The Portland daily press., 1885-10-30
OHIO.
Lebanon and its Surroundings-Agr
cultural and Industrial Progress
Education in the Buckeye State
The Recent Political Campaign.
rGen. Neal Dow. ]

lOtI Neal DOW.J
Lebanon is in the centre of the richest ag-
ricultural lands of Ohio. The crops here
this year are abundant, that of corn es-
pecially being larger, they say, than in any
former year. The country about here is
very beautiful, being gently undulating and
adorned with groves of thrifty trees, cover
ing as much Of the territory as the cultiva-
ton of the soil will permit. Coal of excel
lent quality is abundant in Ohio and very
cheap, $1.75, $2o0, 1925 the ton delivered.
according to the locality.
Lebanon is beautiful town, and with its
surroundings drew from some Russian Off
cials the remark that it was the pleasantest
part of the country they had seen. 1t is
widely known as the seat OF private educa-
tional establishment on large scale, under
the management of Prof. Holbrook, having
about eight hundred pupils-young men and
young women-from all parts of the Union.
1t is not new institution and is now thor
oughtly established in the confidence and
respect of the people. 1t is interesting in
travelling about Ohio, as have been doing,
to see how numerous the railways are run
ming off right and left in every direction
from the trunk lines. There is hardy town
or village in the State that cannot be reached
by its railway, in many instances narrow
gauge. A town in Ohio away from a rail-
road is thought to be out of the world al
most. The public schoOlhouSeS in Ohio are
generally very handsome, large and well
built many of them even in the smaller
towns being fully equal in quality and ap-
pearance to the best of those in our larger
New England towns. The people here gen.
orally, take great interest in their educa-
tional establishments.
1t was very funny for outsiders to look
upon the field of strife during the recent
political canvass and to see how small a mat
ter had stirred the masses of the people up to
such a heat: Which is the better and wiser
policy-to license the saloons or to tax
them? That was the whole of it, except that
many of the people, 1913, 600 of them, said, we
do not want any saloons at all.
A good many years ago there was a quar-
tette of singers in Portland for many days,
greatly entertaining the people. Among
others they had an interlocutory song in
which they talked about their business and
projects in life. One of them sang, 'I'n
have great farm" Another came in-"Il
have little farm" And another with a
magnificent bass: mo farm at all for me, for
me; great farm-little farm-no farm at
dent by the platform talk during the can
vass 1t was License to the grog-shops"-
and then came in the laundering bass,-"No
grog-shops at all, for me, for me-" The peo-
pie, women as well as men, came to these po-
litical meetings from many miles around, by
rail and by carriages and carts and wagons
of all possible forms and sizes, and the
streets were full of them when the meetings
broke up. Smaller meetings in great num-
bers were held in country school houses In
many parts of the State these were held
weekly. The agitation is not temporary but
will be permanent.