Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1921-03-10

the last Legislature. It was ooe OF
the nrst bills that came to the COM
mittee ON legal affairs. AZ chairman
| OF the committee on legal AFFAIRS II
has always been my desire to as ex-
peditiously as possible work matters
out from the committee. in that way
trying to help in the general legisla-
tive proceedings. This matter was dis
cussed in committee and there were
! various views expressed upon II. A
matter coming from q preceding Leg
| tslature perhaps didn't have quite the
standing that a new matter would
have had, mas much as the preceding
Legislature saw Mt to refer 1t to this
islature was early in the session I'M
pressed with the policy that might be
| adopted by this Legislature with re
| spect to recommending increases in
| salaries
| AS you have already heard many
times, there is, or there seems to be
q feeling in the State of Maine against
| a general advance in salaries; and
believed that il was necessary and
1
| in the session as 1t might reasonably
| do so to determine what its policy
| would be with respect to those mat
| tiers. and I think upon my recommen-
dalton the committee agreed to report
the matter back to this Legislature
with the recommendation that 1t ought
not to pass. Now. gentlemen, I want
you to distinctly understand that that
| was not because we did not think there
was some justice in the matter. un-
derstand that three dollars a day pay
to anybody now IS considered as a
mere pittance. j also want to remind
| you that jury service is. not aruous
at all Under the statute
Mr.. sPRAGUE: Mr.. President, do
not want to be captious, but thought
he was simply going to explain. want
to offer an amendment to that-if there
is redraft l want to amend that. and
| Penobscot would be very appropriate
perhaps against the amendment. But
| / have not got my amendment in yet.
Mr.. THOMBS: Mr.. President, since
the senator from Piscataquis has been
SO polite as to dignity my remarks
| by the term of "a speech" I am quite
| contented to forego and further re-
marks. Now. Mr.. President. let me
| inform the senator from Piscataquis
| that the legal affairs committee have
reconsidered this matter because they
| thought it was the sentiment of this
Legislature to recommend such an in
| crease, and we have unanimously rec
commended it, increasing the fees Of
| jurors from three dollars to four dol
| lars per day.
| Mr.. SPRAGUE: That is new
draft, isn't it? I want to be certain
that it reads four dollars a day 30.
| The President: The senator from
| Piscataquis is evidently in error in
| assuming that there is a new draft
here.
Mr.. sPRAGUE: Will the Chair
please inform me what the bill says?
The PRESIDENT: Will the secreta-
ry please read the bill as reported by
| the committee.
| The secretary read as follows:
| BE it enacted by the People of the
State of Maine, as follows: Chapter
us, Section s, of the Revised Statutes
Of the State of Maine, is hereby amend
| ed by striking out the word three be-
| fore the word dollars, in the fourth
line of said section. and inserting in
place thereof the word four so that
said section as amended shall read as
| follows:
a trax ny
| ing the supreme judicial court or su-
| perior courts. and jurors attending on
any other session prescribed by law,
shall be allowed four dollars day
| for their attendance, and six cents a
mile for their travel out and home. to
be paid out of the county treasury. ;"
| The PRESIDENT: The question is
on the acceptance of the report of the
committee that it ought to pass.
Mr.. SPRAGUE: Now I want to
make an amendment to that.
The PRESIDENT: Will the Senator
from Piscataquis permit the sugges-
ton that the question on the adop-
ton of the report should first be
placed before the Senate; then the
amendment?
Mr.. SPRAGUE: Certainly
The PRESIDENT: The question is
on the report of the committee that
the bill ought to pass.
The report was accepted by a viva
voce vote.
The PRESIDENT: The Senator
from Piscataquis, Senator Sprague,
now presents the following amend
ment: Strike out the word -four in
the third line of Section and insert
ing in place the word five"
Mr.. SPRAGUE: Mr.. President, I
do not intend to make a speech of
|any extent in regard to this matter.
I am a believer in the old jury sys-
tenn that has come down through the
centuries from the beginnings of our
common law Jurisprudence. I believe
lit is the best system although many
eminent legal writer's occasionally
criticise it, and it is perhaps in it's OPP
Grafton, in it's machinery, subject to
some criticism. I believe, Mr.. Prcsi-
dent. that here in the State of Maine,
it is only subject to the criticism thar
care is not taken--there is not care
enough taken by the municipal off,
GERS perhaps in the selection of the
panel. Now I believe that the first
step toward getting better men on
the panel-or, I will not say that eX-
actly. but I mean the best men-to-