The Portland daily press., 1895-03-22
Especial to the PRESS.

Interest Transacted Yesterday.
Especial to the PRESS.
Augusta, March 2l.-The Gorham normal
school resolve came befure the Senate this
morning under assignment. The resolve as
amended aplropriates $4,000. one-half the
sum originally requested, and it came tc
the Senate after having been passed by the
House. Senators Hume and Engel made the
debate interesting. THE illusions those
Senators made to one smother and to vari.
GUS other matters greatly amused the Son.
ate. The resolve passed by a vote of Iwen-
ty-two to five. Senators Hume, Penney
Stone, Walls and Wood voted no. Senators
Harlow, jackson and Simpson were not re-
corded.
Senator Hume said that the matter was
tabled on his motion, and as chairman OF
the committee on education signing the
majority report against this measure be
felt it incumbent upon him to explain the
position of the majority and to resist
the passage of this resolve. Mr.. Hume ex.
planned that the committee had felt that
the work of the present time should be to
put the present schools in good condition.
They did not then look with favor on the
propositions to create new normal schools,
although the time will soon come when
new schools will be necessary. Acting on
this line of policy the committee had recon-
mended appropriations for additions and
repairs at Pennington and Castine.
The condition of affairs at GoIhaEn was
peculiar. On the one hand there was a
large and influential body of citizens who
felt that the pupils should be allowed to
board in private families. one family taking
six or seven pupils another taking like
number and SO all the pupils being accom-
modated in u way to enable the farmers
round about TO find u market for their eggs,
milk and butter. Personally, Mr.. Hume
said, he is opposed 10 the dormitory system.
He never lived in dormitory himself and
when last Saturday he went through the
dormitories at Bowdoin he was more than
ever Disguised with the system. But MI.
Hume, as be wanted to be fair. would say
to the Senate that many leading educators
do favor the dormitory system. That is the
real question before the Senate today.
The building of dormitory at Gorham
means the establishment OF the dormitory
system in all the normal schools. Farming
ton and Castine will then ask for dorni-
tories. Mr.. Hume said he had hoped that
the leg stature would postpone this matter
for two years, and then decide whether OF
not the state should enter upon this new
policy 1he Gorham nermal school Is the
best situated of any in the state 10 become
fourishing echool.4! II the Gorham people
will examine carefully its affairs they may
find why the school is not larger.
ho inf nfh than a py1b blio a
in this matter, said Mir. Hume, although
one of those insists sometimes found in the
ministry Of God. who seems more at home
in the lobby. and in the corridors Of hotels,
than in the sacred desk, has accused me Of
personal motives.
In conclusion. Mr.. Hume said that if the
resolve passed he should offer an amend
ment to increase to at least 900 the
amount appropriated. as he believed tn.
appropriation OF only SSl5.000 was mere
hagatelle, not in the line of true economy.
Senator Waterhouse spoke for the resolve,
and in the course of an in teresting speech
read from the remarks made by Governor
Connor at the time the state accepted the
school property and from members of the
then board of trustees to show that it was
q part of the original agreement with the
state that the buildings should be kept ur
as they were presented through the gene.
rosity of the Gorham PEOPLE. In the course
of his remarks. Nh. Waterhouse said: 81
have known thesspeople of Gorham from
my earliest boyhood, and know they have
always taken great interest in education.
al matters. and that interest has been OF
substa ntial nature. They have always
-rltx 4.
school purposes, and when that has not
been enough they have been ready to put
their hands in their pockets and make ur
the deficiency. - $500 ss ss4H93 s2a
"At the snnual town meeting in 1873, il
was voted unanimously TO raise SIS, 900 te
aid in erecting q normal school building
The $4,000 not being enough to complete
the building subscription paper wal
started and about $1,000 was raised by sub
scription. which made S2e. .0OU. And ther
they did not have enough and the trustees
Of Goi ham seminary put in $4,000. ma king
about $27.0oo. With this money, tie hand
some school building was erected. In 1877!
the state sent its committee to Gorham te
canvass it's advantages. and its disadyan.
tages for normal school purposes. that com
mittee reported the conditions and price
of boarding were unfayorable. Therefore
The state demanded "a boarding house. In
response to this demand the Gorham norma
school boarding house was given. There
fore the boarding house was created be-
cause the state recognized it as need. But
this was not all. The, state authorities
said there must be changes and improve
ments made ON the old seminary building
and $1,000 more was taken from the semina
ry fund for that purpose, and tho norma
school building and its five acres of land
and the dormitory building and its foul
acres of land were ready for use without
any expense whatever to the state.
Senator Engel also defended the resolve
and made a lively speech for it. He claimed
that the state was morally bound to replace
the burned building and it was not ques
lion of policy but one of Justice. The Sen
ator has no children to educate. He can
not know the anxiety of the mother who
knows that her daughter must go Ions
distance from the sc bool to her boarding
place in the dust and storm. The Senator
kno@s { g ways of legislation, and he
knows that if this amendment he propose.
to offer is accepted it = means that the re
solve must again 60 through the hopper II
the evening of the session. the Senator