Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1903-02-03
The Press Association Meeting.

The Press Association Meeting.
The Maine Press Association held its
fortieth annual meeting at Augusta on
Wednesday and Thursday of last week.
This means that the association is De-
tween thirty-eight and thirty-nine
years of age, as it was organized in the
summer of 1884. It's meetings are now
held in January, at Augusta in the years
of legislative sessions, and at Portland
or Bangor on other years, and they are
always pleasant and more or less profit
able occasions to the members who at
tend.
One way to so to Augusta is through
Portland, and the writer, who was head
ed for the Press Association meeting,
left South Paris on the forenoon train
Tuesday to spend part of day in Port
land before going to the capital city.
The train was on time, and If had been
going directly to Augusta l could have
waited six minutes at Yarmouth juno
ton and reached Augusta about noon.
1t has been my luck more than once to
get into the Junction just in time to see
the smoke of the Maine Central train
dissolving into thin air to the east, with
three hours to elapse before another one
comes along.
In Portland progress on the new
Grand Trunk station was noted, though
the work accomplished comprises only
walls just started, portions of them
covered with ice and portions protected
by coverings against the weather, while
the work is going on under all the diff
culties encountered in Maine winter.
The train which left Portland at Z
o'clock Wednesday morning for Augusta
had on board an unusually large num-
Der of ladies; and so many more got
aboard at Brunswick that it was neces-
sary to put on an extra car. The special
reason for this was the meeting of the
State Federation of Women's Clubs,
which was held in Augusta that day.
For some time it has been customary, on
legislative session years, to hold this
meeting on Wednesday of the last week
in January, and the hearing on the
woman suffrage question is held on
Thursday afternoon. These are also the
two days generally used by the Press
Association, many of the members OF
which have their wives and daughters
with them. The week is therefore par
ticularly ladies' week: and this year a
number of ladies were in town especial
ly to attend the reception given by
Governor and Mrs. Hill.
The early arrivals on Wednesday had
the privilege of attending the services
: held in memory of Hon. Thomas b.
Reed, in joint convention of senate
! and house, and listening to number OF
eloquent addresses. The formalities of
the entry AMI retirement of the senate,
, and of the governor and council, were
conducted with as much dignity as pos
, sible under the circumstances; but
though the crowd was much less than or
the occasion of the Inauguration cere'
2 monies, the moving bodies were con
9 siderably hampered by the spectators
and the spaces reserved for the visiting
bodies barely large enough for them tC
, squeeze into. The floor of the hall is
just about large enough for the member:
, and necessary officers to be comfortable
f and the two inches in the wall, called by
D courtesy galleries, will not comfortably
] accommodate over thirty people each.
S Sessions of the Press Association were
held on Wednesday afternoon and even
] ing, and Thursday forenoon and after
noon. Not much of interest to the gen
eral public was done ut the business SEES
sions. Charles A. PiSbury of the Bel
t fast Journal, who has been president FOL
the past year, was reelected, as were al
t the other officers except that George w
Vickery was chosen treasurer in place
: of p o. Vickery, deceased.
S Five members of the association hav'
r died during the year, including on
| honorary member, Judge II. X. Bake
of Hallowell, two of the original mem
: bers who assisted in organizing the asso
r citation in 1864, Theodore Cary of Houl
e ton and Marshall n Rich of Portland
a and two others, Hon. p. o. Vickery o
v Augusta, and L. II. Murch of Belfast
A resolution was adopted strongl
q favoring an amended libel law which i
o now before the legislature, and which i
designed to remove some of the existin,
v inequities in the law and practice in Ii
bel cases.
:. The next summer excursion will b
Il made to Penobscot Bay, with headquar
t tiers at or near Camden or Rockland.
At the literary exercises which wer
a held in the senate chamber Thursda
J. Afternoon, Hon. Herbert NJ. Heath o
n Augusta gave an address on "The La,
of Libel" Mr.. Heath is well known a
n one of the leading lawyers of the state
b and the libel law Is one of his special
r ties. His address showed full under
standing of the subject in all respects
and should be illuminating, not only +
the newspaper men present, but to mem
beers of his own profession as well.
The essayist chosen for this meeting
having failed at the eleventh hour
President Pilsbury persuaded the vet
Il eran newspaper worker, Howard Owe
; of Augusta, to fill in the gap with tall
on the cups and Downs of Newspape
Man." This is a portion of lectur
which Mr.. Owen has several times de
o livered in Augusta and other places i
+ the state Everybody who knows How
u ard Overland his list of acquaintance
is large-knows that he is bright man
g and his lecture is decidedly entertaining
The poem, on America" was b.
Frank II. Colley of Portland, introduce,
J. by President Pilsbury as the poet lau
l. reate of the association.
Thursday evening the members al
tended the reception given by Governo
and Mrs. Hill at their elegant new HON
9 on State street The invitations includ
r ed the members of the legislature, head
of state departments, and members o
the Press Association, with their ladies
S and nearly 500 people were present, ant
= it was distinctly the affair of the season
: The whole house was thrown open TO
inspection, and it was viewed with in
! terest by those present. 1t is probabl.
:. the finest home in Maine, though it il
not in any sense snowy, but is distin
;. guished without and within for simple
). ity and perfect taste. Governor ant
p Mrs. Hill were the recipients of man.
congratulations on it, and it is safe tt
say there is not couple in the stat
l who who would receive the heart.