The Republican journal., 1908-09-03

| debt amounting at tA1S sAA.A~ :, ~A'oo1'-
OO0 about two-thirds OF WHICH became
due June 1, 1885, and one-tnlrd Octo-
Der LIST, of the same year. IN Marcn
18TH two days after the adjournment
of the Legislature, the governor ana
State Treasurer inserted aii aaVertlse-
| nent in the leading papers OIL view 1ork,
| Massachusetts and Name sollcltlng
| nronosals for the loan These proposals
were to be opened Mafch ~, 1893 Lie
result was the sale of the entire loan
at premium of $799oo winch amount
was directly applied to the payment of
the public debt. soon aller Tie heso-
tiation of these bonds there was an un-
| favorable turn in the money market,
! and had these initiatory steps been de-
1aved II is altogether probable that
those bonds could not have been floated
~ mar The annual saving in the in
tarest account effected by this success
ful funding of the State debt amounted
to 81. $4,000, and has very materially
lishtened the burdens of the taxpayers.
Agriculture Made a State Department.
STbro,,eh the recommendation of
Governor Burleigh, who has always
been in sympathetic touch with the
farmers of the State and their inter-
ests the secretary of the Board of Ag
ric,,lture was given merited increase
of : salary and assigned permanent
quarters at the State House, thus max
ing his department convenient and
! available to the public, and enabling
him to devote his whole time to the
| exactine. and important duties of his
office.
Increased State Appropriation for
Pensions.
The survivors of the late Civil War
| have had no truer friend in Maine than
| Governor Burleigh. 1t was upon his
| very earnest recommendation that the
| LEGISLATURE of 1889 increased the APP
| nropriation for disabled veterans, and
| those dependent upon them, from $7p,-
900 to $135 900
| II was upon the recommendation OF
| Governor Burleigh that the law was
passed providing heavy penalties Tor
the careless setting of forest fires, and
making the Land Agent the Forest
Commissioner of Maine, with Wardens
in every section of the State. The eX-
pense of this department has been very
small, but the value of the work to the
State is generally recognized and would
be difficult to estimate.
Indexina of the State Library.
| When the State Library was about
to be moved into its new quarters IN
the State House extension, In IS9l Gov
ernur Bureigh called the attention OF
the Legislature to the great Importance
of supplying it with a. modern caro-
| catalogue in order that its treasures
of information might be unlocked ana
rendered easily available to It's patrons.
For this reason he advocated an ap-
propriation for the purchase OF the nee
essary cabinets and other material, and
the employment of additional help,
| skilled in this class of work. Inc Leg
islature responded to this appeal, ana
today the State Library of Maine, IN
convenience and usefulness, is second
to none in New England.
Reduction of the State Tax Kate.
It was upon the recommendation OF
Governor Burleigh, in his first lnau-
eural message, that the rate OF State
taxation was reduced to pa mills. In
advocating this reduction Governor
| Burleigh said:
"rhe total taxation may safely be
reduced for the year 1890 to two ana
one-auarter mills, which would be
reduction of Sill, 1894 per annum. Inc
! Hghtness of a State tax of two anu
| one-uuarter mills can be appreciated
only by remembering that one mill of
if is for The school fund, levied accord
inc. to property and divided according
to population. Excluding the school
tax Ca wise and generous provision Ter
the youth of the State in force now tor
seventeen years. it will be seen that
the rate of taxation for general pur-
poses of government will in 1890 be the
lowest tax levied for 80 years, and as
low as any that has been levied Tor
80 wears. The entire State tax for next
wear will be $53O099.75 or less than
was levied on Cumberland county alone
in 1865"
So well pleased were the people OF
| Maine with Governor Burle1ghs aDle
and busi1ess-like administration or
State affairs that at the next election,
| although it came in an off year, they
returned him to the Office he had filled
so we'll by an increased plurality.
When Governor Burleigh, therefore,
was sent to Congress, he was no new
or inexperienced man. He had been
tried in the highest office in the gilt or
the people of his State ana had, ny
his able and conscientious discharge OF
its exacting and important duties, mer-
tied and won their confidence and es-
TEEN. As a member of the national
House of Representatives he has made
good from the start and has grown
steadily in strength and influence. AS
we have already stated, he is today
the ranking member on the committee
on Public Buildings and the Census, IN
direct line of promotion to two OF the
| most important chairmanshlps IN the
| Gift of the House. Such positions come
to no man save through Intelligent and
| successful work. We have already
| spoken of the notable personal victory
won by Governor Burleigh in securing
the passage of the Burleigh apportlon-
| ment bill, against apparently an lnsu-
perable opposition; but this is only one
of the many notable results achieved
by him since he has represented the
| Third District of Maine at the Ma
tional capital He has, during his term
of service, secured for his district
larger Appropriations
than have ever come to II IN any Sill
liar period of it's history, We nave
only space here to touch upon some OF
the more notable things accomplished
| by him. In his work at Washington
he has Known no political differences.
He has been, in the broadest sense, the
representative of the whole district, ana
the interests of those of different polltl-
COL ,,;ovYs bova been looked after with