Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-03-24

every judge upon the bench of Maine,
and a higher class of men never wore
the ermine than the judges OF the
State of Maine. They are above re-
proach. You can trust them with
Jurisdiction in these cases and they
ought to have it as they have it in all
other cases.
That is all I have to say. l shall
vote against this bill for that reason,
otherwise l should let the promoters
of that bill add another fire to those
that have been burning for years.
Mr.. HASTINGS of Oxford: Mr..
President: This bill is very simple
and is we'll understood by the members
of the Senate, think. 1t mas been dis
cussed here all winter pro and con, and
1 am very certain that every senator
is as ready to vote at the present time
as he would be after long discussion.
For my own part, l am ready to vote
now and to trust to the judgment OF
the Senate.
No reflection whatever was intended
to be made upon any member of the
supreme court when | introduced the
bill But ] want to touch upon that
briefly. The supreme court OF this
State at the present time ar giving
sentence just exactly as laid down in
the statutes, and they have no trouble
with the jures convicting. or course,
another objection is that the first Of
fender ought to be shown some lenl-
ency. Gentlemen of the Senate, the
first offender, in 80 cases out of a 100,
is an old offender who has just been
caught. | myself think that he ought
to have the penalty now laid down in
the statute when he is first brought up.
There is another question, and that
| is about trusting the supreme court.
There is no reflection upon them. They
| do not so consider it. They have been
| consulted and they have said just what
| they want; and they desire to be re-
| lieved of this great pressure which is
| brought to bear upon them every time
! they go irto a notification county.
With this simple answer to the sem
| ator from Knox, I am ready to vote.
Mr.. STAPLES: l wish to say, Mr.
| President, that | too have consulted
some of the judges of the supreme
| court, and they differ from what my
| brother has said. l move that when
| the vote is taken, it be taken by the
yeas and nays.
The PRESIDENTS: The pending
| question is upon the motion of the
senator from Oxford that the bill be
| given its second reading. The Chair
| will state that the bill has not been
committed to the committee on bills
| in second reading. and there is no re-
port of the committee on bills in second
| inc VIII
| in order to have the bill take it's sec
ond reading at the present time, the
rules must be suspended.
| Mr.. HASTINGS of Oxford: / move,
Mr. President, that the rules be sus-
pended and that the bill be given it's
second reading at the present time
without reference to the committee on
| bills in second reading.
The question being put upon the mo-
ton to suspend the rules, the motion
| prevailed.
The pending question being upon the
motion that the bill take it's second
reading ut the present time and pass
| ed to be engrossed, the yeas and nays
| having been called for and ordered,
| the vote being had, resulted as follows:
| Those voting yea We're: Messrs. Boyn-
ton, Colcord, Donigan, Eaton, Gowell,
Hamilton, Hastings, Howes. Irving.
Knowlton, Macomber. Minott, Osgood,
| Reynolds, Shaw, Smith, Theriault,
I Walker, Wyman (20). Those voting
nay We're: Messrs. Baxter, Hill. KEEL
| logg, Looney. Mullen. Staples, Warren,
| Wheeler 81.
| So the motion prevailed and the bill
| took its second reading and was pass
| ed to be engrossed.
On motion by Mr. Staples of Knox,
Majority report, legal affairs commit
| tee, ought not to pass, on bill AN Act
| to protect the State of Maine against
| paying judgments obtained against of
| ficers when the supreme court of Maine
| has declared the officers in the exer-
| else of their duties are trespassers and
| have been guilty of torts in the eXer-
| else of their duties also minority re-
| port of the same committee, on samo
bill. ought to pass" We're taken from
| the table.
The same senator further moved
that the minority report fought to