Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1906-08-28
The McdiIlicuddy Rally.

Hon. d. j. McGillicuddy of Lewiston,
the Democratic candidate for congress
in the Second District, certainly can not
complain of the audience which greeted
him when he spoke at South Paris last
Monday night. Although 1t was an
excessively hot night, the hall was filed,
the audience including few women,
but most of those present were voters,
and a large fraction of them Repub-
licans.
Mr.. McGillicuddy was introduced to
the audience by William o. Frothing-
ham of the Democratic Town Com
mittee, and spoke nearly an hour and a
half. He was at all times entertaining,
and very few left the hall before he
finished. Comment on his remarks Is
reserved for another place.
After greeting the audience and prom
ising courtesy to his Republican OPP
ponents at all times, Mr.. McGillicuddy
called attention to the importance of the
issues of the campaign, saying that in
no campaign for a generation had the
issues been of such Importance to the
people of the state. He then discussed
at some length the proposition that the
management of the Republican party Is
in the hands of professional politicians
of men whom he was obliged to define as
a body BY word that he disliked, az a
ring. In support of this he cited the
results of the Cobb-Fernald campaign of
two years ago, and the Littlef1eld-Swa-
sey campaign of this year, asserting that
in both these cases it was the ring
against ''the people," He quoted fire.
quently from Republican speakers and
writers in support of his assertions.
The trouble has been that the state
politically has been so one-sided. II
you want good government, keep the
two parties as closely balanced as posi-
BILE.
A further result of this condition is
that the few come to dominate not only
the party, but the public policy. They
have done this in refusing to resubmit
the prohibitory amendment, and thus
deprived the people of the right that
they have to vote. The speakers re-
marks on the resubmission topic were
emphatic but very brief.
Mr.. McGillicuddy then took up the
question of the initiative and referen-
DUN, and gave a brief explanation of
what it means. Legislation is now
directed by the lobby. Did the people
send them there? The lobby voted down
the initiative and referendum in the
last legislature. Every Democrat voted
for it, and every vote cast against 1t was
that of Republican.
The platforms of the two parties on
the initiative and referendum were COM
pared, the Democratic platform demand
ing its passage by the legislature, and
the Republican platform favoring it las
applied to statutes" This qualification,
the speaker charged, was put on by the
wild land owners who were in control of
the Republican state convention, because
they knew it would require a constitu-
tional amendment to increase the tax on
wild lands, and they had thus made it
impossible for Republican to support a
constitutional amendment. The ques--
ton of wild land taxation was discussed
at some length.
The increase in state expenditures in
ten years was cited, certain figures OF
increase being given, with special de-
tails regarding the state printing. The
speaker then took up the abatement of
the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad tax,
which he declared he never heard of I'M
til this campaign, and denounced 1t as
downright piece of robbery. He alleged
that the tax payers of the state were
paying some $4,000 year to a wealthy
and prosperous railroad.
In conclusion Mr.. McGillicuddy said
that his opponent, Mr.. Littlefield, want.
ed him to discuss national issues, but
national issues are not the things that
are concerned in this campaign. 1t is
state issues that are of consequence.
True, said he, there are four congress-
men to be elected, but it doesn't make
any difference whom you elect to con.
gress as long as the senate remains as it
is. want to discuss the issues that are
bo ,ot<1o1 hy tbio rnnoiUn