Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-09-04

interview was published iY this news
paper last evening. Governor Curtis
says that the figures which Mr. CAL
lahan uses in his interview are abso.
lutely correct and no man can dis.
pute them. and he notes that Mr.. Call
lahan did not attempt. in his inter-
lew, to make it appear that the figures
were not correct. What the Cover
nor objects to most Of all. is that Mr.
Callahan should have taken the state
ment which he made in the regular
course of the States business as the
basis for a political argument
L wish you would say" said the
I Governor, that think it was a mean,
contemplate, cowardly trick, to take
the figures which l made only for the
Council. for their guidance. and at
tempt to play politics with them"
1T appears. according to Governor
Curtis statement, that the matter of
further expenditure for the Industrial
Home at HalIowell was pending before
the Council, and in order that the
members of that body might under
stand the exact situation Of the States
finances is the Governor did, he had
the statement drawn off and furnished
to each councillor before the meeting.
This sheet, he said, he had no in
tentlon of using in any other way ex-
cept as a source of information for his
Council Late in the afternoon, while
he was very busy, reporter for the
kennebec Journal came and asked his
private secretary for copy of the
! sheet which the councillors had, and
Mr.. McConville applied to him for the
permission. He responded in his US
ual oifhand way, Why. yes give it
to them if they want it," but he had
70 idea, when he made the figures,
that they would be for publication. He
is very much displeased because he
thinks Mr.. Callahan attempted to
make political capital out of his reg
| ular business work with his council
lcrs
! Asked if he had attempted to verif,
Mr.. Callahan's figures as applied to the
Plaisted administration. the Governor
said he had made no such effort, that he
did not care anything about any previous
! administration. These figures were mo-
taken out to reflect upon the Haines ad
ministration, the Plaisted administration
the Fernald administration or any other
but simply intended to give his council
! lors the exact situation, and he was no
concerned with any administration except
his own. He said it was his purpose t
give the State a good administration anc
! those Of other men must stand, as hi.
must. upon their own records
incidentally, though not considerins
| it of any special Importance, the Gov
ernor showed to the reporter a copy o.
the auditors report at Senate Document
No. H. and on page los of that documen
were found the figures to which he re
ferred, just as he had said. BY turnins
to page 70 of that document he founc
that there was nothing that applied t
Mr.. Callahan's argument. The probabil!
ties are that the auditors report as made
up and furnished by the department it
self does not correspond in the number
ing of the pages to the Senate document
from which the Governor took his fig
ures.
Governor Curtis added that he was
free to admit that he was fooled for q
time by Mr.. Callahan's figures as made
In his annual report as auditor, until he
found that the figures were wrong, bu,
he has now found they are not right anc
he shall never put confidence in Mr.. Cal
| lahan's figures again."