The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-03-19
AUGUSTA.
FINAL ADJOURNMENT OF
THE LEGISLATURE.
The Apportionment Bill Vetoed
by the Governor.
AN EXTRA SESSION PROBABLY NEG
ESSARY
Special to the Press

est since 1870, when the session was seventy
nine days. The amount of business transacted
is third more than last year. The appropria-
lions made at this session for 1881 amount to
So 4S2, 49, and for 1882 to 81 ,1O6 052 &c. The
military expenses of the State have been re-
stricted to $4,000 annually. $4,000 has been
appropriated for the Reform School for 1881
and $4,000 for 1882 $4,000 to the State
prison. The State tax was fixed at Al mills for
each of the years 1881 and 1882 on valuation
of 1926, 97S, ZIG, which makes the tax for each
year 81, O63, 4O9.91. The State Treasurer has
been authorized to procure, if he deems it nee.
essary, two temporary loans of 100000 each.
[ A very full digest of the laws passed will be
found on our first page
There were a larger number of measures
than usual that were unfavorably considered.
and which were consigned to the legislative
cemetery for such matters. Among such the
following propositions constitute some of the
most important ;-Reviving the death penalty;
abolishing the Executive Council and subst
tuting State Auditor; rendering women eli
gible to any office; limiting investments OF
funds of State companies in we'll known local
securities and forbidding the loaning of money
on names alone; relating TO the employment of
persons more than ten hours each day; passing
general law for the formation of telegraph
companies; for legislation to prevent double
taxation; for bounty on foxes, squirrels and
hawks; abolishing the office of town agents;
amending the game laws so that the open time
for moose, deer and caribou shall be from
Sept LIST to Dec. 1st exempting private libra
les from taxation; amending the law relating to
notes given for patent rights prohibiting nom
residents from selling fruit trees in Maine; en-
larging the powers of the fish commissioners;
requiring insurance companies in case of loss
to pay full amount of risk; changing the day
of election from September to the Tuesday
next after the first Monday in November; pro-
viding for the execution of any convict under
sentence of Imprisonment for life who shall
kill any person in the State; regulating
the mackerel fishery on the coast; restoring
the salaries of the Judges of the Superior
Court of Cumberland and Kennebec counties;
restoring the annual sessions of the Legisla-
ture; authorizing the town of Harpswell to
build bridge from Bailey's Island to Orrs Is
tiers; altering the divorce laws; chartering
State banks VETOED by the Governor); taxing
insurance companies establishing State board
of equalization; division of Rockland; repeal
ing the cider and constabulary laws; submit
ting prohibition amendment to the Constitu-
ton; to limit dividends of savings banks to 4
per cent
The Legislature adjourned at midnight.
There were passed during the session 26O acts
passed that the Governor failed to sign. The
act relating to increasing the salary of the de-
putty clerk of Cumberland county has become
a law without the Governors approval, it hav-
ing been in his possession over five days, or
since March 10th.
At late hour in the afternoon, or when the
Legislature was ready to adjourn finally, and
there had been appointed the usual committee
to wait on the Governor and inform him of the
fact, Mr.. Keegan, the junior member from
Van Buren,, who of late has appeared to be
confdant of the Governors, came into the
House and from his lips the fact was at once
disclosed that the resolve providing for the
legislative apportionment was to be vetoed,
and the veto would soon be sent in,
This report was hardly put in circulation
when there was a movement in the House
among members and others on the floor toward
the Senate, as it was made known that Secre-
tary of State Smith was bearing the veto to
that Chamber.
The veto when read by Gen. Tilden, Secre-
tary of the Senate, caused but little or no sur
prise, as it had been looked for. The Fusionist,
appeared to enjoy its reading highly, and one
of them said, "Now we've got Governor you
can't drive
The following is the message of Governor
Plaisted:
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT,
Augusta, March Is, 1881.
To the Honorable the President Of the Senate:
I return herewith resolve to apportion the
State for Senators to the Legislature; also re-
solve entitled. "resolve to apportion Isl Repre-
sentatives among the several counties, cities,
towns, plantations and classes in the State of
Maine," being unable to give the same my Of
fetal approval.
ton, provides that "the Legislature shall with
in every period of at most ten years, and at
least five, cause the number of inhabitants of
the State to be ascertained, erctusiUe of for
eigners not naturaliZed and Indians not tdced.
The number of representatives shall az the
several periods of making such enumeration,
be fixed and apportioned among the several
counties as near as may be, according to the
number of inhabitants, having regard to the
relative increase of population
The only basis OF representation contem-
plated by the constitution in this "enumera-
ton" of the Inhabitants on the State twas
exclusive of foreigners not naturalized and In
dams not taxed.
The apportionment provided for in the re-
solve of the number of representatives to the
several counties is not based upon the inhabi-
tants thereof eCcluSiUeof foreigners not natural
lied and Indians not taxed, /" but inclusive of
both classes. In this respect therefore, the
resolve, as 1t seems to me, after such reflection
as have been able to give to it, is not in &C
cordance with the fundamental law.
In the division of the State into Senatorial
districts the constitution provides that, ''the
districts shall conform as near as may be to
county lines and be app0rtiOned according to
the number Of Inhabitants"
1t is within the discretion of the legislature,
therefore, to disregard county lines and it is its
duty so to DO when an adherence to county
lines would defeat this primary object of the
constitution, viz that 1.-THE districts shall
be apportioned according to the number of in
habitants;" conformation of the districts 'sas
near as may be to county lines, is secondary
object
tricts are not fairly "apportioned according
to the number of Inhabitants" but arbitrarily,
according to county lines. For instance, Pts
cataquis county with Il, 1878 inhabitants is en-
titled to elect one Senator. while Waldo with
over $1,000, is entitled to elect but one: and so
of Somerset with over $4,000 inhabitants,
while Oxford county with only 100 more in
habitants than Waldo, is entitled by the re-
solve to elect two Senators. Again, Somerset
and Waldo, with an aggregate population of
Ga, S07, are given but two Senators, while Ken
nebec with only 53,061 is given three Senator'S
In the apportionment of representatives to
cities the cities are given larger representa-
tion than, as it seem to me, they are entitled
to under the plain provisions of the constitu-
tion at the expense of the towns. In some in
stances the apportionment seems entirely ar
bitrary. Saco, with a population of 6,396, for
instance, is given two representatives, while
Biddeford with 1852 is accorded the same
number.
The classification of towns is equally arbi-
trary unfair, uni ust and, as it seems to me, I'M
duly partisan.
recommend that the existing apportionment
and classification be by resolve extended until
January 1, 1888, and that provision be made
for ascertaining in the meantime the number
of foreigners not naturalized
and Indians not taxed
Therefore, Withholding my approval of the
resolves, return tle same to the House in
ol, ol~.