Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1925-01-08
STENO6RAPHIC PROCEEDINGS



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eA1tAing that might antagonizs some
pereon o. group. In legislative a..
oomouos . large proportion Of the
Mesnbers follow. while few lead. Many
are timid about taking a stand.
watch how the vote Is going and
seek to b on the winning and pop
UIAr side. Every member should
cultivate backbone. speak out openly
end express his convictions, basing
them upon his own common sense
regardless Of the views Of others who
may not agree with him. II this
were the common practice 1t would
have most wholesome effect upon
the administration Of the States
business. I have great faith in the
ultimate sound judgment Of the men
and women Of Maine.
As to parties, they count for little
IN State affairs, and any person
would be hard pressed to define the
ties as they function at Augusta. AL
though myself a member of party.
am not a believer In the out date
doctrine of my party, right or
wrong" It is well that party lines
are SO seldom drawn in legislative
matters.
The Indifference Of Citizens
It Is difficult for Governor at
times to obtain the right men for
important positions. The indiffer-
ence toward their government Of the
So-called best citizens" Is deplor-
able. They are unwilling to assume
their share Of the public burdens and
too often stay at home or in their
clubs and criticize those who hon.
estly are trying to do their best. AS
an example: l recently had an i'm
portant appointment to make on a
board to investigate the Tax Exemp-
ton Laws Of the State. Under our
laws many millions of dollars of
property are exempt from taxation
and public officials and citizens have
little or no idea as to the total amount.
offered the position in question to
nine prominent men before one was
found who would accept 1t. Those
who refused claimed they were too
busy with their personal affairs,
their banks and corporations to de-
vote any time to the public service.
They were not willing to make the
sacrifice or did not have the courage
to handle the knotty problems of
taxation. My experience has not
given me a very high opinion Of the
public spirit Of certain prominent
business men" Of Maine.
A word OF excuse. however, should
be said for the man who refuses to
enter politics. There is little or no
encouragement for him to do so. If
he is independent and caters to no one
II he stands out against certain inter
ests and conscientiously tries to &C.
complish something for his fellow
citizens. he is subjected to unfair
criticism by his neighbors and is
abused both by the newspapers and
by the men and women who should
support him and appreciate his unset.
dsh public service. 1t is this and not
rs some would have us believe the di.
rect primary that often keeps good
always seek to belittle a man and hold
him up to ridicule. while some detrac.
tors even would resort to blackmail te
"oreak an opponent. In my owr
ease. to show how INSCRIPTIONS and
bitter the opposition can become. one
OF the most prominent citizens Of this
state recently remarked: Il wish tC
GOD We could md something on him II
y. private life and then we would b.
The Direct Primary
Our direct primary is under IRE ant
determined attack Is being made up
On It: Certain groups Of political lead
6rs ma their power has waned. These
men no longer can control nominations
which in Maine usually mean elections
and consequently they now seek to re-
store the old order Of things. In tn,
years gone by a few men with politica
ho4S ncet, Dominated the machines o.
were selected for reasons other thar
their fitness for Office. and plans were
made years In advance to retain con
troll Of public aairs.
II fhok
ponents to the primary whose motive.
are above reproach and who honestl,
believe In the convention system. TIL,
views OF such persons are entitled t
differing from them. accord them sin
public spirit.
Under the direct primary the PEG
manipulators are in the discard. ant
any citizen now may seek Office by ap
pealtng to those whom he would serve
rather than as formerly. by. coming
Tnder obi, Obligation to powerful groups
faults are far less glaring than thos,
OF the old time convention-boss sys
No stream can rise higher than IT.
source and the people are the source o.
all power. Once they realize this ant
take an intelligent interest in party
affairs our problems are we'll on to-
ward solution. The primary stimu
lates this interest and the recent Jun,
contest disclosed it. Although Their,
were certain irregularities in connec
ton with 1t, they were trifling as com
pared with those of some Of our ole
time conventions.
1t is interesting to speculate as t.
what would have happened In recent
years had the primary not been in ex
1stence. Most observers would admit
that both Governor Carl E. Milliker
and Governor-elect Ralph o. Brewster
have been nominated under the conven
ton system. AS for myself, coming
into office through an act Of Provi
dence, faced a gubernatorial primary
as q Governor already in power with
my official record to support me
Speaking Of others than myself. the
high quality of our chief executives
SON Of the primary, and the PEOPLE
have nominated and elected the Off.
Gals they wanted. That is the test
Of popular government.
Shall We Elect by Delegatss7
There is no more reason for delegat.
ing the power to NOMINATE than
there is for delegating the power to
ELECT. In Maine nomination and
election usually are synonymous. win
anyone dare advocate giving to dele
gates the power to ELECT a COVER
nor? And yet in reality that Is what
the opponents to the primary seek to
DO. A few scheming men want to
PICK and choose governors and other