Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1889-02-07
csneIu he the contract With the Booshbsy

csnclu ie the contract With the Boothbay
Water Company"
There xas the committee authorized BY
the tssB Of Booshbay 70 contract for water.
Al the annual town meeting held the follow
ing March there vas an article inserted in
the warrant ito see what sum the town will
vote TO raise, 10 pay wachman st Booth
by HzTbSr the ensuing year" AID this was
''so.ed 20 dismiss-" A special town meet
ing vas called May I. isss BY the seleetmen
and the following article inserted in the tow
warrant:
To see If the town viii vote to instruct
the seleetmen 20 protect the interest of the
Town sgains; the Illegal contract that has
been made b. the committee that vas elect
ed BY the town at a special meeting May rs.
1885,, To contract With the Boothbay Water
company. and authorize them 70 h~se IN in
lHnetion .erved upon any company that may
undertake to put in water plant whereby
tile town may be liable"
Mr.. Tt.toa vent on 10 say that committee
consisting OF Thomas Boyd and J. z. Kelley
Nas appointed 10 take all the evidence ant
papers Ia regard to the contract made With
the B0othbsy Water Co. and lay il before
justice Of the Supreme Court. Justice
while there were some dis :repancies, and In
one or two Eases the committee oser-reaeted
the contract. that these improprieties or over
readings might be legalized by the vote Of
the town. Mr. Tilron showed that the to 80
ha not svaled itself of this power. He
thus reviewed the action of all the town
msetings and drew as a conclusion the fact
ihaL the town as q whole was opposed to the
Introduction Of a alter supply. He showed
that by the proposed line of division the old
town would still contain the town house and
lot. hescse house and lot, town com
mon, town farm, soldiers monument,
road machine and much other pro-
pefty, 80 tia, division would not be inequit-
able on the score of depriving the old town
a its property. He said in closing: Mr.
Speaker, / will not detain you longer. l
hope that We shall act like men. There will
be various statements made doubtless upon
the other side. nat let US, as said at the out
set. carefully consider that these petitioners
come here with no mythical idea in their
heads, hut from actual knowledge and ex-
perienee they knos what they want. Then
let Us see TO it that We answer the prayer of
these petitioners and let the captives 90
free"
Mr.. Cloutier Of Lewiston moved that the
House take recess until two O'Clock 2. ~,
as the discussion would probably continue
for some time.
! The motion was put and lost.
Mr. Cloutier said that he wanted to say
few words on this Boo,hbsy question and he
you'd say them before he got too
hungry This appeared to him to be
family quarrel. We have law in
this State which provides that if a man and
his wife cant agree TO live together they may
apply for divorce. That applies to the
town of Boothbay. They were applying for
divorce Some four or five years ago he
had sailed around the coast of Boothbay, and
he a great fish come out of the water
about ten OF twelve feet in length. He
asked the bostman what it was and he told
h IN that it was a shark. He thought that
Boothosy village had two kinds of sharks to
contend with. They fight the sea sharks on
the one side and the land sharks on the 9TH
pr. Tie had asked one of the remonstrAnts
why be was opposed to division and the lat
ter had replied: "Oh well, because we
ought To stay together. He said We'll
isn't it because you want to get the taxes
since they are paying sixty per cent of the
taxes AMI you can outvote them two to one ?"
! lie answered. Well. of course we don't
care a d--n whether the village goes or
/ not
/ Now, Mr.. Speaker" he continued. the
man that uses such language as that, If you
wouldn't call him a shark would surely
call him sucker" Laughter You
separate this little village from these land
( marks and by. and by Boothbay will be one
Of our prettiest little cities II will be the
city not the village of Boothbay."
Mr.. Closson said that he had studied this
question candidly and impartially and be-
! lieved that it merited the full and candid
consideration of the House. 1t was his con-
,iction thai as they were there to perform
acts that would benefit the people they
could not conscientiously refuse the prayer
Of he petitioners. He doubted if there was
u member who could cite an instance where
town had been divided that it had pettioned
, to be again united. Al the last legislature
they had set of the little
town of Randolph and the
I Lewiston Journal truly said last summer that
( the legislature of 1897 had not performed an
act that they need feel more proud of than
in setting off the little town of Randolph
from the town of Plttston. Since the dlvis-
ion they had Introduced water works for fire
protection and domestic purposes unexcelled
/ by any town in Maine. One of the select
uen If r'ttston who had opposed the divis-
ion with all the energy he possessed after
ward said that he was glad that the dvs sion
had been made, thought it better for both
towns, and did not believe that tsenty voters
could be found ia the town of Pittston that
would vote to join the town again He
could not s.e hos in the division of this town
they were going 10 do any injury or INF tice
to the old to- of Bnothbay but believed
that they would help the new town of Booth
bay llarhor very much by granting the d.
vision.
Mr. Race Of Bo- thbay said that while he
WAS Interested in this question and deeply so.
he bad taken no active part for or against
division until the matter came properly to
thst stage in its progress where he could
do so. After looking at the question in all
IFS bearings he had come to the conclu ion
that it would be disastrous to divide the
town by the proposed line or any line. The
petitioners represent considerably less than
One-third of the property of that town. The
two-thrds of the voters demonstrating
sgainst the division have rights that are to be
respected. One of the pettionists stated
before the committee that the moment the
town was divided he should consider his
property north of the proposed line would be
worth % per cen, more than it is now. This
't'i''aiy We" "aS thmpie VI
the other golden visions. Division can't add
to the real value of the property. Division
would disturb their school system, which had
been arranged with much pains and care.
The burdens of maintaining the highways and
bridges would be largely thrown upon the
old town. He was at loss to know what
claims could be justly made by Boothbay
village that East Boothbay cannot make
with equal propriety. 1t might be very true
that the village needs water
supply. auj he knew whereof he spoke
when he said the large majority of the voters
of that town are willing to help them to such
a supply in a proper and legal manner The
whole conflict has been over the LEGALITY of
a certain contract. The town officers had
tried to do their duty and prevent an
Illegal contract. Tney sought and obtained
the best legal advice they could get, AMI be-
cause that advice was rot in accord with the
wishes OF a certain few who have no better
claims to being the friends of progress and
enterprise than many others in that town,
they threw up their hands and raised the
cry, 1--WE will divide the town. and they
have resorted TO every means, fair or other
wise to do so. There is no town in all the
State that could not show as much reason
Tor division as has been shown by the petit
TONERS. aud many of them could show more
and .trpuger reasnps Mr. Race said in