Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1868-08-27
THE RUTLAND HER AID
FRIDAY, August q, lsas,
special ueciine 81 'h" Vernon" HIS
tariTal society

men,,l a special session at the Chapel Of
the Congregational churtl, ON Thursday
afternoon at o'clock, Rev ll'ny H.
White Of Coventry, President Of tbs Sao''
ely, in the chair
PRAYER was otgcicd by the Rev, Leland
Howard ii Rutland,
Henry IIall, Esl, then made the fol-
lowing address Of welcome,
Mn. PRESIDENT; II has been CUSTOM
ary, when The Vermont Historical Society
mot elsewhere than q, Montpelier, for the
oieigcns of the town, Wherein the meeting
wa, held, % extend 10 the Society some
welcome, some greeting, 20 Indicate an
approval II its objects and sympathy with
ill., efforts. regret that there are not
present here more Of our citizens Ia testify
their welcome by their presence. Bat
the unfay 1rab,c weather, business, sick
ness and pleasure have combined 10 de-
tain many who have expressed cordial
interest and appreciation Of the Society,
The season Is not a leisurrly season, Our
town Is ominently q town Of business.
Farms, quarrics. stores, shops, railroads
aud hanks CngroSs the attention Of our
business men And we all know how the
battle Of life, the cares Of ambition and
wealth, even pleasure make mon fOrgctful
of knowledge and higher culture. II your
Society had come with some unfailing re-
cipc, that would have told us how to.
build railroad from Rutland 10 Wood
stock, without costing Us "a dollar; or how
10 discover some incxhaustiblo quarry of
beautiful statuary marble; tho secret of
success in Wall street, or how 20 halye
The expenses and double the profits of
trade, you would have seen more numer-
Gus, more eager perhaps not better
audience.
Few or no towns in the State ought to
give higher honor or warmer welcome
to your Society than Rutland. Rutland
is one OF the oldest, one Of the largest, one
of the woalthicst, need not say one of
proudcst, towns in the State; she ought
20 he one of the most intelligent and best
towns in the State, with from eight 20 ten
thousand inhabitants, from three TO four
millions of taxable property, increasing IN
numbers, business and architectural beau
ty with her origin and early history SO
nearly lost ia the shadows of the past,
that tradition and documents have res
cucd only few ve,tiges thereof-no
town in the State more needs vigilance
and industry 70 preserve her most import
ant history from utter oblivion.
Eighteen days from to-day the charter
Of Rutland will he l0i years old. That
charter-the foundation OF an corporate
existence, printed paper form, Worn by
folding into fifteen fragments-is still eN-
tant, still legibld. Over thirty years ago
lawsuit caused search for that char
ter, and il was in Grecnyille, Ohio, in the
custody Of Capt. VIM. Mead, the second
white child born in Rutland
Ninety-eight years last March, family
of thirteen persons became the first per-
mancnt settlemcntof Rutland. In March,
l110, will be the centennial anniversary
Of our towns birth | wish could pro-
mise that that anniversary would be hon
orcd with such n rousing celebration as
the State has never seen. | wish |
could now invite this Society TO at
tend and participate in that celebration,
Ninety-five years ago next fall Chris
tian church was founded in this town,
the first Protestant church, believe, be- !
tween the headwaturs OF Otter Greek and
the ST Lawrence. ] love 70 lingcr i'll fam
cy around those two historic events, as |
love TO hngcr around the Mayiiowcr pill /
grims at Plymouth.
Rutland was an important town during
the Revolutionary war; she sent two rep /
rcsentatives to the Legislature, sent out
two companies OF militia on scouting du- /
ties; for three years was the military /
headquarters Of the State have copies /
of their pay rolls, showing the names of
officers, privatcs, their mileage, services,
etc.
Rutland county. too, has historic claims.
She is the only county in the State that
has been the battle field of cont6nding
armics-for when our Bennington friends
celebrate the Bennington battle, they have
to borrow the soil Of New York. And al
though there. were only two thousand men
engaged in the battle Of Hubbardton,
yet those were days OF small armies, when
thousand men were perhaps more po-
tent in shaping the dostinie, of nation
than a hundred times that number in
Later days, Rutland county joined Ben
niugton in bearing the brunt Of the war
with New York aud England. But for
Rutland county, Vermont to-day would
he part Of the British Provinces. or Of
thc Stat OF New York.
For ten years ,our towns have been au-
ihorizel by tho Legislature TO appropriate
fund, Tor town histories. Private enter
Prise ha- written and published the Listo.
fie- III Pawlst ana Mddlctown. private
enterprise ias writer, not puMj-hcd,a
history II Fuultn,y. riyat enterprise
j. NOW engaged ii writing history ut
Wells: month. of toll and c> pgu. have
been expended in eNplonul ana 'rrerarius
our ls.al history. NJ. except Mn!il,town,
NOT a town in thu county hl> "a. appr-
priate3 4 dollar ta dtfray IL. expense.