Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-03-19


ton. He. it is reported, drew the bill.
Already liquor sellers have contributed
500, 900, 1t is reported, to the furtherance
of the bill: and last week the Bangor
|run1seller who has charge of the mat
ter called a conference in his city, re-
ported that more funds We're necessary
to further the bill, and an assessment
of s25 on each Bangor rumseller was
|ordered This will furnish a further
fund of $4,000 or $4,000.
The bill is an unwise piece of legis-
Ilation from every standpoint, and will
|oniy foster packed and bribed juries,
and a harmful lack of uniformity of
|sentencc.
But it is purely saloon conspiracy
to circumVent the declared purpose of
our supreme court towards the saloon.
and to perpetuate the Bangor plan. /
do not believe the present Legislature
will set the seal of it's endorsement to
such an infamous bill when the facts
concerning it are thus set. forth.
The debate on resubmission is over.
Several speakers declared in their
speeches that The people ought to have
the right to vote on this question if
they wished. Certainly. And they
will have Il chance to do so when they
desire it. After two years of persist
ent effort the petitions presented to the
present Legislature for resubmission
contain 2603 names and those against
36S73 These figures were furnished
me by persons who examined the petit
lions.
l had hoped this question would be
discussed solely on it's merits: that Il
dignified, logical debate, free from per-
sonal jeer and sneers would character
iZe the discussion in the House. But
in one speech, at least l was disap-
pointed. The gentleman from Portland
delivered Il TRADE that for sound vitu-
peration. absence of logic, facts or
sense, was never surpassed, if equalled,
in our Legislature. = s,a @
His introduction reminds one of a
boy going swimming in cold water. He
discussed the natural advantages of the
State, spoke of its seacoast, harbors,
rivers and lakes, stated its growth in
population, then plunged into statistics
and juggled with figures, made a dash
at the moral phase of the question by
quoting figures. that, with statement
of his own, disproved his position. then
sneered at the National w. c. T. L.,
put forth tremendous energy to kill a
grasshopper or prove him a hypocrite,
held the supreme court up to ridicule.
inSulted certain women whom he nam
ed, and championed the. cause OF two
barmaids,s slandered and Hlaligned
faithful honest sheriffs because they
did their duty. traduced his own parity,
and all to prove that the prohibition
liquor amendment to our constitution
ought to be resubmitted. Let us con-
slider the speech on its own merits.
He declares it his purpose to prove
| that the prohibition liquor law has been
| q detriment to the State, both material
| ly and morally. He affirmed that he
| did not intend to make any statement
| that is not supported by substantial!
evidence" Remember this was an in
! PRODUCTION to written speech given
| from memory.
He first calls attention to Names
slow growth in population since 1850 in
| comparison with the previous growth,
! then charges this small growth to pro-
| hibitiOn and challenges an explanation
| of these facts and figures. Does he
want explanation? Let him remember
| that Maine sent Il large quota of her
| best sons into the Southland in the
early COS and many never came back.
Let him remember that the period
| from 1850 to 1890 was the period of
great Western and Pacific slope empire
| building. And Maine gave generously
| of her choicest sons and daughters to
| the upbuilding of the great West. Let
| him call the roll of Names sons and
| daughters in Boston, New York, Phia-
delphia. Washington. Chicago. st.
| Louis. Minneapolis, San Francisco and
| Los Angeles, on the great prairies of
| the West and in the great manufacture
| ing centers of all other states, and he
will find himself surrounded with an
army of the richest. choicest. ablest,
| truest. noblest men and women that
| this broad land holds.
| Let him call them home to the land
| of their birth and the great centres of
the land would be lonely, great indus
tries would languish, positions of gray
est Importance in state and nation
would be vacant. and Names increase
| in population would startle even him,
ad her wealth and influence would
make her the queen of the nation. And
standard of morality made possible this
prodigal gift of men to the nation.
| And this. let me tell him. and not
| prohibition, is the explanation of
Names scanty growth in population
during the period named.
| Next. he turns to the depreciation
| of farm vaiues in Maine New Hamp-
shire ana Vermont during the period
of prohibition, 1SS0--1S90. He gives
statistics to show that farm values
shrank $31.S59,459 from 1880 to 1890 in
| the above named states. He adds, /
/ would like to have some of our prohi
| bition friends account for this result to
| the farmers of Maine But We're there
no losses in farm values in Massachu
sets Rhode Island and Connecticut
during this time? He would have us
| think there were not. He gives no fig
ures for these states. Why not? Be
cause it better serves his purpose not
| to do so. Who will trouble to look this
! matter up?
| The census report shows that from
| 1870 to 1880 the Massachusetts group
lost in farm values $49, 700,946 and the
Maine group s42.3S0.794. While for
the entire period of 90 years the Mass
achusetts group lost SIS, 497, 104 in farm