Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1889-01-28
FORENSIC CLOSE
OF the Boothbay Hearing.
Arguments of the Eloquent Counsel.

q long time considering the question. hsvinI
begun Oh Monday, and having sat two lanl
sessions each day until to day daring that time
htile more exercise of patience on you
part aud we will relieve you and leave tn.
question in your hands. In approaching tn,
question of the division of the tow n. il II
perhaps not improper for me 10 state what
understand the power of the legislature {,
be. understand the power Of the les.sls
iurv 10 control the towns Ant
counties To be absolute. They can make
new town, divide an old town, put parts OF
two or more towns together, and carve up
count. il they see fit Their power
is unlimited in that direction. But
the question always came. addressed tc
the members of the legislature, la there AZ
occasion TO make any changer when pc
tiiioners came before them to present claim
for division TO be made, That 10 the very
| question which YOU are to consider, IL | un'
presumption 10 stand here, gentlemen. and
instruct yoa in your duty. l hope that M
remark make will be construed in that way
by any member Of this committee for . mo
ment, assume that you know what your
duty Is. Now we have In this case Just what
! has alsays come into every other case within
my observation, where the question of di-
vi-iua Of town or Of a county 10 under con.
s,del 4tion. The very first witness introduced
h' the remonstrants. was criticised long,
Questioned sharply, upon the question of
tn imaginary line. What the efec,
wuA.d be--if he thought il would be
al insuperable obstruction. but | don't
suppose that any body for a moment ever
looks at an imaginary line as an obstruc, ON to
passing over il. That isn't the point at all.
ln case of the division of this town We
shouldn't expect any distractions that We
couldn't pass over. hut there is n line there
nevertheless that is recognized as dividing
line by the Law. There is only an imaginary
line between our State and Canada. II
doesn't trouble US any when We 20 over il on
steel rails. We don't perceive any differ
euce when we pass from one territory 10 the
other but there 10 difference nevertheless
We are under one form OF goverumeu and
the other 10 under another aud an entirely
different government, SO in the case of
the division oftow1s there are tive municipal
ties there are two town governments, and
the moment, Mr., Chairman and gentlemen,
that you have that element introduced, as IL
seems to me, that moment the interests of
the people are divided What do the peo-
pie of Boothbay care for what they are
doing or failing 10 do In any adjoining town.
Whas does the city of Augusta care what
the municipality of the city Of liallowell is
doipgt They are two separate and distinct
governments each managing itself and an
imaginary line established by act of the
Legislature establishes that difference to
start with and ii continues Just so long AS
that imaginary line, about which my brother
was so facetious. exists. Now, while the
mn nj n n .sft in il "A wh
shall come to later there ~as something
raid about taxation, with an effort to lead
YOU to the belief that. that taxa
ton was an unjust discrimina
ton sgainst that part of the town that IL now
asking TO be set of, or portion Of II. with
the people upon that territory. Not all. for
right upon that territory there are I5O If We
can count, and Mr. Green, the man of figures,
admits lt9 Let us give them the benefit of
the doubt, ,--l+9 that say they don't want their
| connection with the old town as II now exists
severed. We have been fortunate enough in
the case of Mr.. Moody. Mr.. Knight and Mr.,
Iiussey to find what estimate they put upon
the value of their property One of the AS
SCISSORS of that town has told this committee
| what value they put upon il, and that the basis
| of taxation which they adopted was 10 give a
| fair cash value at forced sale, and you take
| that property and contrast IL with the value
which the assessors have put upon it, and
they have at least forty per 'ent more accord
| ing to their estimate, than the assessors found
and assessed wBeD they made up tn,
| valuation. Then they talked about the aid
| for hotel. Well, said 10 you gentlemen
in the opening. that IL the town wants t,
build hotel, perhaps it can; If it wants Il
build it as municipality and run it perhap
it can. ! don't believe 1t can. You know
gentlemen, what the decisions of this Stat,
are in regard to the exemption of that or any
other private property from taxation. Yot
know that the courts have said in matters u
that kind, that II anybody in the town o
lining property in the town declines to pa
the tax ass. sssd for that purpose. il canno
be collected and il IL ans" enough for tina
proposition; but it is not any reason 20 brin
in here As an argument for the division o
the town, that upon some occasion. nobod
knows when, because they have't bee
informed they didn't vote TO Ell
emp. the property of the hotel, fron
taxation or di Int vote TO build. nc
bod, knew Just exactly what the propos
lion was, but it was something relating TO
hotel Well. now, think that brings u
down to the water question. and said to yot
gentlemen. that District No. where the
wish to put the water plant j. the only tel
ri'ory in this town upon which they are I
project the system OF water with the excel
''u of the pipe that was to leai up iu'
5 hs, they term the "old town With thu
eption the water system was confined I
. ii rict No. !. A, Is. & and ID of the ps
. t-t., aers witnesses have testified to that an
HYpi1y has or can dispute il. Nov in l5s
Pc people of that village applied to III
stature for village corporation cha
ter and it was granted without opposition
, What did they dor They provided then
0 selves with authority through that act Of u
70 Legislature TO do Just exactly the thing" th'
complain here they cannot do, and my brOt
r er Remission, a lawyer, Mr.. Msdiock., q
mar who IL leading on this fight, and So
eral others said that they didn't know any "a
a in the world that they could get water dow
. there unless they could divide and desrr
X the town Of Boothbay. | wish these ge
, ,lemen who are present and who have tak'
. such an interest TO divide this town, ~ou
n look at what authority they have slreai
and then have Mr.. KeDniston and Mr.. Ma
10 docks and others see IL they can't find wi
- 10 get water without the destruction Of III
IA town. Mr.. Pierce then read article 2 Of q
.e charter Of the Booihbsy Water Company,
which !, appeared that said corporate
o were authorized to construct all reservo
y and scqueduct. to supply water" There
!. their authority which nobody opposed, a
n which they have the right now 70 eIerci'
N Two year. ago, at the very last lsgislatu
(, they obtained an amendment by which I
n time Of their charter was extended and
which said corporation might by co
~ mit,ee duly appointed and auth
ixed, make a contract With any pers
x or corporation for a supply Of ~zter,
., domestic purposes. FIRE, sanitary, munich
40 and commercial purposes. Nov they did
say anything about that. don't bla
C. them, with the petition they have here,
not naming that. ! suppose perhaps II
a though, there wouldn't anybody else name
One Of the committee suggested the "
IN, idea when he asked one Of the witness
Are you Wiling az a village corpora,
Nv down there TO incur these expenses or no
A And the answer vas No. Not willing
= do JUS, what the learned counsel in his op
ID ing szid they uere praying for the righ; I
of authority to do. They had all the author
re necessary for that purpose but they were
h. wiling to DO any Of these these thing "unl
We can divide the old town" Unless Il
nh could make those bo didn't have all
he benefits help pay they were not sati.h
10, They didn't want il enough 10 get
ii, and there is one thing more, in
very charter which created the Booth
Water Company there il authority given