The Republican journal., 1908-06-04
AN APPROPRIATION OF $4,000
Secured for Enlarging and Improving the
Belfast Post Office. Good WORK OF 'oV-
ernor Burleigh.

ernor Burlelgn
Correspondence Of The journal
WASHINGTON, D. c., June l. SOME
weeks ago. when Gov. Burielgh was
asked about the prospects OF an oppro-
nriation for the enlargement OF the BEL
fast federal building he replied that nc
voc q little uncertain whether he could
mill II through. He was simply going
to do his best to get it. When the omhl-
bus public building law was signed ny
the President this week there was aouh-
dant proof of how we'll the Governor
had tried. He had written into the Id"
not only s27, OCO for the enlargement
and Improvement Of the Belfast ouiiu-
ipg INIT had secured appropriations lof
Ten other projects in Maine. The Dig
+hinc Of course, is to get the approprl-
alton and the enlargement OF the Del
fast building.ls now assured, but IL Will
take some months, perhaps 1t Will De
wear to get things in readiness so that
tho york can be undertaken. III al
availability it will be another summer
haforp the contractor strikes q cllp Oh
+ha Belfast building. The Supervising
Archi4act Mr., James Knox Taylor OF
The Treasury Department, Is croWdeo
with work. His craftsmen have not
vet completed plans for all the puollc
bindings authorized by the public build
ing law enacted two years ago, THOSE
projects will naturally be given atten-
tion before any work is begun under
the law the President has just signed.
Rut the Belfast enlarged and improved
nublic building will be only matter OF
time. Probably before this summer
is over the plans will be prepared IN the
Treasury Department. and during the
canning winter there will be opportun-
itv TO call for bids, to advertise Tor the
same and TO award the contract. Before
leaving Washington Gov. Burielgh talk
cd with Architect Taylor and was as
.sured that he would get around to the
Belfast and other Maine projects as
rapidly as possible. AS building oper-
ations can be conducted in Name to Tar
better advantage in the summer months
Mr. Taylor said it was doubtful Wheth-
er Belfast could be reached for a year.
There would hardly be time to dispose
of the necessary prehmlnarles IN time
for beginning on the project this sum-
mer.
Although he is showing no evidences
of such d tendency Gov. Burlelgh has
right to feel little "chesty" over the
fine stunt he pulled off with the omnibus
public buildings bill made law. If he
had not done anything else this session,
that would be enough to make up a
pretty good record for one Maine Con-
gresham. He almost slept with that
bill for couple of months, until it had
become tiIesome subject with him.
Then when he had written into the
bill all that he wanted, or felt that he
had any chance to get, he had to
scheme and vancouver how to keep the
committee from voting any of the items
out. Once the bill was reported to the
House all the Maine items were reason
ably safe, but then the Governor, as
sisted by the two Maine Senators, had
to look out lest the Senate Committee
or the Senate should strike at the
Maine appropriations, for, OF course, a
number of Congressman who had not
secured as much as they wanted began
to point their fingers at the Maine
items and to ask why little State like
Maine should have SO much and they
should have so little. And when the
rocks and pitfalls of the Senate had
been passed there was the conference
of the two houses over the differences.
But Gov. Burleigh had seat with the
conferees and was able to look out in
person for his Maine items. If there
had been thlee or four Maine items it
would have different but there were
eleven children to look after, and that
was a somewhat hefty task. The up
shot of it all is that Maine cities were
all pretty we'll looked after, far better
than the towns and cities of any other
State. All the money necessary has
not been appropriated in every instance,
but the government has been CON-
mitted to number of Maine projects
by the purchase of sites and in due
time will be certain of ample appropri-
atoms for buildings. Much was done
on the present bill toward enlarging
and repairing public buildings in Maine
cities. Gov. Burleigh could hardly
have done more had he been chairman
of the committee. In some particulars
he was freer and able to do more fol
his own State because he was not the
chairman. And in addition to looking
after Maine interests he looked out
carefully for the interests of other
New England States.