Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-02-26
nth LEGISLATURE
CONTINUED from Page Two)
draw upon for those expenses. that the

dSemenC OF any cOIPOIdtioIi, VI any
city of county or even the business
management of this State requires
that expenditures shall have some re-
lation to the amount of income rea-
sonably in sight.
The Governor said in his veto mes
sage yesterday that in looking over
the business affairs Of this State and
looking over the prospective income
for the next two years-and by that
do not mean, for instance, the matter
of inheritance taxes, where if some
rich man should die in the next two
years and the State may derive from
that source an inheritance tax OF
$1,000, for that is not matter which
can be discounted in advance, and you
cannot tell what the income from some
Of those sources in the next two years
may be. but you do have check to a
certain degree upon a certain amour.
of income, and that involves as 4
business proposition that the Governor
of this State can figure that he will
have to meet the amounts appropriated
by the Legislature and the amounts
necessarily spent in the incidental eX-
penSeS that come up all through the
year. Now. when he is looking it over
it seems to him and mind you, it is
alright to talk about one-man power,
and it is alright to criticize the er-
feet of the veto, but the veto provision
was not put into the Constitution I'M
less it was with the idea that circum
sances might arise where the Chief
Executive would feel called upon to
use it, and for that very same reason
the provision is in our Constitution
that a two-thirds vote is necessary to
pass bill over the veto of the Gov
ernor.
The Governor of this State in law, in
fact and in the eyes of the people is
charged with the responsibility for its
financial affairs for the next two years
lie cannot escape it and he cannot dodge
it, and he cannot shoulder the response
bility upon the Legislature: the respon-
sib!lity in regard TO the financial condi-
ton OF this State for the next tWe years
is upon the Governor, and is largely be-
cause the people OF this State thought he
was the proper man for that that he was
chosen Governor, and the Governors be-
fore him have been chosen Governors.
In all campaigns the speakers of al
parties have advocated the election of
their candidate because they said that
their candidate, in the case of Governor
COBB, Governor Fernald and Governor
Haines, and these different men were
good men and competent to look afte:
the general financial affairs of the State
1t is inevitable then, gentlemen, that
a Governor charged with this respon
sibility should look around and see VIVA,
total amount of appropriation he can
stand for; it is inevitable that he should
divide this amount among the different
branches of the State and decide INFO
what particular branches this should be
divided, The Governor has expressly
stated that he does not care how tits
amount of $4,000 is divided. whether You
give SO much to one town and so much
TO another; he has no purpose and nc
desire and no wish to interfere with the
province Of the Legislature in that re-
spect; he does feel that the Responsibilities
is upon him that the total amount shall
not be exceeded and that the finances OF
this State shall be plunged into chaos
with his consent. and for that reason
he has sent down this veto message.
Now in regard to this particular matter
Representative Dutton. l think. will bear
me out; there is nothing personal in this
matter against the gentleman from Bing-
ham. Mr.. Dutton, and there is nothing
personal against these three towns. and
nothing personal against the county of
Somerset nothing of that nature what
ever: it just happened that these three
resolves happened to be the ones that
came up before the Governor yesterday
and were passed over the Governor S
veto, otherwise they would be killed alb
solutely for this session. The Governor
sent for Representative Dutton last
night and asked the representative to
withdraw these resolves and to keep them
here in the House or in the Senate until
such time as all the appropriations for
this purpose could be collected. in order
that he could see that the total amount
would not be in excess of the amount
that this State could fairly and properly
spend for this purpose. I have conferred
this morning with Representative Duttoa
and with the Governor, not more than
Is minutes ago, and the gentleman from
Bingham understands that situation per-
fectly but feels that the resolves having
once been passed should not be brought
back; but the responsibility for the de-
feat of these matters. if they are defeat
ed-and I believe that this House will
vote to sustain the Governor-the respon-
sibility for the defeat of these matters
does not rest upon the Governor, and
cannot be made to rest there by any fair
argument. The gentleman from Bing
ham. Mr.. Dutton, has had an opportunity
to bring them back.
Now, gentlemen. it is not right to say
that bills should not be passed Just SIM
ply because they are the first ones in
the hopper; it should not prove anything
because a man gets his bill in first, or
if he is fortunate enough to get it out
of the committee first, or is fortunate
enough that nobody tables it or delays
its passage; that does not necessarily
prove that out of this $125,O0O should
necessarily come the amount covered by
this particular appropriations; it may or
may not. 1t is just like a man with an
income of $3.50 year starting out in the
beginning of the year to buy everything
he wanted; he bought a horse and he
bought new piano and he finally bought
a secondhand automobile and a bicycle
for one of the boys: when he got around
to the next December he would very