Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-02-14
MAINE LEGISLATURE.
CONTINUED from page 80


farmers wife can cali up her neighbor
few miles away and ask who went home
with whom from the last huskins'
U-aughter)
You. know how the cities depend upon
the country for brain and muscle To push
the interests of this country, how the
Presidents and everybody down, nave
come from the country, a large per cent.
of them. The fact is that this city life
after generations OF it. especially on the
part of the women, does not produce Such
giants as are needed U-aughter to do the
work Of the country. The young people
are leaving the farms and flocking 10 the
cities ana the farms are becoming aban-
doned. bat you put telephone in there.
and il makes such a change, it increases
The social privileges much on these
farms that more Of these young men will
stay on the farm. They tell us that this
Eastern Company will sell out to the
otner companies, that there will be con-
soidation. That is not our business We
do part, and Il We don't shame on
as; and if they sell out. after we have
helped them. and pat up their rates.
shame on them. applause and laugh
teri
Mr.. PATTANGALI. of Machias: 1t
may be that there is but little to add to
the debate that has taken place this
morning, but ii seems to me possibly
that in some respects the discussion
has drifted away from the actual is
sues involved before the House and
before voting il might be we'll enough
to take a sober view of what we are
really voting upon. | was much inter
int h.. arl- If
Bangor (Mr. BeaD and also the re-
marks of my friend from Vassalboro
CMr Cook. and after listening to
those two eloquent gentlemen, in their
somewhat remarkable speeches. l read
anew the bill under consideration by
the House, this morning, and found to
my surprise that | was not wrong in
my first reading of it. and that the
Eastern Telephone Company was a
corporation and not farm. | found
that the bill which the House is asked
To pass, this morning. was bill not re
stricting the rights Of any corporation.
or of any monopoly, but charging the
rights of a Maine corporation, giving il
as sweeping a charter as the LegiSla-
ture of Maine could give to any cOrpOr-
alton on earth ana making it in fact a
monopoly in telephoning in the State
of Maine. No argument in favor of
free competition in telephoning in
Maine can be fairly made on that bill.
Under the laws of the State of Main
today, passed wisely or unwisely. |
will not undertake to say, no telephone
corporation can start in Maine provid-
ed any other company has either lines
in operation or a charter giving it the
right to operate in that locality with
out the consent of the existing COM
pany or a special act Of the Legislature.
Pass this bill and no telephone com
pany can be started in the State of
Maine without the consent of two
telephone companies the consent of the
Legislature. and, gentlemen who desire
free competition in telephoning had
better hesitate before they pile mo-
mopoly upon monopoly and compel a
new company to gain the consent of
two great corporations instead of the
consent of one That seems to me Il
matter worthy Of consideration. ! find
by referring to the charter of the East
rrn Maine Telephone Company granted
in 1897. in Chapter 201 Of the Laws OF
1897, that Section Of that charter
gives them the right of eminent do
main, and in the last few days before
many of the members of this House, i,
has been argued over and over again
that We who were here representing
the people ought to be chary of grant
ing that great right to any corpora
ton. And yet. the extension of this
charter gives to the Eastern Telephone
Company the right of eminent domain
not in the limited locality where they
X Il
Fort Kent. throughout the length and
breadth OF the State of Maine. the alb
Solute right of eminent domain. 1t
might be we'll that some restrictions
should be placed on the great tele-
phone corporation now existing in
Maine 1t may be that it has been
granted too great powers in the past
But that cannot be remedied by grant
ing like powers to another great cor
poration. If the past Legislatures did
go too far and did grant too much
power to the New England Telephone
Company, the right way to remedy it is
to restrict those powers and not give
like powers to another corporation
Does any gentleman here who has stu
died the question carefully and thought
fully honestly believe that there will
ever exist all over Maine two great
telephone companies competing with
each other for business? Do not gentle
men know that competitive telephon-
ing is something that never has and
never can exist on large scale in a
community situated as Maine is?-that
the inevitable result of two great cor
porations being chartered would be tc
place in some localities in Maine GER
tain telephone lines operating at .
profit and some lines operating at d
loss and that a rate war would enSue
and just as sure as the sun rises ant
sets. those corporations must anna lga-
mate? The law of business compelS
them to do it, and when they do. the
business men, the lawyer, the doctor
the young man starting his fish mar
ket must all pay extra telephone rates
to pay dividends on the stock that the
existing company accumulated. be-
cause the Legislature forced it to &C
cumulate it That is the business side
of the situation. 1t has been the policy
of this state for years to mOnopolize
public rights. The word Monopoly
seems to some men like a red flag in d
Inn fac hut I'm the npljcV nt