Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1925-03-26

| tho line of demarkation was In the
use of legal phraseology there Where
| he says public schools and common
| schools. s....d
| Another change may be statsu.
| You make another here ny this
| amendment. I ask the gentleman
who differs with me to say whether
| or not | am arguing larry we "l'i
| turn to the constitutional amend
ment known as 81, the initiative and
referendum, which was adopted
within very recent years. You are
amending that, sir, by the adoption
| Of this amendment, because that
| reads as follows today, and 1t does
/ rot take a lawyer-I think the lay
| men in this Lody will think this
argument is sound. Amendment 81
reads us follows:
The electors may propose to the
| LEGISLATURE for it's consideration any
bill, resolve, or resolution. including
| bills to amend or repeal emergency
I legislation, but not an amendment
of the State constitution, by written
petition addressed to the Legislature
or to either branch thereof contain
! ing 1900 names. But no, after the
people of the State of Maine adopt
the Barwise amendment that section
|
pose to the Legislature for its con-
sidcration any bill. resolve or reso-
luton except-you have got to write
| this in there. You are limited not
| only the Legislature. You are limit
ing the people OF the State of Maine.
! No Legislature can ever make an
| appropriation for private schools
after this is adopted-no twelve
thousand siSners i'll Maine can pro-
pose such. ] wonder, was it con-
templatcd? Possible. but l much
doubt it,
Well there is another change and
| would like to have this one
answered. l think perhaps it may
be, but | have never been able TO
think of the correct answer to it.
1t is very interesting question, and
l commend this, and ! know that
some of the legal gentlemen will be
interested in this phase Of it. The
second paragraph dramatically,
but not the second paragraph legally,
says here: NO such grant, appro-
! priation or use of public money or
loan of public credit shall be made
or authorized for the purpose OF
| founding, maintaining or aiding any
religious denomination or society,""
| Well, that is very plain. 1t says that
the public credit shall not be loan
ed. What for? For the purpose of
founding, maintaining or aiding any
religious. denomination or party.
That all right. Article XXXV Of
the constitution says the credit OF
the State shall not be directly or in
directly loaned in any case. That
is the present law. That is your
present constitution, that you cannot
| directly or indirectly loan the credit
| of this state for any purpose. Now
adopt this amendment-do you get
that?-and you say that the faith
and the credit of this state cannot
be loaned. what for? for the found
ing, maintaining or aiding any relig-
ious denomination or society,-and
| by exclusion that it may be loaned
for any other purpose. Do YOU gen.
tlemen subscribe to that. You gen.
tlemen vote to loan the credit of the
! State of Maine for any other purpose
except the founding. maintaining or
aiding the church. Now you can see
that that thing has not been consid-
cred. That provision says that the
credit of the State shall not be loan
ed for any purpose. What in the
world is the use of repeating 1t if
you want to make it stronger and
make it affect the one. and by re-
peating it can You tell me what the
court is going to say? ] want to say
here and now that we are reading in
to the record at least the interpreted
ton and the view of one that the
adoption of that amendment chang
es Article XXXV of our constitution
with reference to what can be done
on the loaning of the credit of the
State of Maine. so that it will never
he said ii was not called to the at
tention of the Legislature.
There is another argument and 1
am done. l say this is a most I'M
wise matter, and / doubt if this
thought has occurred. ] say it is
most unwise amendment because it
does not do all that the Senator
from Cumberland said it did 1t does
not do it at all to my mind: it does
very much more. You all remember
the story from Aesop's Fables. and
this is my view for what it may be
worth. All monies raised by taxa
ton in the towns and cities for the
support of the public schools-and
this applies to the city of Lewiston
or the city of Augusta or any town
the money that is raised there for
the support of the public schools.
raised right there after the assessors
have fixed the rate, etc. and all mon
les which may be appropriated by
the state, and that is what we are
doing here.-all monies which may
be appropriated by the state for the
support of the common schools-and
get this-"shall be applied to and
expended in no other schools than
those which are conducted according
to law and under the order and SUI
pcrintendence of the authorities of
the town or city in which the money
is expended"
Those are just words unless YOU
mean by schools conducted accord
ing to law and under the order and
superintendent of the authorities
in the town or city in which the
money is expended" unless YOU
mean publicly owned and publicly
controlled schools. the. are nothing
but idle words unless You mean that
| have good authority upon that
point. This was called to the atten-
ton of Governor Brewster during the
course of the late primary campaign,
at Rockland.-and he is n careful
lawyer and ] will pay him the credit
of being n sincere and far-seclng
man,-and at Rockland he said in
cHect that certain objections had
been raised that this applied
to the private schools and acad-
emies. think it is so. ] am
not quoting him. but have
here every speech that he has ever
mad" on this subject, and if YOU
) gentlemen want me to quote him
viii do 50. But in effect he said that
amendment cannot apply to private
academies because of that section of
The Statute which permits towns to
vote the money for tuition of the pu-
pilS. Now get that He says if con-
tracts are illegal under this. then the
towns might vote to pay the tuition
nj hn L.