Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-03-03

er, as a member of the committee on
legal affairs l believe it is my duty as
well as my privilege to say word IN
favor of the Office of assistant attorney
general 1t has been my province to
have more or less business with the Of
flee of the attorney general and his as
si.;tant in relation to corporation work,
aud know that we incorporatorS
want immediate action when we for
ward our certificate, we want some
body in the office who can take 1mme-
date action and who has authority to
sign the certificate. was not. however,
acquainted with the fact, until eX-
planned to the committee by the pres
ent incumbent, Mr.. Philbrook, of the
absolute necessity of some person In
the Office all the time who had legisla-
tive authority. Many charters granted
by the State of Maine go into foreign
countries, many of them to Brazil for
instance, where the bill after it has
been passed In the State of Maine is
published in the Gazetteer, reported to
the state department, by the State de-
partment reported to the ambassador
in this country, by the ambassador re-
>O,-S~>-
must certify back that the officer at
testing that certificate is an officer
having legislative authority. Now those
matters coming in on foreign bills re-
quire prompt and immediate attention.
The duties Of the attorney general re-
quire his absence from the State
House, require his absence from the
Office constantly, and in case there was
in, off a 1nDlSI1-
tive authority it might be weeks be-
fore the attorney general could return
to his office and take up the matters,
and in the meantime business is de-
Ii yed. I would not begin to attempt to
e-lplan the manifold duties incumbent
On the assistant attorney general. Mr..
Phlibrook knows them thoroughly. He
did not come before our committee
leading for an assistant. He said
that If the Office of assistant were abol-
ished he would attempt to do the bus
mess he would do all he could, but
what he could not do would have to
go undone and somebody's rights
would have to be neglected. SO I would
move the adoption of the report.
Mr.. MARSHALLr of Portland: Mr..
Speaker. already two members of the
committee on legal affairs have spoken
and I hardly think it is necessary for
E!e 10 add a word. I will simply call
attention of the House to the fact that
in 1905 the Legislature passed Chapter
1f2 which greatly enlarges the duties
Of the attorney general. 1t provides
that he shall be the law officer of the
State. 7 will not read the text of the
act in full but simply say that he shall
appear for the State, the secretary of
State, the treasurer of State, the bank
examiner, the insurance commission
err and the state boards in all suits
and proceedings in which the State
is q party or is Interested. In that con-
nection 1 will say that I understood
that heretofore, that is. before the
year 1905, it had been the prac-
tice and had been necessary for the
several departments to employ, moro
or less outside counsel; and as the
gentleman from Belfast has already
told you in some instances they
amounted to $500 per year for one in
dividual; and if l recall correctly the
figures / think in some years the total
amount has reached as high as $4,000
for outside counsel, and that outside
counsel have been. not constantly but
from time to time, employed by one
department or another in as many as
II of the different counties of this
State.
Now this act of 1905 made it in
cumbent on the various departments
to seek the attorney generals depart
lhent for all counsel and it put the
attorney general upon a salary of
$4,000, also creating the Office of as
sistant attorney general at a salary
of $500 a year. Up to this time the
attorney general had been keeping the
fees under the law, and if 1 am cor
rectly informed they have in some
years amounted to as high as $1,000 or
$4,000. Thus you will see, gentlemen,
why creating the Office of assistant
att 1rney general and putting all those
departments upon the attorney general
anil his assistant and providing them
with q fixed salary, there has been n
direct saving to the State. Moreover,
it is made the duty of the attorney
general to attend criminal cases where
his services may be required, and it is
not possible for him to attend to the
civil end of the work at this capitol
and at the same time give his atten-
ton to the criminal end of it, perhaps
in Aroostook or Washington county or
in some distant part OF the State. in
addition to that during the past few
years since the Office of assistant at-
/ torney general has been created. there
have been times when both the attcr-
ney general and the assistant attorney
general, if I am not mistaken, have
been called away to attend to criminal
duties. These are but a few of the
reasons which I believe should entitle
the Office to stand where it is. / hope
the motion of the gentleman from
Waterville will not prevail.
Mr.. PATTANGtLL Of Waterville:
Mr.. Speaker, did not have any idea
i that was going to precipitate SO much
L