Daily Kennebec journal., 1917-02-15
r.uv urNNrREc JOURNAL THURSDAY, Is, 1917

/
have fulfilled this requirement. This
requirement simply means that boy
shall have some preliminary education.
! We might say that General Grant to-
day, or General Lee, or any of the great
generals in history. could not pass the
examination that they are putting up
to the young men to become reserve
officers in the United States army. Is
that any argument, gentlemen, is that
any argument for doing away with the
test, with the examination for admis-
sion, as ranking men as captains in
the army, because in the past they did
not have them. Those same men, those
same generals, if they were alive today
would have the industry, the ability
and having the opportunity wide open,
they would have enough industry to
acquire the knowledge SO that they
would be able to pass these tests. And
what are these tests for? Why do we
have any restriction either for the
medical or the legal profession? 1t is
simply in the interests of efficiency.
And this great national organization,
the American Bar Association, hav-
ing representatives in every state
| in the Union, of which our distin-
guished senator from Penobscot,
Senator Gillin, is member of one
of their committees on uniformity OF
laws, introducing the other day bills
which 1 hope will go through to carry
out uniformity of our laws, are trying
! through their organization to get IN
creased efficiency in the practice of law,
and are doing it by recommending some
/ qualification. Now if this qualification
! is not so strict is reasonable so that
| any boy or man can pass it i'll Maine
today, having PAS High schools at whicn
/ boys can attend, and if they can't at
tend those High schools they simply have
/ to acquire the knowledge which they
would have acquired in the schools, | say
that not only for the benetlt of the pub
lie but for the man himself, and for in
creased efficiency in the practice of law,
that this act is reasonable and ought to
be passed Thank you.
The PRESIDENT: The question be-
fore the Senate is on the motion of the
senator from Cumberland.
/ Mr. MERRILL of Somerset: Mr.. Pres
dent, this is a very important measure
to the people of the State of Maine. EV-
ery man and every interest in the State
of Maine has an interest in this bill. 1t
does not prevent any young man from
presenting himself, if qualified, for exam
ination to the bar. Now what are the
real interests that we all have, whether
lawyers or laymen. III this bill? What is
! its object? Its object is for the better
preparation and the safeguarding of the
/ The nJlhlic does
not always know what a mans qualifica-
I tions are, either as a lawyer or as
| physician or as a clergyman.
| Now the profession of medicine is safe-
| guarded and protected by the statute
! laws of our State, and it prohibits lgnor-
! ant uneducated men from putting out
| their shingles as proficient in medicine
Why is it? 1t is because the good sense
of the Legislature of the State of Maine
1 safeguarding the lives of its citizens
and protecting them from ignorant men
praCticing the profession of medicine. Inc
next thing in importance, and the next
question of interest to the people of the
State of Maine is the protection and the
welfare of their property rights, and it is
for that purpose that ignorant, unquali-
fed men shall not hold themselves out
to the public as attorneys at law. And
every gentleman in the profession in this
Senate knows from personal experience,
from absolute knowledge of individual
cases, where people have suffered beyond
measure in consequence of entrusting to
inefficient men in the profession their
property rights; suffered beyond measure
I submit. Mr. President ard fellow SEN
ators. that there is no hardship in this
bill for any man. young man or old man.
who wants to enter upon the profession
of the law. The qualifications required
are very simple and very modest.
Mr. President and gentlemen, I second
the motion of the senator from Cumber-
land that the bill be substituted for the
report.
Mr.. GILL1N: Mr. President. in answer
to the distinguished member of the bar
I wish to say that he has entirely for
gotten to mention to the distinguished
senators that there is now upon the stat
ute books of the state Of Maine laws
which 10 members of the prof ssion after
due consideration regarded as adequate
as this law and may be 50. 1t requires
years of study. 1t requires that the par-
ty go before an examining board and #
he cannot pass the examination of the
statute he cannot be admitted to practice
and foist his ignorance upon the people
of the State And after due consideration
of that statute as compared with this
statute, about which the very man VIII,
presented the bill couldn't tell US any
thing, a statute which has been in the
past and now is on the statute books of
the State, thought it advisable to stay
with that statute until a proper bill coul
be drawn by either the American Bar
Association or the State Bar Association
that would dovetail onto that statute ami
make it better, if it is necessary to make
it better. We have, in conclusion, Mr..
President and senators. a statute now
which requires years of study, and then
after those years of study, that the stu
dent must submit himself to an eXamin-
ing board appointed under the laws of
your State, to be admitted to the bar Of
the state, and we say that that ought 70
be sufficient.
Mr.. HOLT: Mr.. President. if / may
be allowed one word more. Before this
bill was introduced-I was sorry | could