Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1866-02-15
Vcrmont---Her weakness and her
strength.


We have spoken on q former occasion
of the resources of Vermont, and the |
of their development. We
adyerted to the fact that our soil was
more fertile than that of any of the New
England States, and that taking into
the account the extent of our territory
and the amount of population, Vermont
stood foremost among her sisters in ag-
ricultural productions. And yet, in
spite of this fertility of soil and our ex-
cellent climate, she stands at the very
foot In the growth of population, gaining
only as many hundreds during the ten
years preceding 1860 as New Hampshire
with q less inviting soil and climate
gained thousands. We attributed this
TO neglect on the part of our people OF
the manufacturing interest. Our State
is abundantly supplied with water pow
er, probably as much so as New Hamp-
shire, and we are, for all practical pur-
poses, as near the great markets. Rail-
EUdu IdClllIlNS diO ho W phSh 90 w AShoSA
q few scores of miles Of little conse-
quence when reckoning distances-and
if Vermont is not quite as accessible to
Boston as New Hampshire, she is more
so to New York. If she has not her
one seaport like her neighbor, she has
her navigable lake extending more than
Hoo olnnrr tho NUoCtarf1 hOr
der. The water power of our State is
not inferior to that of New Hampshire,
while our soil is capable of subsisting a
much larger population. There can be
no reason why Vermont should not lead
all the New England States save Maine
and Massachusetts and the fact that
she is actually behind them all in pros
perity and growth is not very creditable
to her leading citizens and her men Of
means.
We were reading, a few days since, a
communication in the Manchester, On.
ii. Mirror written by correspondent
who had been travelling along the line
of railroads from Manchester to West
Lebanon. The growth in population
and the business thrift in nearly or quite
all the towns through which he passed,
was astonishing. We quote from this
travelling correspondents sketches:
"Nearly all the water power from here
to the Connecticut river has been appro-
priated, and many privileges that, ten
years ago, were hardly deemed sufficient
to carry grst mill, now turn factories
that do thousands of dollars worth of
business in a week. At Hooksett and
Suncook new mills have been erected
within a year. and others are in contem-
plation. The fine privilege at Garvin's
Falls has, we understand, been sold to a
company of New York gentlemen, who
propose to erect factory the coming
spring.
Within two years Franklin has chang.
ed from sleepy village to young Man
chester, and is not only making money
a stream, but furnishes market for al
the farm products of the adjoining
towns. At East Andover Stocking
Factory was built the past fall, and al
Andover Center new buildings are
springing up every week, to accommo
date the academy that is, and the screw
factory that is to be located there. Al
Enfield, the Shaker Mills are running or
full time, and at Lebanon Center large
factory is building, anG the whole vii
lage has so marvelously changed since
our last visit, a year ago, that we hardly
gecognized it. New buildings of all
eorts have been erected, sidewalks built
a public common laid out and enclosed
with an iron ence,and everything seems
o,justify the opinion of one OF its lead
g, men, who said in a public speech
1t Lebanon Is destined In few
l. ne to become an abOmtsabs big town.
Cd West Lebanon everything is prosper.
y ,On the whole, we think we arr
US. Ia saying that next spring there
BIC eTwice the manufacturing bust
'ih ling on from here to Lebanon tha
Gee 9 usr was before.
hefe his betokens good time coming
Ano for the manufacturing villages
'os oniy he farming towns; it bring:
,ae loI kets for buying and selling
,ooo mo, farmers door; saves freigh
LOSE W VI, charges and enhances th'
price of his
..oro extract indicates the man
kit in the Grsnite State
, Arit in Vermont one hun
Iva nd would be added to on
ef'o 'n ,b enext ten years. 1t il
aonfactrr bog spirit that caused
'n'' .Ia,ion r our little neighbOI
with her rocky, ba " en soIi' w GUS 1len
her population in sen S T a. ~ ~
centum five times tn " u i-,on', Gus :,
"Iit,le Rhody" with a population IL
1870 a tribe more than half OF ours, tt
increase IT in the follow ing Ten years q
a per centum rate FORTY times that o
our own.
Az a native Vermont er, no one cal
,ake more pride in the prosperity ant
yell doing of the State than We M
one reio,ces more in the fine quality ant
s,,eot of our maple sugar manufacture
IN II. raising of fine sheep and horses
In the exuberance of our agriculture