Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-03-22

al 5HiiteHt III regard TO Amendment II
applied to this Amendment %" large
part of his argument was that there
might be new lineup of parties in fu-
tufe and there might not be any Re
publican party or any Progressive par
" or any Democrat party; but there is
one thing we all know, and that is that
the people are always with us, we always
nave with us the people who vote. Now
he speaks about this being analogous to
the supreme judicial court | wish TO
state that in my judgment the supreme
court is a court of law, while this is not
court of law; this will be a court-you
may call it a court, as he states, and it
will stand between the people and the
great public utilities of the State.
Now what has been the condition in
the past under this method of appoint
ment by the Governor? The only board
that ! can think of which has been a
board analogous to this new board about
road commissioners who stand between
the railroads of our state and the people
Of the State. Are the people of Maine
or have the people of Maine been salts
fed that the board of railroad commits
SlOIPIS Oh Adlilt unutf appointment ny
the Governor have stood faithfully by
the interests of the people Of Maine? /
make the statement that they have not
been satisfied; they are not satisfied to-
day What objection can there be to al
lowing, after the appointment of the
first commission and after the commits
sion has been at work and is put in
working order and properly started
what objection can there be to letting
the people elect the new commissioners,
one every two years? DO We distrust
the people? As | understand it, one OF
the leading doctrines of the Progressive
party in this last election, and ! may say
of all parties, is that We want to bring
the government back To the people Now
hope we have not forgotten tnat prin-
ciple in 50 short Il time. The people
who are qualified to elect Il Governor oil
this State are qualified to elect a beara
Of public utilities commissioners. Surely
if they are intelligent enough to elect a
Governor they will be intelligent enough
to elect the commissioners themselves. /
cannot see any argument in that propo-
Sition ] can see an argument if it Is
provided that this board shall be iinme-
uldIeiN tltttfu IN the Dtbplt tDHt THO
does not apply until practically after the
first board has been in office, after the
first board has been chosen and has
started in good shape. In one way 1t
changes the term Of office, and il makes
the terms of the commissioners two.
four and six years. The first election
by the people would be on the first
Wednesday of January. 1914. and annu
ally thereafter or every two years there
after they would elect a new commits
sioner There would always be two old
commissioners on the board and the new
commissioner would be fresh from the
people, and l think, with all due respect
to the sub-committee-and / have no
doubt they have worked faithfully and
honestly on this matter TO get the best
bill, that no party or ne set of men can
say of this matter that we cannot trust
the intelligence of the people of Maine.
The tendency nowadays is to elect even
the United States senators by the people.
believe, and we all believe, that tins
will be the law in a very short time We
are talking even now about the direct
Presidential vote, and everything is tend
ing towards leaving with the people as
much power as possible.
Ny brother speaks ABOUT keeping this
matter out of politics. / don't know any
better way to keep it out of politics than
to leave these elections to the people,
for it follows as a natural course, as Il
rule, that if the Governor is elected by
one party naturally the selection will be
made from his own party. 1t is possible
if the matter is left 10 the people that
they may see fit to elect a Governor OF
their own party, or there may be a pub
lie utilities commissioner who has done
such good service that he would be Sc
lected. think that is one of the great
arguments in leaving it to the people
that ii would take it out of politics.
see no good reason why this amendment
should not be fairly considered by this
body.
Mr.. SMITH of Patten: Mr. Chair
man, just one word more. We are
arranging for tribunal which is pro-
posed to be in a way made up OF
experts along certain lines. Nobody
has ever suggested in this State that
we elect our judges of the supreme
court, because it would get the judges
of the court into a political scramble.
You would not get the right kind of
men for judges in such scramble,
and this is true of this commission
as il would lie true of the supreme
court. You would throw the whole
thing once in two years into the tur-
moil of politics. 1t is not like elect
ing a member of the Legislature, or
n State Senator, or "A county com
missioner. or anYthink of that sort.
1t is to pick out by careful considera
ton and selection men to fill Il very
high office, men who would be adapted
to the office.
If YOU get this matter into the
primaries you will have n dozen or
more candidates running for office,
and a man of dignity a man who is
fit to fill the position would not get
into that scramble; somebody would
be nominated and be elected, and he
would be elected as n member of the
prevailing political party: it would be-
come purely a matter of politics. Now,
that is not desirable, ana il mas never
been deemed desirable in regard to the
supreme court. There has always
been Il division upon the supreme
bench between the two political par
ties. We have provision in this bill
which takes care of the proposition
hat opr,ninta1 Shn11l1 he