Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1874-01-22

a
hundred dollars for doing what is an honor
for a man to do, and denied us a trial by
jury. This is the highest court in the
land, made by your votes. No man ever
had more regard for this town than our
father had He was born and brought up
here, and all his ancestors before him. He
knew every man in it, and seemed as
much interested in their welfare as his
own: He was man that any town would
be proud of He did all its law business
for nearly forty years. Did he ever take
any of its money without giving full COM
pensation? 1t was never said of him. Is
not this the great law of nations, that COM
pensatiOn shall be made when money is
taken from women as well rs men? But
instead of compensation it is taken from
us and every other woman in the place to
strengthen the power of those that rule
over us. 1t is taken to pay the men for
making laws to govern us. by which they
themselves would not be governed under
any consideration. Neither would we, if
we could help it. Some of it is given to
buy votes which add to their power. A
mans wife told me they gave her husband
four dollars, which kept him drunk long
time to abuse his family. His wife said if
she ,Vu1u vote, her VOte would be rs good
as her husbands, and the men who came
after him to carry him to the polls would
treat her well rs they treated him. Her
hard earnings then could not be taken for
his drains. And some of the money is
taken for the authorities of the town to
meet at all the different hotels in it, to
make voters and take off the poll-tax of all
the poor vagabonds, that they may vote !;
then the authorities want to meet to con
suit what would be most for the advantage
of half the inhabitants of the town, who
do the business and put them into office
(the women are not mentioned, of course,
for having no power they are of no conse-
quence) and then these officers are fur
nished with an entertainment at the eX-
pense of all the inhabitants of the town.
But the roads make the most complaint to
every woman that owns property; they
all know as we'll as We do that they would
not be made as they are before their houses
if they could vote. We have every reason
to think the officers of the town add what
they please to our taxes. Last wear they
added : 100 to our homestead without Civ
ing lis any notice, and the same amount to
two widows in the neighbOrhood, who can
not work their land, and not Il man who
can work it had his property raised for he
could find it out and woman could not.
We have paid the town of Glastonbury
during the last Years more than $1,000
and for what? to be ruled over and to be
put under, what all the citizens know to
be the lowest and the most worthless of
any in the place. We ask only for our
selves and our property. Why should we
be cast out? Why should we be outlawed?
We should be glad to stay in our homestead
lived. the little time We have to stay, and
be buried with our family and our ances-
tors. but its plea>anncSs is gone. for we
know We do not hold it in security as our
neighbors hold theirs and that il is liable
to be taken from Us whenever the town
sees fit
The town collector called for oar taxes
on Monday ut sunSet-the last day and
hour he could call We told him we would
prefer to wait till We had been heard by
the town, for if they gave Us no hopes of
voting. We wanted them to sell our farm
for the taxes, for it was but reasonable. if
they owned it, to get the taxes from it. we
could not; and we wished they would be
gin ut the east end and come into the
street. for We wanted to save our home
stead while We lived, and thought it would
last Us lie said he hoped he should not
be the collector then. He agreed to all
the injustice of which We complained. -
HHrtord C0uIdnt.
WHAT CANE OF Ir-LkrrfR FROM MISS suIGH.
GLASTONBURY, january 3, 1874.
To tie Ed'tor ot the RcPHJlicru:
The collector called again. New Years :
day. and | will give You the result We
t,ll him, r1.1 l.;
50. we thought. than any of the women
for he was sensible man and could see
into the injustice of this business. more
than half the towns officers
We had no idea, then, that he had
brought an attachment with him to exc
cute it that very day, for he had always
before told us we might let the tax be, as
long as We pleased, by paying = per cent
interest. But now, he said, the law must
bc executed and, rs he must take personal
property first. our COWS would be driven
away at once unless his bin was settled
This came suddenly upon us, and we told
him We We're very sorry: more sorry for
Mr.. X. and his family. who lived in our
cottage. than ourselves. for we could dc
without the milk better than they could.
We have fine lot of Aldernevs that my
sister had raised, every one. for amuse-
mcnt, and cared for. and was much attach
ed to them, Weplcaded hard for a reSpite
till we could speak again before the town.
We wanted to petition the men. we said
To let rs own our land as they owned
theirs, and then We would willingly pay
our taxes: aad how much better it would
be to have the money paid freely than tc
have all this trouble about it, The town
had waited on a factory company in til,
north part of the place for taxes for wears
till the company failed, and they lost sev-
eral thousand dollars by it. We had oul
share of this money to pay; larger share
rs it appeared by his books, than any other
of the inhabitants, and there was no risk
in waiting for us to pay. But they were
men, and we are women.
" Now" said we, " Mr.. A. Won would
not be willing personally to take a wo-
man S property because she cannot vote
to defend it; no other man in town would
though you will agree together to do it
But numbers can never make it right; nc
reckoning can prove it" My sister went
into the yard to entreat him to leave two
of the COWS together (there We're eight OF
them) that one might not be alone. But
she could not prevail, and the little thing
the poor mans portion, has cried evel
oliCt- 1lc tooh seven, loI ut Sdlu cows
We're low and he wanted enough The
tax now is only Sl0l.39. The next taa
comes in March.
Yesterday, we went to Hartford sever
: miles, to see our lawyer, SO that neither
we nor the other side should transgress
The sale is to take place, next Thursday
lis rather hard, in the depth of winter
for women to be obliged to attend an auc
: ton sale of their own cows. | will try t,
give you an account of it. They are to b.
driven a mile to the sign-post. Our law
Yer said there was no need for this severi
ty, now, as the tax was perfectly safe
ABBY II. SMITH.
5 THE BATTLE OF GLASTONBURY
l. 1.