Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-03-26

! and furnishing 1t at cost to the citizens
of the city of Lewiston. This is Il local
question, but it may be very far rea ching
in regard to our city.
q Mr. MARSHALL of Portland: Mr..
fSpeaker and gentlemen of the House. l
| will discuss very briefly the attitude
| taken by the majority of the committee
| on legal affairs respecting this PROPOSE
ton to allow the city of Lewiston to en-
gage in the business of cutting and SELL
ing ice to it's inhabitants. 1 don't know
anything about the local conditions there.
MOI do I know who are the officers of
the corporation, nor do I care. Perhaps
| thse who know those conditions better
than I do will state to you in regard to
| them. I only know what was brought
out at the hearing, which was an Animal
| ed one and protracted one. The major
| ity of the committee, think, went to the
| fundamental difficulty of the proposition
proposed by the gentleman from Lewis
| ton (Mr. Edwards); that is to say this
| committee or a majority of the commit
| tee, all but two, believed that the propo-
| sition to allow a municipality to take
private property and to use it for mer-
! camille pursuit is unconstitutional We
do not believe that it is our duty as law
yers to report to this mouse favorably a
| bill which we believe is unconstitutional
| and fundamentally unSound. We believe
| that it is not our duty-or l will put it the
| other wayne believe that it is our duty
| to report Fought not to pass" on any
proposition which we believe is unconsti-
| tutional, and that we should not put it up
| to the supreme court of this State to de-
| termne that question. We believe we
should act here in making sound laws
and in accordance with the dictates of
our own judgment.
Now, as to the unconstitutionality of it.
| I will not weary the House with any long
| citation of authorities. I will Simply say
| that this matter has been practically
passed upon by the supreme court of this
State; that it has been practically passed
upon by the supreme court of Massachu-
sets. I would quote from the supreme
| court of Massachusetts, and the matter
| was put up, as 1 understand it, in the
| 1S2d Mass by the Legislature to the SUI
preme court of Massachusetts for an
| opinion. and the proposition was this: To
allow cities and towns to engage in the
| wood and fuel business. The court in
| that decision says: 1.-THE use of money
of the taxpayers for such purpose would
| not be public use, but a use for a spe-
| cial pecuniary benefit to those who hap
pened to be affected by the state of the
| coal market"
| Now, in order to take property by right
| of eminent domain and to use it by the
municipality it must be for the reason
| hot oyir
must be for public purpose Now, gen.
tlemen of the House, in this case was it
| demonstrated that public eXigencies de-
manded the taxing? In the minds Of the
| committee there was no such eXigency
displayed 1t was stated before the hear
| ing and I do not understand that it is
disputed-it was not certainly at the hear
| ing-that the city of Lewiston today is
receiving ice at cheaper rate than are
any of the following cities: Gardiner, Ban
gor, Waterville, Portland. Bath, Augusta,
| and I think many other towns For in
| stance, the city of Lewiston receives Is
pounds of ice per day at the monthly rate
| of 81 %: in Gardiner it is $780, in Bangor
| it is $1.25; and % pounds in Bangor costs
| So against $1.5O in Lewiston; Portland pays
81 against s1.a5 in Lewiston; in Bath it is
| $50, and in Augusta for % pounds they
pay s1.SO, and in Lewiston $3.50. Certainly
on that showing | don't think as reason
| able men we can say that there was a
| prohibitive price or that the public eX-
| igcncy required it, because it was not
| shown that there was any famine or any
| shortage of ice in any respect.
| Mr. EDWARDS: Mr. Speaker, / would
like to ask the gentleman from Portland
a question. Have you the cost of produc-
| ing ice in Lewiston in comparison with
| that of other places?
The SPEAKER: Does the gentleman
from Portland, Mr.. Marshall, yield to
the gentleman from Lewiston for
| question?
Mr.. MARSHALL: AS l said in the
first place, / will answer it in this way:
| l say / do not know the local condi-
tons excepting as brought forth at the
| time of the hearing. / should judge
from the statements made at the hear
ing that in the city of Lewiston they
are peculiarly advantageously situated
to cut ice and that they can produce
| il cheaper than they can. for instance
in Portland and perhaps in some other
places. That is all know.
Mr.. EDWARDS: l would like to ask
the gentleman if there is not a genera
law now which provides that cities
can furnish wood and coal?
Mr. MARSHALL: Yes 1 believe there
is a general law. l don't consider that
the committee on legal affairs is at all
responsible for that law. and 1 would
very much like to see it tested by the
| supreme court. We did not find anG
did not believe that engaging in the ice
business is taking for public use with
in the meaning OF the statutes. 1t is
to our minds essentially different from
taking water or for many other strict
~ public purposes. Here is a matter
of retailing it out in carts, which is
really engaging in mercantile retail
business. 1t has been said that the
prices have differed or advanced great.
ly. 1t was brought out in the hearing
that up to a year and a half ago, OF
some short time ago, there We're two
companies doing business. 1t was
shown or offered in evidence that they
We're both losing money. They came
together. and / do not understand il
is trust simply one company bought
| ont the other, or one had to go to the