Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-03-29
THE 75th MAINE LEGISLATURE.
Reports Of Yesterdays Sessions Of
the Senate and House Of Representatives.


clusion sa tisfactory to all
Mr., MILLTKEN: Mr.. President;
wouldslife to make a statement IN my
own kfence in regard to this matter
and upon this resolve. and then am
perfectly willing to enter upon any ar
rangement that we can agree upon.
| This resolve is in favor of the trus-
tees of the Children's hospital Of tn"
city of Portland. Resolved that there
be and is hereby appropriated for the
use of the trustees of the Childrcn's
hospital in the city of Portland, tn"
sum of $4,000 for the year 1911 and
the sum of $1,000 for the year 1872.
provided that the money 50 appropriate
ed shall be used by said trustees for
| the maintenance of needy crippled or
deformed children residing within the
State OF Maine who shall be admitted
to said hospital for gratutious terms.
| Provided further that such expenditure
shall be subject to the approval Of the
| Governor and Council.
| 1t has been said, and was said this
morning in LONG editorial in a widely
circulated paper, that the action in re
| lation to the resolve i'll favor Of the
Children's hospital is to be charged
| up to me because of the objection |
made here. In justice to myself and to
| set this whole matter right before the
Senate. | want to say few words in
iregard to the precise condition that eX-
listed then. and also in regard to the
condition that existed and the action
taken by the last Legislature in rcla-
| ton to this institution. because | be-
lieve neither the Legislature nor the
Governor has Yet understood precisely
the obligation that the State assumed
in regard to this particular institution.
| see that it was stated in the news
paper | have just referred to, that a
proposition was mad" to the S'snate
at that time that the Governor was
willing to authorize the appropriation
of a certain amount to this hospital.
but not more. The facts are. and all
senator's will remember. that no propo-
sition was made by anyone represent
ing. or ostensibly representing the
Governor. as to any amount that IL
would authorize
A motion to reconsider was made
and as | understood. for the purpose of
indefinitely postponng the resolve. /
wish to state that the senator who
made the motion stated that he made it
by request of the Governor. He also
said among other things. that They
have lots of wealthy men in Portland
and Cumberland county, and if they
do not, after we have given them q
hospital, if they want this to run for
the year, they can put their hands in
their pockets and pay for it. We have
done all that we can. We are not in. a
condition this year to give a single
dollar" -
1 merely speak Of that TO show that
at the time the alternative was whether
this matter should be Indefinitely post
poned or the action of the Senate re-
considered. l was opposed to recon-
sideration. l did understand indirect
ly that it was not the Governors In
tention to veto this resolve, but that
he wished the Senate to take care of
it in the way suggested by the sen
ator.
l want to say further, 50 far as | |
am personally concerned that in In |
PRODUCING this resolve, or in any ac-
ton | have taken. | represent no one |
but myself. No trustee of the hospi- |
tails knows anything about this resolve |
or its provisions, unless he has read |
about it this morning. / have an in |
tcrest in this matter and it is the same
interest which any man would have |
in il, because when l think of this hos |
OF my own children and try to imagine |
how | feel if they were crippled or |
deformed and / were not able to pro-
Il l.
was3with that feeling, when | found
last Saturday that the institution MAS
likely to be closed, that / went down TO |
Portland and spent a day 10 satisfy my
self about that institution. / exam |
inad it from cellar to garrett, went |
through the plant and through the |
books and examined, everything in CON
nection with the whole institution
Before I speak for a moment about |
the resolve, / wish to make a very |
plain. precise statement of the sltua-
ton of the State in regard to this in !
stitution for | do not think it has been
made plain. 1t is the duty of the State. |
as everybody understands, to care for
all classes of unfortunatcs within its
borders We might almost SAY that
IT ~ tit mot sacred GutN OF tho state, |
and following that policy, We have
cared for the insane, focble m.uded. |
deaf, blind and poor
There is a class of unfortunatcs in |
the stat" that far outnumbers all others |
referred to- insane. feeble miadCd, deaf, |
dumb and blind, all put together. and
that class of unfortunat"S nrr thu Grip
pred and deform"d children within Thu;
state 1hat Was very forribly brought
out the other day by the senator from
Cumberland, There are probably ia. 600
within this State. Within the I.st
Few years methods have been discov-
cred and developed by tho science Of
medicine and surgery for the relief of
these unfortuEates. not known = few
years ago.
Two Ncars ago during tho sessio, :,
definite proposition came to the Iegis-
lature to provide through the agenc,,
Of the state for the relief of this class
This institution was then a private
institution, founded largely through pri
vatc sources, but the State definitely
agreed to contribute toward the build
ing of the hospital and definitely agreed
to be responsible for it's maintenance
so FAR as money could not be SECURED