Daily Kennebec journal., 1911-02-24
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E1lEotstATuSEs
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this matter which wish to force up
on the attention of the members al this
time when the business OF the House
is crowding upon us, but as member
OF the legal affairs committee who saw
ct after a proper hearing on this ques-
tion of Osteorathy to sign the ma
jority report. | beg your Indulgence
while l present the situation as il was
presented to us, from my standpoint
as I remember the situation. l regret
exceedingly that | am not able to find
myself in agreement with the gentle
man from Ellsworth as to a demand
FOR judging by the volume of mail. the
number of letters which I myself and
others have received not only from my
immediate constituents but from cit
izens of the State in other regions than
that in which 1 reside, there would
certainly seem TO be ample evidence OF
q. demand at the present time for rec
,ognition and regulation of the practice
OF 0stcopathy in the State Of Maine.
In discussing the matter at the pres
eEt time or in its consideration at the
hearing before the legal affairs com
naittee or in talking upon it. | wisl1
to be understood as recognizing no
controversy whatever between the va
rious schools of medicine, the various
Sects. class or profession of men who
sadminister TO the health of the peo-
pie of this and other states; l recog-
1iize no controversy l say. 1t is not q
matter with which / can successfully
cone. / am not so fortunate as to pas
yhnS 80 ar
scientific learning which enables me .G
pass upon the question of whether Os-
teoi,athy is scientific or otherwise.
believe there are men whose duty il
should have been to appear before the
committee after a hearing had been
50 extensively advertised. and if Os-
feop.ithy is q menace To the health 0f
tic citizens of the State Of Maine they
should have told US 50. No one ap-
Dnarcd and told us that. I doubt if
ANYBODY appears now and says il is n
menace to the health Of the people of
this State. The fact is, Mr. Speaker
and gentlemen, the Osteopaths are
rracticing their profession and they
are In the State of Maine. They are
here and regularly and legally so.
They are justified in their present sit
dation. a large number of citizens Of
this state in the various cities and
towns have seen fit to employ them.
believe II is our duty as representa- :
tives of the people here assembled to
recognize demand from n reasonably
large number of our constituencies
There are certain people, hundreds oil
it may be thousands, who desire Il
patronize some members of this school
of Osteopathy. l believe, them it is out
duty to do justice by those people. We
regulate at the present time, druggists
dentists, tliose who wish to practice
the art Of veterinary science. we reg
liate the practice of medicine in its
present form, we license and regulate
the admission TO the practice of law
before the bars Of this State: and I
believe il is perfectly reasonable. and
more than that I believe II Is In line
with the modern tendency of thought.
that the people of the state Of Maine
who desire to patronize any sect. or
echool oil medicine should know that
they arc getting what they desire to
purchase. believe it is within the
prnyincc Of government of the State
of Maine to say TO these people, IF
you employ an Osteopatlf this LAW
guarantees that you are employing a
graduate Of a scientific school, one
who gives you the regular Osteopathic
treatment" so I believe. these Osteo-
paths are justified in asking the State
Of Maine to put them upon basis by
which not only their profession es n
monopoly would be protected frcm the
introduction of other Osteopaths who
might or might not be versed in their
science, but ! believe that the peo-
ple and those who practice Osteopathy
have a right to be protected from the
of Irregular Osteopaths.
| wish to refer to the history of this
bill briefly, and then l have finished
This bill was introduced early in the
session. II came to the legal affairs
committee promptly. 1t reached there
at an early stage of the proceedings. it
has received wide and extensive
advertising in the daily papers of the
State. and when il came on for a hear
ing it was presented by its opponents
in q new draft and ] understand that
the new draft is practically a copy of
the bill which provides for the regis
tration of the so called regular prac-
tiiioners of medicine. In other words,
the statute already in existence pro-
ylding for the regulation of the prac-
tice Of medicine was embodied into
this new draft with the proper changes
such az the insertion of the word
'tOsteopath" or "Osteopathic. and the
proper ehangeS of the bill, making it
aDDIica bile to this school. So If this hill
is proper for the regulation and regis
tration of the older school of medi-
cine. i believe it is proper, right and
Just for the registration of this newer
school Of medicine which is attaining
Aatronage by the citizens of this
State.
MReference has been made in the cor