Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1907-03-07

property or the state you nave auAii'
ted the truth of this proposition.
| Now in regard to the amendment
| which l have offered here today, they
| have been advanced after conference
| with the other friends of this bill ana
| offered so that by yielding 10 lndlVld-
ual ideas upon this measure we mlSnt
| come together on one common ground.
| They may interfere with your own
personal Judgment, but if they do, If
you believe in the general pr:nciple
| that the expense of public utility
| should be borne by the State, there
| is through these amendments a COM
mon ground where we can meet and
pass that law.
In the different platforms of the
political parties of the State, the idea
was advanced that all public utilities
should be sustained and supported by
| the state. Very recently this same
principle was endorsed by the repre-
| sentatives Of one of the political par
| ties in this Legislature. Now if that
| is true, and there is a worthy object
| before you-and none can discredit
| the fact that this is a worthy object
| If there is an opportunity before you
to back up what you have stated pub
| licly on the platform and what ycu
| have voted for in the caucuses. why
should you not do 50?
| 1t is spread broadcast this morning
| that this law will be one assuming an
| extravagant item Of appropriation.
That may be true; but it may also
| be true that We can curtail the ex-
penses of this one feature Of legisla-
| &c
| cal action by the State
More than this: Always consider
this one fact, that thcst. briGrei today
are supported By som" oAc-n,. some
municipality. If you chan 90 that bur-
den TO the State you turn over to the
| State the load that municipaIity has
carried and which, if you do not pass
this law it must carry Indefinitely
until some such relief measure is
| passed.
| trust that when "" approach the
consideration of the amendment, they
VIII be considered as looking towards
uniform ground upon which we can
meet and pass a measure Of this kind
| lt is necessary for US in accom-
| pllshing result that looks like the
adoption of public mo- SIRE of this
KIND, to yield our personal feelings
ana to give to the other PARTY some
thlng that we woulI rather have for
our community; but. i'll the name. if
we pass the measure SD taat il car
| RES out the principle which is the
| glst of this act that is all 81. ought
/ to desire.
| Mr.. DEAS'Y Of Hancock-Will the
| Chair state the pending question?
| The PRESIDENT-The pending
| question is the adoption Of House
| amendment A in concurrence. House
amendment adopted in concurrence.
| Mr.. DEASY-I would move that the
| bill be Indefinitely postponed.
| Mr.. DEASY of Hancock-Mr. Pres-
| dent, ! am opposed to the passage Of
| this bill for several reasons. / am OPP
| posed to it first, because we have not
| sufficient information before this Sen
| atc and this Legislature upon which to
| base action upon SO important meas
| uic as this.
This bill binds the State Of Maine to
take over all Of the highway bridges
| Of the State of Maine over 40 feet in
length, to care for them, to repair them,
to maintain them; and hereafter to
build all highway bridges over 40 feet
| in length.
But the State highway commission
! er does not know and no man in the
| state Of Maine knows how many
| bridges there are?<
| The State highway commissioner
| has no MISUNDERSTANDING has any
| exact information as to what it costs
| tn" several towns in the State of Maine
| to repair those bridges.
| The State highway commissioner is
not prepared TO make an estimate as
| to what it will cost the State in the
next year to repair them and care for
| them and maintain them-and we can
| only guess. and shudder while we guess
| what it will cost to take over all the
| bridges under constructions; and to
build all the new bridges that will be
called for after this bill has been pass
| ed.
We have it is true some little in
| formation-very little. 1t appears that
there are 1S2 bridges Of over so feet
in length. How many bridges there
may be between 40 ana 80 feet i'll
length we do not know. There We're
3715 bridges between 10 ana 80 feet in
length and the highway commissioner
estimates that there may be a quarter
Of them between 40 and 80 feet. If 50
there are 100 bridges over 40 feet long.
There are other persons. having quit"
as good sources as information as the
highway commissioner. who estimate
that the whole number Of bridges We
are taking over amount 10 at least
5000.
How much did it cost to maintain
them. to repair them last year. The
highway commissioner does not know.
The only information we have on the
subject is that it cost hundred thous-
and dollars to repair the bridges last
year. in 106 towns. At that rate-as-
Stunning that these towns were average
towns it cost to maintain and repair
the bridges last year. 100000 1t
would cost the 500 towns Of the State
of Maine about 100000 to repair all
bridges over 10 feet long.
How much Of that was expended in
the repair of bridges over 40 feet long?
Nobody knows. We can only guess