Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-03-10
WATER STORAGE BILL
REPORTED IN NEW DRAFT.
Continued from Page One.)

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the crop outlook.
AS an illustration; The National
Home at Togus is today paying by
contract for the quarter ending March
81, rs cents per bushel for potatoes and
the market has been SIS cents, fluctu-
ating from Is cents to rs cents per
bushel, or a margin of profit equalling
- per cent. The Maine Insane hos
pital has the opportunity % purchase
its butter and farm produce n its back
door directly from the farmer or the
country trader, and il expends actu
ally every year directly 10 Tie farmer
or trader for butter beef. eggs, fowl,
lambs, mutton veal pufatoes, apples,
beans and ether country produce
from $4,000 to $4,000, enabling the
institution to buy better quality at the
lowest market prices, dir city from the
Croducer. Competition ,ould at once
force the hospital to place contract
for its butter alone in the Boston mar
ket, because no one dealer in Augusta
or it's immediate vicinity is able to
take a contract for the butter without
depending upon the Boston market for
it's supply, and no dealer in Augusta
can buy butter in Boston market cheap
Ell than the Maine Insane hospital with
it's credit, consequently a middleman's
profit is added to every commodity in
the line of subsistence that is now pur-
chased directly of the farmer.
Should the Maine Insane hospital be
forced to purchase it's supplies by COM
pctitive bids, the market would be driv-
en- away from the small farmer and
producer and the trade generally would
b. driven into foreign and outside COM
petition forcing the farmer to Boston
for his market unnecessarily, and
compelling the State Of Maine to go
into Boston for it's supplies. On the
several items mentioned above it would
mean several thousand dollars lost to
the institution, and several thousand
dollars lost to it's taxpayers, the farm
,, e-s and producers, and the institution,
would not then be so we'll supplied
with SO good quality of goods.
lie beef supply for the National
Fl, &c Is practically divided equally be-
tween the two large Western beef
packers, Swift & Co, and Armour
x Co, and their figures while they
are submitted separately are known
each to each competitor. and each
quarter they divide up and say to each
other what part they shall have. Beef
is costing the National Home from one
to two cents more per pound than the
same goods or better quality is cost
ing the Maine Insane hospital, because
the Maine Insane hospital by being free
to buy the native beef of the
producer has the advantage of
ti,:..., fn,,,pati.ore. op6 MT tod to ar1,
one concern by reason of contract,
consequently competition enters in
and does not embarrass.
This same holds good in the matter
of feed, flour and all other items of
consumption. In the purchase of flour
the Maine Insane hospital with suffi-
cient storage has the opportunity of
buying flour only on the lowest mar
ket and by the present system is en-
ablcd to buy a half or years supply of
fcur. which enriches by age. and today
the hospital is using flour that is
worth on the present market rs cents
more per barrel than it costs and Of
tcntimes even 81 per barrel has been
saved by being enabled to take ad-
vantage of the low market.
Meal is contracted at Togus for TN
cents per b'ishel; quote t the hospi-
tai at the same time a , cents per
bushel, more than a 10 pee cent. reduc-
ton.
Manufacturing chemists sell large
hospitals pharmaceutical preparations
at precisely the same prices that they
sell the jobber. Paint manufacturers,
special varnish manufactr'e RS sell the
hospital inst as cheap "a th' Y sell the
jobber. If competition enters in. then
they would have to r~'!-'t tive jobbcr
to the extent OF from ~ 10 per cent.
For years the roa''ae'.. t,.Iit of the in
etitution has invit-l rH npetitive bids
on articles sad mater Is used. build
ing material tnd other supplies that
arc produced outside of the State,
Competition does enter IN and univer-
sally, quality being considered. the
lowest prices are obtained by reason Of
competition. Plumbing supplies are al
ways purchased on competitive bids.
ana any other supplies which do not
have standard market price are uni
vcrsalv submitted to several competi-
tors with schedule and the lowest
prices arc accepted.
Ills position was supported by A. w.
Prooks of the f. #. Parrot Co, and
Thomas G. Ingraham of the Fuller
Holway Co. of Augusta. Councillor
I'ike also objected to the bill
condtunally. He said he had
nothing against the bill unless it
would dcbar the warden Of the State
prison from exercising the latitude I'M
der which he has been enabled to save
he state a great deal of money and
make the State penal institution near
ly self supporting. IF the bill has no
t"eth on that side we have no objec-
ton to it, he said. but We do wish
to reserve to this capable man the
right to traffic, as we believe it is
good thing for the State"
Representative Pike of PASSPORT was
the sole supporter of his bill to pro-
DE that when voters right to cast
: ballot is challenged. the clerk shall
tie the mans name across the back.
representative Kavanough of Port
land presented Arthur II. Moulton of
Portland to speak for his bill which