The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-08-19

4O7udy CuO ItutSA AiiOlio 1OdfO III AOAO az
an early hour. Their visit has been one of
pleasure to our people and we trust to them
selves also. The committee of citizens have
done all in their power to make their visit
success
[Kennebec Journal
GOV. Plaisted's Lame Defence.
The Bangor Commercial of August 10th
contained the following:
A DIsGRAcEFUL TRICK.
The following despatch appeared in the
Wing of this morning.
AUGUSTA, Aug. 10.
The Executive Council, pursuant to vote at their
last session. met here to-day. This particular date
was selected because $50 900 of the public debt
fell due to-day The Council took all the steps to-
in the absence Of the Governor Owing to Governor
Plaisted's refusal to meet the Council, warrant
can be drawn upon the report made by the Council,
and therefore no money can be taken from the
Treasury to meet the obligations of the State. To
prevent the State bonds from going protest Treas
with some banks in Boston to advance the $4,000
required to save the credit of the State.
That the members of the Executive Council
and the State Treasurer have been guilty of a
very disreputable trick, plain statement of
the facts in the case will be sufficient to clearly
prove.
When the State Treasurer has an instalment
of the debt to provide for, requiring the action
of the Governor and Council, it would seem to
be his plain duty to notify the Governor as
we'll as the Council of that fact.
The Governor was in Augusta three days
last week and saw the Treasurer. He was
there also the week before, but the Treasurer
said nothing to him of any business in his de-
partment coming before the Governor and
Council; nor has the Governor received any
communication from the Treasurer touching
this matter, or from the Secretary of State or
one of the Councillors.
The Governor saw Col. Robe, one of the
Councillors, in Portland last week Thursday,
and had long conversation with him. But
the Councillor did not tell him that part of
the State debt would fall due on the 18th. He
did say to the Governor that he hoped he
would be present at the meeting of the Council
as there might be matters of importance to be
attended to. The Governor said he had just
come from Augusta and he knew of nothing
calling for immediate action and there was
nothing in the Executive box' in the Secre-
tary of States office.
The Councillor said: ssThe State Treasurer
may have something. You had better see
him." The Governor replied: "If the State
Treasurer has matters of public business of i'm
portance, as you intimate, and is concealing
them from the Governor, he must take the
responsibility
Let it be borne in mind that when the Coun-
Gil fixed upon day for reassembling after
their adjournment by the Governor, the date
selected by them was the 18th of August
The changing of the date to the 18th was the
result of an afterthought, based upon secret in
formation conveyed to them by the Treasurer
and concealed by him from the Governor.
and in pursuance of a conspiracy cooked up
between them, to place the Governor in the
attitude Of refusing to provide for the pay
ment of a maturing debt and thus endanger-
ing the credit of the State.
We learn, also, at the meeting of the Con-
spirators' Council yesterday, there were but
three OF the seven present, SO that had the
Governor been in attendance at the meeting
no business could have been transacted.
With the facts as above stated in their pos
session, the people will judge for themselves
as to where the responsibility rests for this dis
graceful trifiing with the credit of the State.
If these gentlemen of the Council and the
State officers engaged in this disreptuable
scheme do not find its results disastrous to
them, we are mistaken in the character of the
people OF Maine.
Yesterday reporter of the Kennebec Jour
nal had an interview with State Treasurer
Holbrook in regard to the statements in the
above concerning himself, the substance of
which is as follows
ton in the article in the Bangor Commercial
of the 10Th inst. that the Executive Council
and the State Treasurer played a trick upon
the Governor in relation to the State debt
winch came que on Ul0 10GlI
Mr.. H.-None whatever. The charge is
entirely groundless. I had no communication
with the Executive Council in regard to the
bonds coming due, before the 18th, except in
the usual unofficial way. 1 did casually mention
to Col. Robe one day as met him in bank
at Portland word about the bonds, but that
was all 1 ever said to any member of the
Council abou the matter. 1t is utterly false
and absurd to charge that trick was played
upon the Governor. / have never considered
vt,n ~ ~
affairs that be did not know when those bonds
became due, and whoever invented the idea
that trick was played upon him by pre-
Stunning upon his ignorance in the matter,
places the Governor in very unefviable
light before the people of this State. The
charge resolves itself into a charge of gross
ignorance against the Governor, for how
could such trick as is mentioned in the Com
| mercial succeed against him unless he was
grossly ignorant OF the most important finan-
cial affairs of the State?
R.--You made q remark about communica-
ting with the Governor and Council in regard
to the bonds in the usual official way, will you
please explain what is meant by this?
Mr.. HI mean to be understood that
| made the usual application to the Governor
and Council, in this case, as in other similar
cases, for warrant to pay the bonds. My
application may be found in the Secretary of
States office" THE application is as follows:]
STATE OF MAINE.
TREAsURER's OFFICE,
Augusta, Aug. 10, 1881.
TO the Honora6te Governor and Council:
Please draw warrant in my favor for the sum of
State of Maine Bonds, maturing Aug. Is, 1881,
and charge the same to the appropriation made for
the payment of Public Debt.
S.A HoLBRooK,
State Treasurer.
My application was made on the 10th, five
days before the meeting of the Executive
Council. 1t was placed in the Executive box
Al Co. - &1g- o&1- -
which communications for the Governor and
| Council and to which they always have free
| access, are placed. It was put in the box in
the morning of the day it was written, and
| achite Gen. Plaisted acas IN the State House.
| 1t was the only notice the Council had from
| me concerning the bonds, and it was as much
| notice to the Governor as to them. The no.
| tce was ample as to time, for the Legislature
had provided the means to pay the bonds, and
there was nothing to be done but for me to
make application to the Governor and Council
and they to pass upon the demand and sign the
| necessary warrant. These are all the essential
facts in connection with the matter.
| Thanking State Treasurer Holbrook for his
| courtesy, the reporter of the Journal next pro-
| ceeded to the Secretary of States office to as
certain, if he could, whether there was any
| truth in the assertion in the Commercial that
the Council adjourned to the 18th but after
wards changed the time to the 18th. This
| changing the date, as stated in the CONNER
cial, was, it will be noticed, link in the al
| legged great conspiracy against Gov. Plaisted to
| keep him ignorant of the day the bonds fell
due-a fact upon which the State Treasurer's
annual report fully informed him.
Upon examining the record of the Council
the following entry appeared, written in ink,
| in good bold hand, without blot or erasure:
"On motion of Mr.. Wilson, the Council ad-
iourned to meet Monday, August 18th next, at
| 4 o'clock in the afternoon"
Some of the newspapers got the date wrong
from an error in the type of the Kennebec
Journal, making it the 18th, but the Council
record gives the 18th as the date to which the
Council adjourned. So this link of the great
/ QOnspiracv is Dissolved.