Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1888-11-02

The annual meetings of the Vermont
State Agricultural society and the Cham
plain Valley association were held at
Burlington Thursday, Oct. 25 The old
officers were mainly reelected, Col. Geo.
w. Hooker being president of the State
society and Capt B. j. Derby of the as
ISOLATION. The financial report of the
joint exhibition shows total receipts.
s1O,935.s2; expenses, SO, 137.OS; balance
in the treasury, $2,79s.75.
Speaker Grout of the House of Repre-
sentatives was presented with a hand
some gavel from Mr.. Adams of Panton
last week. The gift is of oak and relic
of the vessel Congress, on which Bene-
diet Arnold escaped from the British
fleet, on Lake Champlain, October 13,
l176. The vessel ran aground, and was
set on fire, while the crew escaped. The
gavel was made from the submerged part
that was not burned.
The commissioned officers of the Ver-
mont cantons, Patriarchs Militant, at
meeting at Rutland Monday formed a
two-battalion regiment. Maj. N. F. Puff
fer of Bennington was promoted to the
office of lieutenant-colonel and Capts. A.
l.. Bragg of st. Johnsbury and L. c.
Grout of Burlington were chosen majors
of the 1st and I'd battalions. 1t was yot-
ed to hold the next field-day at Rutland
in June, 1889.
The first report of the new Vermont
railroad commission will be presented to
to the Legislature in few days in a PAM
phlet of 250 pages. The members of the
board, ex-Gov Samuel E. Pingree. Col.
Truman &. Fletcher and Henry L. Clark.
after an Inspection of the mileage all
over the State, ordered several bridges
replaced and others strengthened. The
bridges had been built when locomotives
and cars were less ponderous, and the
great weight of modern rolling-stock
rendered them unsafe. During the
boards term there has been no accident
caused by defective bridge. The grad
ual abolition of grade crossings is adj
vised, and general enactment requiring
the maintenance of gates and electric
signals. The Vermont Valley road is the
only one that has paid dividend during
the boards existence, and during the
year ending June 30, 1888, there have
been 12S miles of new road built A law
is recommended fining persons walking
on the track without a permit. The SUBJ
ject of steam-heating and of new means
for lighting cars has been treated at
length. The board has come to the con-
clusion that the use of steam from the
engine is the safest, and at the same time
the most comfortable means. They ask
for an act to be passed at this session
providing that it shall not be lawful for
any railroad in the State, after Novem-
Der l, 1889, to heat its passenger cars, on
other than mixed trains, by any stove or
furnace inside or suspended from the car.
except in case of accident, or other emer-
! gency requiring the use of such stove or
furnace, with necessary fuel, while at
rest providing, also, that in special
cases the board of railroad commission
ers may extend the time for period not
exceeding one year from November l,
1889. In the matter of lighting cars the
board advises a law similar to the one
passed by the Massachusetts legislature.
Oil of 300 degrees fire test can be used
without danger, as household kerosene
cannot. The board believes that the use
of electricity in lighting cars is destined
to be universal, but thinks the various
methods are not yet perfect enough to
warrant legislation compelling its use.