The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-11-26

reunion in 1885. Mr.. Abel was elected
chairman, and, on motion OF Mr. Henry, 1t
was voted TO hold such reunion during the
first week in October, 1885, and the chair
was authorized to appoint a committee of
one from each county to consider the neces-
sary details and report at a meeting to be
held Thursday afternoon. The committee
was made up of the following gentlemen
Messrs. Stickney of Bethel, Fullerton of
Manchester, Barrett of Rutland, Franklin
of Newfane, Van Vliet of Shelburne, Kop-
per OF Salisbury, Brock of Montpelier,
Calef of Washington, johnson of Concord,
Brigham of Bakersfield, Fisk of Isle La
Motto. Grout of Derby Kenfeld of Hyde
Park and Glover of Groton. This committee
met Wednesday night and voted to recon-
mend the following organization: President,
II. G. Abel treasurer, j. w. Brock; record
ing secretary G. w. Brownell, Jr.; corres-
ponding secretary, w. w. Stickney; execu-
tive committee, the, president and treasurer
ear obicio, w. II. Fullerton, f. S. Stranahan,
9. A. Hibbard, H. f. Field and G. ID. Brain
erd; chaplain, Rev. w. s. Hazen; sergeant
alarms, g. ID. Houghton; doorkeeper j. w.
Gould; assistant doorkeeper, r. j. Coffey.
They also recommended that the governor,
all surviving ex-governors, the secretary of
civil and military affairs, and the governors
staff be invited to attend, and that an assess
ment of 81 be levied on each member of the
legislature, and all others participating, to
meet the necessary expenses. AT meet
ing of the senators Thursday it was voted to
concur in the action of the members of the
house with the addition of the senate door
keepers to the organization. The members
of the house from the several counties also
met separately to nominate vice-president
from each county.
THE committee on military affairs has
been investigating Vermont's war claim
against the United States government.
Hon. w. g. Ferrin made statement before
the committee as to the amount of the claim,
etc. He said that when he was auditor of
accounts he spent some six weeks, with the
clerk of the adjutant generals Office with
him, in Washington, and succeeded in col
lecting about 5000; that there are now
claims to the amount of about $4,000 that
have been disallowed or suspended in the
department. He thought that he collected all
that could be collected up to that time, and
If much more was collected congress would
need to amend the law in relation to that
subject; that there was also a claim for
interest of about S120,0O0 that the govern
ment would not pay him, and so far as he
knew no state had been paid interest on
such claims: that this claim was Just and
ought to be paid. Hon. e. II. Powell
auditor of accounts, said that an agent had
been employed by his Office to collect this
claim under a contract that the agent is to
| receive twenty-five per cent of all sums
collected. The agent was appointed several
years ago and succeeded in collecting only
"a very small sum. If he could revoke the
| appointment, he should prefer to have the
agent the committee had named, and if he
could withdraw the claim from the present
| agent, he would gladly doso. T. j. Deavit
| said he was not aware before that there wa:
an agent acting for the state in this matter
He did not wish to have his name used tC
embarrass the auditor of accounts and die
not desire the job so much as he did to have
the claim collected by somebody. He haC
found by his practice before the depart
ments at Washington that it was nothing
uncommon for claim to be rejected or dis
| allowed at one time and allowed and paiC
at another If there was merit in the claim
he thought it could be collected
HOUSE bill number four hundred fifty
two, to establish an agricultural eXperimen
station, was discussed before the COMMITTEES
on agriculture last Wednesday by DR.. ii
A. Cutting and Colonel Franklin, DIR. Cut
ting coming before the committee only b,
| urgent invitation. The merits of the bill
were first presented by Colonel Franklin
| He said he should make no attack upon tn
| Board of Agriculture, as they had don
good work, and there was much more goo'
| work which they could do, but he believe,
| that all that could be done by the Board O
| Control and that the experiments could b
carried out by that board to the farmer on
|
needed was experiments for the poor faI
mer on poor farm and his level should b
reached and experiments made for him a
the station. When Colonel Franklin wa
asked just the line of experiment, he wa
unable to fix upon any, but said in the GU
tivation of their crops. No definite cours
was marked out by him, only his belief
founded upon his associations as master G
the state grange. DIR. Cutting was the
called and remarked that he had tn
highest opinion of Colonel Franklin, VIII
possessed the means of getting opinion
from his order but that enabled him onl
to theoriZe, while he came from the field {
actual experiment, and hence his view
might differ somewhat but We're Just as hor
est and sincere. He believed the approprif
ton asked in the bill to be entirely made
quate, and that no satisfactory work coul
be done with so small a sum; that the Cor
necticut experiment station was one tha
had done the most and best work for tn
size and cost, and that their expenditur
for ten months and thirteen days was SO
1858; that they called for more approprii
tions although they had S25, 900 dollar SITS
ton and much assistance from the colleges
Colonel Franklin disputed this, but ID
Cutting read letter from Professor JOIN
son so stating, and presented their last +,
port that so said, and in addition read LEI
ter from Professor johnson saying the leas
sum, in the professors opinion, that d,
| Sirable StatlOn could be established upO
was plant of $50, 900 and an annual appr,
priation of from $4,000 to $4,000. DIR. Gu
ting then observed that experiment station
were not in their infancy, and Vermont di
not wish to go over the simple care and fel
tilization of the crops, which had been gon
over years ago, and it had been fully settle
that every man must do that kind of eXpel
imentng for himself on his own land. Wha
was now desired was information, printe
manuals, and books like our Agriculture
Reports, that were sought for by the tens
thousands, a limited edition of two thousan
| of which in Vermont could not supply tn
state demand by more than five thousan
copies, and yet this bill did away with wha
the farmers nearly all wanted, the Report
that Vermont farmers could read and di
read, and wanted just that class of informi
ton for their winter evenings. New Yor
appropriated $4,000 to carry such informi
tion to her schools and that il would ther
be productive of good. 1t had been alread
settled by experiment stations and by law
the work of every station was open to all
that nitrogen, which so many purchased
did not pay its cost that il was the eXpani
ton of this and the directions how the fal
mer would get on better and cheaper witt
out it that was desired, not more eXper
ments in this same line. There was faul
found with the Board of Agriculture, but
was that small towns did not have meet
ings; it was the fault of the mere pittanc
given them to use in that way, rather tina
of the Board for he had at least ten pet
tions for meetings where only one could h
held, and yet they had held double tn
number provided for by law: that To divid
this small appropriation would, in his opiI