The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1893-03-08
ing the funds designed for their inn
provement TO uses already, in COMPARE
son, we'll provided for.


son, we'll provided for.
THIS fact was strongly impressed
upon us in a recent talk with veneer
able doctor of divinity, who spent the
best part of half a day in telling us
about the trials and tribuatious of
those citizens of Maine who desired to
see the appropriation, for that state, of
the industrial college funds, honestly
and wisely used. There are two prom
inent literary colleges in Maine-Bow-
dom at Bruins wick, and Colby at Water
ville-both in the Kennebec valley.
Each was determined to get possession
of the industrial appropriation, or TO
see that the other did not, The east
ern part Of the state was not specially
interested in the f yht, and to develop
an interest there the friends of an in
dustrial school, pure and simple,
offered their strength to put the in-
dustrial school in that section. BY
pitting one old college against the
other, with about an equal support,
this was accomplished, and then these
old colleges were more than willing
to help in providing that the new
school should be really industrial one,
and not competitive with them. How
warmly did we feel the wish arise in
us that MiddleburY had been a more
equal match for Burlington, thirty
years ago.
IT would almost go without saying
that our doctorial friend ia not a minis.
ter Of either of the denominations con-
trolling the two literary colleges; but he
is also man of broad sympathies, and
possessed of sterling manliness that is
above every sort of meanness. Bred on
farm, and with heart open to all that
is noble and magnauimous, he has felt
deeply for the needs of our great agri-
cultural population in the way of edu-
cation. He fully realizes that the cult
walton of the soil for the production of
food and clothing for the human race
has already risen to the dignity of
science, and requires schools for the in
struction of the present and the coming
generations therein. He sees plainly
that the aristoCratic ideas fostered in
the old colleges are hostile alike to true
liberty and enlightened progress. He
sees, as we all see, that the record of
these literary colleges, as made appar-
ent in the press, is becoming more
and more discreditable to themselves
aud offensive to the people. Nine
tenths of the reading public know of
these institutions almost wholly by the
daily record of their " manly" sports
and their daily ruffianism, Rich mems
sons are permitted in almost every one
of them to commit, and are sheltered in
committing, offenses against law, de-
cency and good citizenship. The son
of an ordinary workingman who should
be guilty of acts daily recorded of stu
dents of Yale, Harvard, Columbia, and
even of Amherst, would be put behind
iron bars for long periods, were it not
for the powerful protection of their col
leges. These schools, near large cities,
are regarded as public nuisances. The
Boston restaurants and hotels refuse to
entertain their students in parties, on
account of their disreputable conduct.
They are in large degree the support
of rum-shops and brothels; and Cam
bridge is one of the few prohibitory
towns about Boston because of the fear
of their citizens of what the drunken
"students are capable of doing. In
the smaller fresh-water colleges " of
the country the vices of these "stu-
dents" are less prominent and more
restrained, mainly because of their lack
of money; but even in these they are
none too good, although many things
are overlooked in them that would
never be tolerated elsewhere.
EVERY reader of this paper should
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