The Republican journal., 1908-09-03

ly good. For example: In 1907 the cities
and towns of Maine received from the
State 1861, 534.92 more than they paid in
taxes. The State tax for that year was
$1,C73, 417.4O and the State paid back
81. 734, 952.32. Of this sum 81, 047, 229.S4
went back under the refunding clauses
of the general statutes and 1857, 722.4S
in the form of special appropriations
by the legisla ure. The States extra"
money, which enables it to pay the
towns more than they turn in, is Sc
cured from taxes on corporations, ETC.,
much of it coming FROM without the
State.
Now as to the extravagant expendi-
lures. Nearly one million dollars year
goes for the support of the public
schools of the State. The appropriations
for good roads and in aid of the agricul-
tural societies are directly in the inter
est of the farmers. Hospitals in many
parts of the State are aided and are do
ing good work in saving life and re-
lieving suffering humanity. The insane
and the predetermined are cared for,
and in Waldo county alone $5,557 was
paid out in 1907 for State pensions. Is
this extravaganza? Is it not the duty
of every good citizen to so cast his vote
as to ensure continuance of this wise
and business-like administration of the
State affairs?
In the days of the mining craze in
Maine The Journal, then edited by
William H. Simpson, one of the ablest
editors this State has ever produced,
was one of the few newspapers in the
State to discourage the digging of holes
in the ground in which to bury good
and hard earned money. That gold,
silver and copper could be found in the
Lodges of Maine was admitted then, but
not in sufficient quantities to warrant
mining. AS to that all who had inves-
tigated the geology of the State agreed
Yet many were led to give up their
employment to seek under the surface
wealth that did not exist: to wander
about the fields and rocky pastures
prospecting, or to draw from the saw
ings banks the little store put by for a
rainy day to invest it in a mining COM
pany organized with capital of a hun
dred or more thousand dollars, of which
nothing was paid in. Everybody knows
the result. All that was left to show
fOr this mining craze was a few holes
In the ground and a number of empty
pockets. 1t should be said, however,
that this was not like the fake mining
schemes of later days. The precious
metals did exist here and many thought
they could be mined successfully, and
honestly strOve to demonstrate it. The
warnings of scientists aud of a few
newspapers may have checked the fever
to some extent, but it ran its course as
do the fevers humanity is subject to,
and the pocket nerve of many was Sc
riously affected.
There is this to be said of the Maine
mining craze. The money, save for the
comparatively small amount that went
out of the State for machinery, remain
ed here. 1t simply changed hands. 1t
went for labor, for lands and for sup
plies. Not so the later mining schemes
the Red Dogs, Yellow Cats, etc.,
with shares at S1-to be advanced at
certain date to 81 or 81 or any amount
you please-non- assessable, millions of
ore in sight and dividends of to 100
per cent assured. These mines are
located-if located at all save in Iitera-
ture of the Guide to Full Pockets Or
der--ln the far west, in remote and in
accessible places, and the deluded in
weston finally realizes that his hard
earned dollars have simply gone to
swell the fortunes of the promoters.
The Journal has done what it could to
warn its readers against these and other
fake schemes, engineered in some in
stances by men without cash, credit or
character and believes that its warn
ings have not been altogether in vain.