Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-11-04
STATE HOUSE..
The Dusty Old Documents
of the Past.
Qualification Papers Of Names
Justices of Peace.
The House Cleaning Season-Three
New Corporations.

One gets no idea of the amount of
documentary matter that is stored
away with the Capitol. until. when
some of the papers are being looked
over, he happens to be present. Some
thing Of this kind is now in progress.
in the office Of the Secretary Of State.
The work is in charge of c. c. Rich
mOnd of the office staff, and consists
Of the sorting out of the qualifica ton
papers of the justices of the peace and
quorum that have been appointed
since Maine became a State. in 1920.
That sounds easy, but when one
comes to think of the thousands of ap-
pointments which have been made dur
ing the past "a years, and that the
papers all have to be sorted into years.
somehow it is not hard to conceive
the idea that the job in hand is big
one. 1t would not be so bad if the
papers had all been stored in one place,
but owing to the immense amount of
record matter which has accumulated
in the office. the papers have been
stored in different parts of the build
ing.
When the office was remOdeled.
however, the introduction of the metal
filing cases provided a place for these
documents. and the work now in
progress consists of arranging them by
years, ard indeXing them in the cases.
Tie papers were once arranged in or
der, but by handling they became mis-
placed, so that now their rearrange-
ment occasions an extra amount OF
work.
At the time of the establishment of
the office of justice of the peace and
quorum. it was in the form OF two
! offices, the title of one beng that just
| given and of the other justice of the
| peace. but in 1870 the two offices We're
made into one. The first qualification
| pa pers that were taken out after the
office had been established. in june
| 1920, We're dated July 13, and the IN
| cuiilbent was Abial Hall of Alfred. he
| having been appointed 4 justice of the
| peace and quorum.
| An interesting feature in connection
| with some of the Older quallhcatlor
! papers, was their shape. and the entire
| absence of that legal appearance Whlcf
| characteriZes the documents of today
Some of them were filled out on hail
| sheet of note paper, in writing. anc
| when. later, it became the style to have
Ln>e blanks printed they We're in sizs
appearance very much like the
INKS now in use by the probate
rt
mother noticeable feature about the
ers OF the early periods, is that
hy of them bear postage stamps
ne of the first issues of the one and
ntt 70 cd 1r
nv cases, also. the papers date back
he time previous to when stamps
e into use. the amount paid IT
age being marked in blue on {
| Pr of the paper. These paper!
| ! no envelopes. but were folded so q:
| RI rm an envelope for themselves
| u that We're filed during the day:
al Civil War are distinguished b!
| ., esence of revenue stamps, eacf
ID bearing five cent stamp. Thi
re- was discontinued about 1870.
not very fascinating work, look
- or these old papers, but Occa
-; one runs across something
o for instance: A paper wa
~ Yesterday, in which on
~, Emerson had made the Oaths OIL
linent. but the man who ha
h before the dedmus justic
ar James Weymouth. Whe1
49,, was filed at the office, now
-" clerk noticed the difference
Il somewhat of a wag, wrot
anu hack. these words: Jane
on or James Weymouth-yo
Emf VI t,tes Won
pay UT 'io''eS' '"
choi