Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1921-03-17
DAILY KENNEBEc JOURNAL THURSDAY, MARCH II, 1921

made similar to this-not rejecting
on the parties whom Senator Emer-
son represents at aH-but some of
these parties have made large claims.
irresponsible parties, and they were
turned down, while some other claims
were made by responsible parties,
and they had three years in success
sion chickens killed by the rats, and
in one instance it run up as high as
IT'S that were killed in one night by
rats. Therefore they called on the
selectmen. They said thed didn't
reckon a rat wild animal while he
inhabited the house and stayed
around dwellings, and that the poul-
try didn't come within the scope of
domestic animals So 1 say when
we commence to pay damages on
poultry that is killed by wild ami
mails and dogs or rats, we are launch
ing into quite an opening and just
know. I am the last man who ought
to say word against protecting the
farmer in his poultry or cattle or
anything of that kind. Somehow it
don't strike me as opening just the
right door. l am not saying anything
about the law because that has been
explained by our law attorneys here,
to which l do not file any exceptions
because / am not capable of it. But
under the conditions it seems as
though we are a good deal at sea on
this subject; if we pay for every hen
killed by rats or dogs or wild ami
lie, H. af 1T,
/ do not know whether hawk
would be considered a wild animal,
perhaps he might on the same plane
that we consider rats wild animals
and chickens domestic animals
do not know where you would stop.
Mr.. THOMPSON: Mr.. President,
in reply to the suggestion of the
Senator from Penobscot, Senator
Thombs, I think he must have misun-
derstood my contention. under
stood him to say that the opinion of
the report of the committee was in
defiance with various opinions of at
torney generals in former years.
think | stated, at least 1 intended to,
that | had heard that such an opin-
ion had been given by a former at
torney general, and that I went to
the Attorney Generals office to find
out If it was true, and | found out
that no former attorney general ever
gave such an opinion. Relying upon
that, the committee took it into their
heads that it was an entirely proper
thing for them to dig into the mean
ing, and to eXpound if they could
for themselves the meaning of the
word poultry, which they undertook
to do, and the meaning of domestic
animals which they had undertaken
to da. And to say that within few
minutes, the opinion of the Attorney
General which has been read in the
House, that that was in gefiance of
that opinion, was hardly fair to the
committee, because that opinion has
not been read in this body yet We
simply used our best judgment as
interpreters of the law for ourselves,
and we had no one else to interpret
it for us in the absence of any Off
cial interpretation. Now that is
what we did, and 1 submit that is
nothing more than fair proposition.
Any man, or any committee, would
have made the same effort to arrive
at the meaning of the law which we
made. And | submit in the light of
the information that we had, in the
face of the fact that the attorney
general had rendered no such opinion,
we were entitled to render our own
opinion and to act upon it, and that
is what we did. And / assume to say
that any committee is justified in
taking similar action as to the mean
ing of the law of Which they have no
knowledge.
Now the discussion has gone on
and taken perhaps wider path than
was originally intended. I would
like, Mr. Clerk, for you to read again
the statement of facts.
The PRESIDENT: Will the Sec
rotary read again the statement of
facts?
Statement of facts read by the
Secretary
Mr.. THOMPSON: 1t would seem,
Mr.. President that from the state
ment of fact there the committee
was not wholly unwarranted in their
action. l want it understood by the
Senate, Mr.. President. that we acted
not in defiance of any law-we are
not here for any such purpose as de-
flying the law or for defying anybody
we are here, ahowever for the pur-
pose of undertaking our duty and for
the discharge of that duty as far
forth as we understand it. Now here
in this resolve and this statement of
facts, there is nothing in there to
show how much was for one year or
how much for another year. The
resolve itself is indefinite, and the
fact of it's indefiiniteness and of it's
age is a thing which any fairmind-
ed committee may fairly take into
account. 1t seems to me, Mr.. Presi-
dent, that the discussion has taken a
very wide range, much wider than
we anticipated when we heard this
matter in committee. The argument
seems to have proceeded, and it is
fair for me ii argue it now, mas
much as we have no official notice of
the decision of the attorney general
the same as they have in the other
House-it is fair to me, as a mem
her of the committee, to state, if I
may, a reason or two for the hope
that is in me and give the Senate
some further reason or understand
ing as to why and what we did
We acted upon the suggestions that
had been put up to us and on other
suggestions that were made. The ar