Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1895-02-04

| it is an asset, which gives 1T revenue
and does not in effect decrease its good
financial standing even II 1t issues It's
bonds to pay for its works; because 1T has
value n ceived. If the parties will act In
good faith, there is nothing impracticable,
if towns desire to purchase the water
works established in them, by corpora
ton, to do so, unless it may be the lack OF
power under the constitution to issue
their bonds to arise the funds for pay
ment of the price. Under the resolve now
pending the interest and rights OF the
parties would be amply protected on ap-
plication to the Legislature for authority
to issue bonds for construction, or pur-
chase. To amend the constitution, by
comforting upon the Legislature the power
to enlarge the debt limit as proposed by the
resolution in the case of the purchase, con-
struction or extension of municipal sys-
tenn of water works, would be wise, safe
and requisite to the growth and welfare OF
the towns, banks and state alike. The
intelligent people of this State are as
sured, as they have been in the past, and
will be in the future Legislatures of t his
State that in the consideration and settle
ment of this important amendment, that
a sense of common interest will preside
over the conduct of the respective mem
bers, and that the resolve will be submit
ted to the people for final action. Our
cities and towns, or any portion of them
should not be deprived of the opportunity
to better their condition by u constitu
tional prohibition that was intended only
to keep them from making them worse.
Is it wise to refuse to amend the con-
stitution of our State for the better, from
fear that later on it might be amended
for the worse? Our constitution has be en-
amended several times since its adopt on
and always for the better. Future Legis-
latures and the people W i'll see to it that
no harm shall come to it. We can only
improve and develop our constitution and
laws by amending them for the better as
the apparent needs of the people or por-
ton of the people demand. When the con-
stitutiop makes it possible that a city orr
town can, on application to the Legis-
lature, obtain permission to issue its
bonds to purchase, construct, or en-
large its water works, it will have a strong
tendency to insure more adequate and
proper service by corporate management,
where it exists in our cities and towns,
and at less exorbitant rates. Every man,
terested in this question. From what
source comes the opposition to this re-
solve? The indications are that it comes
from the water corporations, and men in
terested in them, even if they are savings
bank men. They argue that to permit
cities and towns to increase their debts
| for this purpose above the limit weakens
their credit with the savings banks and
or OIL hi,
be, when it shows and is self evident,
that the municipalities are financially
strengthened by the ownership of their
water works? If a water works system
for city is a good and safe asset for
corporation to have, it is a good and safe
asset for city or town to own and, if water
| company bonds are good and safe with
| only their corporate property behind
them for savings banks, most assured,
the municipal water bonds of cities and
towns must be good and safe for the
banks of our State to have, especially
when their debt limit so far as their
water debt limit is involved cannot OK
coed 10 per cent. of the assessed value of
the towns property, under this amend
ment to our constitution. To my person
al knowledge, the Boston banks and cap
notes Temporary loans) of our cities that
are outside of the present constitutional
limit of our State, by reason of owning
their water systems, at three per cent per
annum. This speaks in plain unmis-
taken terms, that our municipalities
would not suffer in their financial stand
ing by issuing bonds to pay for its water
system with a 10 per cent water limit as
| INxyx1
age The ownership of water works by
towns and cities adds streng 9Th to their
credit and would not throw shadow of
distrust upon their securities to the detri
ment of the mass of our cities and towns,
and to the great injury of all whose saw
ings are invested in this class of home Sc
curities, as set forth in the uniform re-
monstrances of the banks referred to you
written by one and the same typewriter
in opposition to the proposed amendment.
The birth place of these remonstrances so
far as known, seems to be Portland and
there are indications that few water
companies combined is the parent, pos
sibly some mid wifery from some of the
banks there.
The statistics which 1 will now give you
are from the State bank examiners re-
port for 1898 as the report of 1894 is not
yet completed and printed, also from the
State assessors report for 1891:
The savings banks of the State in
1893 held of corporation water
companies bonds in Maine. .......S Il ,395, 600 90
OF like corporations bonds of COM
panies i'll other states. 27s,Joo co
Total sa,17s, 500 90
The Maine Savings Bank at Port
land had when examined by the