The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-02-17
A Stirring COmedy-Drama Enacted
Thereon Yesterday.
LEAGUES PROPOSED
AMENDMENT TO BE FAVOR
ABLY REPORTED.
Petitioners for Cape Elizabeth Division
Run Against Snag-Heed Paid to the
Governors S,iggestions-War Between
Rival York Electrics.
Especial to the Press.1

Especial to the Press.1
AUGUSTA, February 16.-A drama in
three acts, entitled more About APP
propriations'' has entertained the House
this morning. Mr. Sprague took the
principal role and the other parts were
ably filed, all the leading characters dis
playing great dramatic ability and the
yea and nay vote at the end of act two,
bringing out the full strength of the
company.
Act one was devoted to battle of
words over the resolve in favor of the
Maine Eye and Ear Infirmary, and closed
with the resolve triumphant. Act two
opened with the Madawaska Training
School in the back ground. 1t was in
this act that all the players appeared in
the yea and nay climax.
| The scene in the third act showed
| Bloomfield Academy in the midst of the
Pine Tree State Garden of Eden, over
which Representative Marston of Slzow-
hogan, stood guard with flaming sword
of eloquence.
| Act one opened with the resolve in
"
| its passage to be enacted, caught and
held captive by Mr.. Sprague, who, in his
| opening lines, said that as he read the
| statement of facts accompanying the re-
| solve, 1t stated that the sum appropriate
| ed was the same as that previously
| granted to aid this institution. If that
was SO he had no objection to make to 1t,
but he was informed that in reality the
resolve doubled the annual stipend to
the infirmary. In that case he was OPP
posed to the appropriation as he believed
that these institutions should not be
made the recipients of larger aid than
has been granted to them by past legisla-
lures.
Mr.. Shaw of Portland rushed to the
footlights and explained that the Ian
guage Of the resolve might have misled
the gentleman from Monson. AS matter
of fact the resolve did appropriate $4,000
for each of the next two years, whereas
the annual appropriation has been $2500.
The misunderstanding was due to the
fact that heretofore the appropriation
has been $4,000 for two years, in a lump
sum, and reference to this in the state
ment accompanying Ethe resolve might
have made it appear as If the $4,000 re-
ferred to had been an annual stipend.
The ambiguity was due to mistake of
IL. Il.
the good of the Eye and Ear Infrmary,
and said that in view of the great inn
provement it had made by the erection
of its new building he hoped the appro-
prlation would be made.
Mr. Morrill, of Madison also spoke
briefly in favor of the resolve.
Amendments, not being in order at
this stage of proceedings, Mr.. Sprague
made motion to recommit the resolve
to the finance committee.
Mr.. Shaw again spoke of the good
work of the infrmary, of the many oper-
ations it had performed for the benefit of
the blind and suffering, of the efforts of
philanthropic people all over the state to
sustain 1T and of the modesty this re-
quest for state aid in proportion to the
extent of the work of the institution.
Mr.. Morrill, of Portland referred to the
humble origin of the Institution in an
unpretentious building near Lincoln
park in Portland, and told of its good
work, among poor people especially,
which has extended until now the bene-
Violence of the infirmary is bounded only
by the limits of the state.
MI. Webster of Newport told of his
visits to the institution while a private
patient of DR.. Holt in Portland. He
knew from personal observation of the
SOOu WOfk OIL LIlC luSIlLuIlOu duu ldFOTeu
the resolve.
Mr.. Murch of Westbrook spoke of the
lack of knowledge of the general medi-
cal practitioner of diseases of the eye
and ear, and told of the advantages of
the infirmary as aplace to which patients
might be sent by physicians in general
practice.
Mr.. Sprague was promptly at the front
of the stage to reply to these remarks.
He said that he could assure the gentle
men that had not the statement of facts
accompanying the resolve been mislead-
ing, the resolve would have been at
tackled before its passage to be engrossed
Mr.. Shaw-''Read the resGlveP'
Mr.. Sprague read this passage: s'The
amount named In the resolve is the sum
appropriated at each session of the legis-
lature for the benefit of tho institution
since its establishment
Mr.. Shaw and others-"Read onr'
''Read the whole of itr'
Mr.. Sprague-I have read the mislead-
ing passage. That is what caused me to
misunderstood its meaning. l didn't
read it ALL
Nh Shaw-'Mr. Speaker, I want to