St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1890-07-10
Gbe CALIFORNIAN.
THE ADDRESS
At the Laying of the Corner Stone of the
Fairbanks Museum.

Fairbanks Museum in ST. Johnsbury,
July 4, 1890:
This day is dedicated to patriotism
throughout our country. Patriotism
is love of country and earnest desire
to promote its interests. Under its
impulse men have left home, wife,
children, all, that the country might
live, though they themselves should
die But war is not all that con-
stitutes the life of a country. In
truth, it comes only in great crises
while life and activity ever go on.
We can love our country as truly in
times of peace as in times of war.
Washington was as truly a patriot,
and rendered as great services to his
country after the close of the war
when sitting the storm of faction,
declining kingly power, and shaping
our institutions for peace, harmony,
material development and progress
and culture of the people, as when
planning the siege of Yorktown or
organizing the colonial forces in
1776. Peace hath her victories no
less renowned than war" Nor does
patriotism depend upon the size of
ones country. The Swiss, with their
little republic, are certainly as patri-
Otto as the Russians with their
mighty and over shadowing empire.
In truth may we not say that it is
patriotic, not only to love, and be
ready to serve, our country or our
state, but also to love and serve our
own town and community Are
we not fairly observing the spirit OF
this day, in a time of peace, by tax
ing some part in the completion of
an institution dedicated to the com
mon good, to the promotion of the
progress of all and to the beauty of
our village, by the noble bounty and
wise public spirit of one of our own
citizens? Let us for a little while
restrict the scope of our patriotism
and look, right here at home, at
something that we hope and believe
will make life here better and larger
and more fruitful for all who come
after us.
On the 9th day of November,
1889, articles of association for the
forma ton of Il new corporation were
filed in our town clerk Office, where
in it was provided, among other
things, that mo stock or shares shall
ever be issued by said corporation"
Clearly this was not Il money max
ing institution. The purposes of
the corporation were therein de
clared as follows:
For the purpose of establishing
and maintaining a museum and
cabinet of natural and artificial OBJ
jccts of scientific and historical inter
est and a suitable library and work
ing rooms for students in natural
science, and the erection of such
buildings as shall be necessary for
the proper promotion of the interests
of said museum as literary and
scientific institution and of doing all
things necessary to make said mu-
scum and cabinet most useful III
stimulating moral. intellectual and
scientific Improvement in St. Johns
bury, VT"
These are the aims and objects of
the institution, whose corner stone
we lay today, upon sure and solid
foundation above which is to rise a
beautiful and symmetrical building
within whose walls are to be stored
the treasures of art and nature,
gathered with care, thought and ex-
pense from many parts of the world,
and so arranged and classified as to
be most useful to the seeker after
knowledge. A museum" is some
times a collection of monstrosities,
the 'fattest woman on EARTH" the
L IL, 1 L
BOrneo,' the 1.-TWO headed calf" and
the multitudinous other attractions
of that character, which it is worth at
least q dime not to see. This is not
the character of our museum. Ours
is to be free, open to all, for the COM
mon benefit of every one, rich and
poor, the prosperous and the most
lowly, as free as the air we breathe,
much more free than the water we
drink, magnificent free gift to us
and to all our pOSter1ty. 1t gives to
us a new building, of a material and
architecture different from any other
that we have, whose details and pro-
portions have been carefully and
successfully wrought out by the
architect whose skill is seen in so
many of our best buildings, struc-
ture which will be durable and per
manent, always rest for the eye, an
educator for our taste for beauty and
form, and a marked advance in the
general attraCtIveneSS of our village
Every new building, that is beauti-
full in itself, makes a distinct and
durable advance. 1t is always with
us. 1t comes to stay, a welcome
guest.
But within it is the real life. AS
the charter states, 1t is to be a litter
airy and scientific institution, de-
voted to whatever is most useful in
stimulating moral, intellectual, and
scientific improvement in st. Johns
bury" Do our boys and girls or
men and women wish to know how
coal, copper, iron, silver, gold, and
precious stones are formed in the
earth, when they are found, and how
produced for the use of mankind
Here will be the books and the speci-
mems to reveal it all and the pleas
ant rooms to stimulate investiga-
ton. Do they wish to know the
habits, form, and life of plants?
Here will be thousands of carefully
classified specimens for their profita-
BILE study with a skilled attendant to
aid in the inquiry.
Here will be a very complete and
beautiful collection of the feathered
tribe of the world, and artificial OBJ
Jects illustrating the civilization and
art of many countries, all arranged
and intended to instruct, to stimu-
late, and to help inquiry and investi-
CATION. 1t will be a practical and
free school in natural science, in
zoology, botany, mineralOgy, geol-
ogy, and in the civiliza ton of many
countries 1t will be specially valu-