The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-09-23
THE POLAND SPRING ROAD.
Hearing Before the County Commits
sioners of Cumberland and
Androscoggin Counties.

A hearing on the question of locating the
road from Danville Junction to the Poland
Spring House was given by the County Com
missioners of Androscoggin and Cumber-
land counties, at the county building in Au-
burn, Wednesday,
Among new features in this interesting
case was petition signed by 43 Portland
business firms, asking for the location of the
road This petition was presented by Hiram
Knowlton, Esq, of Portland, swho remarked
that although the signatures of the firms on
the petition represented over SIS, 600 worth
of the taxable property of Portland he had
no doubt that without any difficulty fully
twice as many more of the business firms of
Portland could be induced to sign the petl-
tion. 1t is a subject OF common desire In
that CITY,
At the hearing several of the interested
parties were present, including the se.ect-
men of New Gloucester and Poland, and city
authorities of Auburn. Mayor Haskell was
present and a large number Of spectators.
The interests of Auburn were represented
in remonstrance. by City Solicitor John A.
Morrill,, who presented Auburn's reasons for
opposing the location of the road The cost
of building this road would be fully $225O for
New Gloucester and So, $50 for Auburn. Au-
burn has no desire to hamper the enterprise
or retard the progress of the proprietors OF
the thriving summer resort of PolandSpring,
but when it comes to the point of saying
that it should help locate and build this road
it is asking too much. Mr.. Morrill, read a
letter from Clarence Hale, ESD, Of Port
land, who represents the town OF New
Gloucester, the tenor OF Whlch was tha5
New Gloucester is still unalterably opposed
to the location of the road. Mr. Morrlli re-
ferred to the springing up of sort OF care
fully nursed expression of sentiment through
the newspapers in the State and outside the
State that the road should be built, and so he
thought that as a supplement, that the
petition had just been presented before
the board.
He said that he felt like repeating to Mr..
Bolster the retort that Mr. Bolster had made
to him when he himself had presented pc,
tition of remonstrance. viz, that you could
get folks to sign petition to hang a man
provided it didn't cost anything. Mr.. Morrill,
said that it was not as though travellers from
Danville junction to Poland Spring had no
road at all. They had road which the Po-
land Spring folks say is long and hilly. He
briefly referred to Auburn's Willingness to re-
pair and keep in repair, and improve and
keep improving all of the existing roads that
convene the Poland Spring folks, and said
that the city had even passed an order and
made an appropriation to fix the Turkey
Lane road for the benefit OF the Poland
Spring folks. In BRIEF he argued that no
public convenience would be better sub
served by tine location of a road from Dan
vile junction to Poland Spring.
j. M. Libby, esq.,, in behalf of the town OF
Poland, said that he only wished to say that
the position of the town was the same as 1t
had been at the last meeting.
w. W. Bolster, esq, in behalf OF the pro-
prietors of Poland Spring reviewed the ne
cessity of the uew road. The old road is sew
en- miles, and hard. rough and hilly. The new
road will be five miles and of easy grades. 1t
was but justice to the institution and to peo-
pie from all over the United States that the
road be located and built. Auburn has never
this would not be such.
Judge Wing, of Auburn, called attention TO
the fact that newspapers represented public
opinion and that the expressions made OF late
showed the drift of public sentiment and he
had no doubt that if the question was submit
ted TO the people of Auburn they would vote
to build the road. He believed that, solely
in view of the increased railroad facilities
on this back route" they would vote
for it. 1t don't make any difference, he
Rickers may be to build this road, even to
the extent of building it out of their own
pockets since they can't get authority to
build it, or can't get right of way except
through the county commissioners. There
is only one way that private property can be
taken, and that is for the. public good. One
man owning a piece of land right in the
middle of the proposed roadway might
block Mr.. Kicker. The road can be located
only by the courts or county commissioners,
and for one he hoped that the road would be
laid out.
The public session was over at eleven. e
county commissioners of both count
liberated until noon and then ad~
journed until afternoon and continue
their deliberations, The decisio
was reached by the Androscoggin Count
Commissioners at 4.15 They decided to meet
at Danville Junction, October 18th, at 10 a.
m, to locate the road from the private way
to the hotel road, provided that the decisions
of the Supreme Court will allow such loca-
ton.