The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1891-06-10

ALPHA MEssER OF ROCHESTER,.
| Mr.. Messer also spoke on the subject OF
organization. He had always believed in
Vermont and Vermont farmers. He be-
! lieved that in organization lies salvation for
| the farmers and the country. The prin-
| ciple of organization is an old one it has
existed in history for many years. Erastus
Wyman says that the accumulation of great
fortunes is due to combination. This is true.
Men organize for greed, gain and filthy
lucre; three or four men come together and
throw aside personal considerations and
| politics; they aim at a single purpose; they
make up their minds to go before legis-
latures in the interest of their project; they
will carry their point If such thing is pos
sible. Isn't there a lesson in this for farm
ers to learn2 Thomas j. Sherman says that
of the 5000 millionaires in the country,
seventy possess on the average 1880, 900;
| that, If money continues to accumulate as
| it is now accommodating there will be billion
aires forty years hence, and several of them
in sixty years. If wealth can accumulate
in the hands of a few at this rate, there is
something wrong. Years ago wealth spread
! itself out more evenly. Now organization
| has turned it into narrower channels. One
of the results of this change is the present
distress among farmers. This can be less
ened by organization, Ex-Congressman
Butterworth says the profits of ten men in
| this country in the last ten years have been
more than all the profits from agriculture
during that time, and that statement has
not been disputed. But we will not whine
over the past. If we are men, we will do
what we can to remedy things. Let us till
our fields industriousy, and let us prepare
our minds to meet the problems before us.
MIR. Messer was not prepared to say that
legislation has caused all the trouble, but it
has been factor. The harvester trust
failed through the influence of woman and
| through legislation. good deal can be
accomplished by such laws, and they should
become general. Trusts are public robbers.
| The constitution provided for freedom and
equality, not that a few should have special
| privileges. 1t is the province of the people
to suppress trusts, which are taking mil
lions from their pockets. Mr.. Messer here
read clipping from a Vermont newspaper,
which said that farmers do not attend to
| their business as they should. This news
paper seemed to think farmers should do
nothing but go to mill, church and to the
town meeting, at which of course they were
expected to vote just as some one told them
to vote. The speaker believed no farmer
was the worse off because he went to league
and grange meetings, which educate and
teach members their political duties. 1t is
often said that New England is the most
conservative section of the country and that
Vermont is the most conservative state of
New England. The speaker thought there
were some narrow minded men in Vermont.
He believed the organization which is neces-
sary here must be on non.poitical lines. 1t
makes no difference what the politics of a
man are, if he is honest and trustworthy.
| There was no politics in the agricultural
college fight Of last year A lack of inter-
est in public matters is the great drawb back
Mr.. Messer referred briefly to the evils of
pauper immigration, and said that the
strength Of the nation is in the homes of the
people
VICTOR I. SPEAR OF BRAINTREE.
Mr.. Spear was announced to speak on the
| ctth of hon To
he was afraid he had no subject. Two
months ago he would have said that the
subject was too large. The fact was that
after the correspondence which the board of
agriculture had been carrying on with the
| towns the subject had narrowed down.
Our condition, said Mr.. Spear, is vastly
better than / supposed. Abandoned farms
in Vermont are hard to find. He did not
know where there were enough of them to
be worth a ten minutes talk. There were
some unoccupied farms, and some that
were not worked for as much as they were
worth, but they were not abandoned. The
board had sent out circulars in the spring to
get information regarding unoccupied farms
and mill property, etc, that was not now
being used. Reports had been received
from all but twenty-six towns, and those
were towns from which it is probable that
no unused farms or mills would be reported.
The towns heard from reported 4C6 unoccu-
pied farms which have buildings and can
farms for sale, but as these are actually
occupied they do not enter into the ques-
ton. In the past year 123 previously
unoccupied farms have been taken up. Mr..
Spear thought the problem of repeopling
the state had an easy solution. In two or
three years there will be no unoccupied
farms, if they are taken up as rapidly as
they have been in the past year. Mr.. Spear
thought the matter of unused mills, ETC.,
was more serious than that of unoccupied
10 fln fIA InfV,
peopled, manufacturing interests should be
built up at the same time. The reports say
there are many excellent opportunities for
manufacturing throughout the state. The
tide has turned in Vermont, and there is
now a sentiment that the state is good
enough to live in and that it is pretty fair
place in which to make investments. The
most we can do is to nourish this sentiment.
VerInonters had done much to injure the
state in admitting that there are better
states to live in Recent inquiries as to
whether there was any disposition to emil
CRATE from the state have not been able to
find a single case this season. If we can
| keep our people contented for five years, we
will need no outsiders to people our farms
and run our mills. If the same disposition
TO boom the state is shown as is seen in the
West. Vermont will be all right.
GEORGE W. HOOKER OF BRArTLEBoRo.
Colonel Hooker's subject was "The New
Era in Vermont" but his first remark was
that he had always looked on the rosy side
of Vermont's prospects. He saw nothing to
complain of. In travelling through the
South and West he never found such happy
and contented people as Vermonters are
The feeling that the West is the place for
farmers is subsiding. Give the farmer of
Dakota or Minnesota pair of boots and he
would walk back to Vermont What Ver-
mont wants to-day is men like John W.
Wheeler of Orange, Mass, who puts every
dollar that he makes right into the various
enterprises of that town. Our farms do not
produce one-third of what they ought to
produce. According to recent statistics,
an acre of land in Vermont or New Hamp-
shire will produce as much as three and
one-half acres in Illinois or Nebraska. The
health-giving advantages of the state are
likely to be of great value in the future.
Windham county is doing better both in
farming and manufacturing, than ever be-
fore. The people of the state have been
sending money to Fort Payne, and they
have lost it, and he was glad of it. He him
self had been induced to invest $1,000 in
San Antonio, Texas, against his judgment,
and he would take $500 for the property
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