The Portland daily press., 1895-01-26

mittee on Insane Hospital Are Con-
The Legislature is Becoming Industri-
Gus and VIII Give Up Its Saturday Hol-
iday Hereafter.
Especial to the PRESS)
Augusta, January 25.-Both the bills Tor
the creation of a street commission for the
city of Portland are before the legislature,
as the PRESS said this morning was likely
to De the case. Mr.. Knowlton introduced
the bill endorsed at the last meeting of the
city council and entitled, IAN Act to create
a Board of Public Works for the City of
Portland" Mr.. Larrabee put in a large
petition to which the other bill is annexed.
The judiciary committee will probably order
a general hearing on both measures, after
which they will, of course, be at liberty to
report either or a new bill or neither. The
petition follows:
The undersigned. citizens and tax payers
of the City of Portland, respectfully repre-
sent that the commission now existing by
ordinance in the city of Portland and
known as the commission of streets and
sewers as demonstrated its efficiency in per-
forming the work required of it. heretofore
performed by committee of the council
and that there is public necessity for an
amendment of the city charter of the city
of Portland in order that the commission
may be continued upon a permanent basis,
and we therefore respectfully urge upon
the legislature the passage of the proposed
act hereunto annzeed entitled An Act to
establish commission of streets and sewers
in the city of Portland
WHICH HOSPITAL AND WHICH COM
MITTEE.
The sentiment among some of the mem
bers. mentioned in the PRESS this morning,
in favor OF an enlargement of the facilities
of caring fol the insane at Augusta instead
of building a new asylum at Gardiner found
expression today in the following resolve,
which was presented by Mr.. Adams Of Bow
doin:
2 Resolved-That the trustees of the Maine
Insane hospital are hereby authorized ana
instructed to erect at some place on ihe
hospital premises at Augusta, suitable
building or buildings according TO plans
and specifications to be, provided by said
trustees, and approved by tho Governor
and Council. Said buildings to be SO located.
designed and constructed as to render them
specially adapted for the treatment and
care of the chronic and incurable insane
and of su cieLt capacity to properly pro.
vide for the accommodation of this class of
natients. not exceeding 800 persons. The
cost of said buildings complete with furnl-
lure not to exceed 100000, this balng in
con formity with the recommendations sub
mitted in Senate document No. !. by the
commission created by the resolve of the
Legislature of 1898. consisting of the Gov
ernor and Council and trustees of the Maine
Insane hospital. The sum of 100000 is here
by appropriated for the purpose above
named. payable during the year 1895. pro-
vided that before contracts for the forego-
ing buildings and furnishings are made.
proposals shall be advertised for and con
tracts shall be awarded to he lowest bidder
the right being reserved to reject any OF all
bids.
Now Mr.Adams intended that this resolve
should go to the special joint committee on
the Eastern Insane hospital. and SO en-
dorsed it. This special committee is COM
posed of the finance committee and the ON
mittee on insane hospital. When the paper
reached the Speakers desk. Mr.. Powers
suggested to Mr.. Cotton, the clerk, that the
proper reference it seemed to him should be
to the insane hospital committee alone.
Mr. Cotton also took this view OF the case.
The Speaker suggested that Mr.. Adams's at
tentiou be called to the reference and
when, some time later, he did refer the re-
solve to the committee on insane hospital,
Mr., Powers supposed that Mr.. Adams had
agreed to the change. A few minutes after,
however Mr.. Adams inquired why the
reference had been altered, and it was
learned later that by an oversight he had
not been consulted.
In reply to Mr.. Adams the Speaker ex-
planned that as the joint committee on the
Eastern Maine hospital was created by a
ONT order of the Senate and House for the
sole purpose of considering matters pertain
ing to the new asylum, he did not think
that this resolve could be referred TO the
committee without the legislature first
passed an order enlarging the committees
powers. Mr.. Adams made no appeal from
this decision and the matter was dropped.
After the adjournment, however, there was
considerable discussion over the Speakers
ruling, some members taking the ground
that if the House and Senate concurred in
referring the matter to the special commit
tee that action in itself was sufficient in
struction to the committee to consider the
resolve. Another point was germane to
the question, anyway, as the special COM
mittee was really considering the enlarge
ment of the states means for caring for the
insane, and that this resolve must neces-
sarily be considered in connection with that
appropriating 100000 to be expended at
Bangor This common sense view of the
matter is reinforced by the fact that has
leaked out that the special committee spent
as much of its time last evening talking over
the proposed enlargement at Augusta as it
did in discussing the Bangor plan. In fact,
the architects plans for both projects were
before the special committee.
Speaker Powers. in conversation with the
PRESS correspondent, disclaimed any in
tention of exerting his influence to change
the reference except as he did daily when
papers were laid before him for what he
considered erroneous dispositions. He said
that he had no kno Wedge of the contents
of the paper when it was laid on his desk,
except that he saw by its title it referred
alone to the Augusta institution. Mr..
Powers said that if the reasons given above
for the sending of the resolve to the special
committee had been made from the floor he
should have left it to the House to decide.
He added that if the gentlemen interested
in the resolve had wished, they might easily
have secured the passage of the order he
suggested. directing the committee to con-
slider it. The resolve could have been tabled
temporarily and then referred to the special
committee. When the matter comes up in