Agricultural College, and
have now decided to appropriate $2500 for the
year 1881, and $1,000 for 1882.
The State prison committee will report an
appropriation of $4,000 to extinguish the debt
of that institution. and also an appropriation
OF $1,000 to pay the interest on these liabilities
for which the State is paying per cent An
appropriation of 5000 will also be reported for
school books and the library.
The order of inquiry passed by the House to-
day looking to a different method of taking
the State valuation will be the means of bring
ing before the Legal Affairs committee, to
which it was referred, bill providing for
State board of equalization, similar to that in
New Hampshire. The duties of this board
will be to assess the taxes upon all the railroad.
telegraph and express companies in the State,
and to perform all the duties of valuation
commission.
The total cost of the valuation commission
to the State will not exceed $4,000. This
amount covers the pay of members of the COM
mission, sixteen in number, and also all clerk
hire and compensation of messenger and jani-
tor. The total cost of the valuation commits
sion ten years ago, which numbered seven
members and several clerks, was some $4,000.
The hearing of witnesses in the Insane Hos
pital investigation was continued to late hour
tonight. Charles Crowell and Timothy Far
rington, discharged attendants, testified to one
or two cases of "churning'' patients-that is,
kicking, cutting and choking them. The lat
ter testified to the lodge where violent insane
men were kept, being freezing cold, and men
with but little clothes, one sleeping there on
straw. This was in confirmation of the testi-
mony of a previous witness.
The investigation will be continued to-mor-
row afternoon.
The committee to investigate the charges of
final meeting tonight. j. F. Knight of Ep-
ping, N. H, one of the victims of the corn
shelter and knife-sharpener fraud, was exam
ned
o. W. Hawkes., Swans father-in-law, and
John Richardson, Selectman of Minot. also
appeared and showed that Swans indebted
ness to the town of Minot was $1,618.8O. The
committee voted unanimously that the swind-
ling charges were fully sustained, and besides
this that Swan is an embezzler of the towns
funds. They will report, recommending his
expulsion from the House.