Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-04-03

I
| straw?
Now, gentlemen, last year | spent $25,
! 600 in additions to my hotel, and ! con
! slider that 'have as good a summer no
| tel as there is .on the coast of Maine, an(
because my sheets are only 50 inches
| long. | have got to go and throw then
| overheard and bay some new ones; my
| towels are only IL inches wide and II
inches long. and therefore they have got
| to go with the other paraphernalia of
| the house. The gentleman says, why
should we not be placed under superViS-
| ion the same as the public utilities of
the State. Gentlemen, put us under tho
public utilities and | viii agree TO il, but
don't pass a bill TO make a place for
some travelling man who comes down
here and tries to lobby this bill through
the Legislature. some man who would
not be big enough to handle the hotels
of the State. We want a $1,000 man,
the same as the chairman of the board
of public utilities viii be, in order to
handle this great business | submit 10
you that the Rickers are about as good
hotel men as there are in the State of
hdIift' anu Nt4tE dtt d5dlIiSb Wis ill''t'N-
urc ! have had letters from hotel men
from Kittery Point to Quoddy Head,
who seem to be unanimous as they say,
n their objection to the passage Of this
bill
These hotels have been built mp by
private enterprise ana not by a charter
received from the Legislature. and as l
said before. if you want to put us I'M
der guardianship. put us under this great
commission which you have already
created. And if you look over the his.
tory of this Legislature ! am afraid
that when we get home and meet our
people they will say that We have Gre
ated offices enough, and / certainly hope
the motion of the gentleman from Phil
lips tMr Austin) Will not prevail. +,
Mr.. SANBORN of South Portland Mr.
Speaker, believe the subject of this
bill is entirely too serious TO be bluffed
ont of court Personally | feel hardly.
qualified to discuss it inteIlisently. be-
cause have never had the slightest in
terest in the ownership or management
Of any hotel. and my style of living is
such that ! have very little occasion To
patronize hotels, J am willing to say
Just Il word upon this matter from the
standpoint of the committee to which
the bill WAS referred, and that may pos
sibly answer some of the objections that
have been made. AS to the drafting of
the bin we were credibly informed that
it was drawn by committee represent
ing both the travelling public and the
hotel owners, a committee assisted by
entirely competent and capable counsel
I believe that to have been the fact. and
I do not suppose that the people who
drew the bill were fully ignorant of the
subject either from the standpoint of
the owner or from the standpoint of the
patrons of our hotels.
The bill as ii was presented to the
committee did as a matter of fact have
some features in it which were objec
tionable some which were Objectionable
to the hotel keepers and some which
were objectionable to the travelling peo-
pie. These We're entirely eliminated.
and so far as | know eliminated TO the
satisfaction of all parties concerned.
There WAS largely attended hearing,
fully as largely from the hotel keepers
as from the travelling men, and il seem
ed quite Significant To rs that there
should be such unanimity ON the part of
the interests which might be supposed
TO be adverse: the indication being that
the travelling people We're asking for
only what was properly their due, and
the hotel men being present acted from
The standpoint of the better owners and
the reputable owners and the responsible
owners of hotels. exhibiting a desire
which is seen in all other lines of bust
ness and all other professions, to raise
the standard and to bring the standard
up 10 that of those who are in the bust
ness with a view to conducting it on
reputable lines,
1t may be true that there are hotels
in the State of Maine which are not up
to the standard set in this bill. and if
there are such hotels il seems TO the
committee and it seems to the better
classes or hotel men only fair that they
should be required to raise their stand
ard. THE provisions that are included
in this bill-and they have been very
fully gone over by the gentleman from
Phillips Mr.. AUSTIN and will not I'M
dertake To repeat them-the provisions
contained in this bin relate substantial
ly to two subjects, those relating to the
sanitary conditions and those relating
to the safey of the patrons of our no.
tells. The bill seemed to us not
to go any further than what was
proper and what was desirable in
either of these directions: and we
felt, and the report was unanimous, and
so far as we knew at the time
of the hearing which was largely attend
ed, and so far as we have learned since
that time, there has been no objection
whatever on the part of any except a
few of those, as have been characterized
by the gentleman from Kittery (Mr.
MitchelD as public benefaetors. 1 do not
believe, and / do not believe it will be
seriously contended, that that class OF
people who are catering to the patron
age of people of wealth and cultivation
and refinement from out of the State, |
do not believe that class of people will
seriously come before us and ask for a
lower standard in conducting their bust
ness from that which the commissioner