Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1894-01-25


as large ms the State of Vermont. You can
cut the little State of Vermont out of Texas
% times and then have cdgings enough left
| to make another state as large as Connect
cut and Rhode island combined. And yet
| who would not rather have been born in
| Vermont than in Texas? When a person
says II was born in Vermont, that means
| something. The statement carries with
| il u definite idea One saws instantly
There is person who was actual
| " born somewhere No confusion
as to locality follows such a statement
when say II was born in Vermont" there
is nothing vague about that statement. |
remember year ago at your anniversary
| Mr.. Phelps cx-lninister to the court of St
| James. attempted to explain the intense
! love of Nermonters for their native State
| upon the theory thnta country full of noun
| taius, where people have to struggle in or
der TO live AT all. always develops in its peo-
| pie an intense feeling of local love and local
pride. There is no doubt somewhat of truth
in that theory. But he admitted another
fact that must be included to fully account
! for the intense love of NermontelS for the
place of their birth. and that i, the size of
the State itself 1t is not so large as to de
stroy ones identity. and identity is the
| '
active affections can spread himself all over
tina State of Vermont without any patches
getting SO thin as to lead to uncomfortable
exposures. In travelling over the United
| States | have noticed that the people of
| Vermont are more completely American
| than the people of almost any other
! Northern State. Rhode Island. Connect
/ cut and Massachusetts, have had such
an immense influx of foreigners that the
, people of those States are no longer purely
Americans The New England character
| has been modified i'll those States by coming
in contact and mixing with the people from
the old world. There is comparatively little
of that in Vermont. Go where YOU Will III
the Green Mountain State. you come across
new editions of Molly Stark and Ethan Al
len. unmixed with Irish. Italian. German or
Hungarian The New England strain sur
wives in all its purity Fathers and mothers
are both of revolutionary stock True, their
sons and daughter are crowded ont into the
Western States and marry and intermarry
| with the rest of the world But at home a
| Vermont man marries Vermont girl and
i'm that way the Vermont characteristics ar,
still preserved. The people of the New Eng
| land States as a whole have their distin
| gushing characteristics. To he a New Eng
| land Yankee means good deal. But to he
a Vermont Yankee at once suggests Il con
densation of business tact. iirInnesS, indie
pendencc and love of country coupled with
moderation and modesty. This gives to Yer
mont character sort of browning glory.
In introducing the next speaker President
Kimball said:
The earlier settlers of Vermont had keen
realization of the importance of higher edu-
cation. In 1871, the same year that the
State was admitted to the Union. n charter
was granted by the Legislature for college
and about &c, 600 acres of land given for its
support, 1t is fair to presume that as they
! called it the University of Vermont it
would be at the head of the highest cduca-
tional institutions of the State. from the
meaning of the word university-an assem-
blage of colleges. branches of learning. the
arts, sciences. theology, medicine law. etc.
etc In 1900 Middlehury college was char
tered although without State support, il
has been well cared FOR by its alumni. and
for nearly century has done noble work
Two years ago we had the president of the
University of Vermont with MS. Last yeal
we expected the president of Middebury
college. hut were ppointed--perhaps we
may vet have that honor. This year the
president of the alumni of Norwich unver-
sity has kindly. consented to tell us some
thing of it and its graduates.
Gen. q. VI. Dodge. president of the al
mnn of Norwich university. responded &c
the toast ''Nermont. the offspring of contro-
Vcrsy and war Gen. Dodge spoke of foul
years of his boyhood spent in Vermont at
Norwich university and said he had to thank
Vermont for the lessons of order and pei Sc
verance learned there He said Vermont
/ a. IL,
ton to population of any State of soldiers in
the civil war. This he attributed to the
military training of the sons of Vermont u,
Norwich university, long the only military
school in the North except West Point. and
which had a larger roster in the civil wal
than any university in the country. During
the war so many undergraduates enlisted
that for two years the university had NJ
commencement. Gen. Dodge gave the wal
roster of the uni versity in detail and quoted
compliments paid the university by Gems
Grant and Sheridan.
The Rev G. H. Fay was introduced Il,
the oldest graduate of Norwich university
He illustrated the spirit of Vermont by tn,
story of the little man, who. when asked
how much he weighed. replied. Not mucl
ordinarily, but when m mad weigh E
ton
Hiram f. Steele responded TO the toast
"Nermont-As is her won't when called tC
any good work, She leads the way Ii,
said in part;
1t is quite impossible to fairly discuss the
record of \ermonterS, either at home Oh
abroad, Nermonters in the war or in civil
life, without recalling facts and character
istiCs which have IA tendency to make us al
proud of the Green Mountain state. an,
proud of the stock from which we are de
scended. This record is no secret: il is {
part Of the history of this country, and
assume that it Is on account of this honor
oble pride that this society was formed ant
we are here Tonight. According To recen
census returns more than 10 per cent of al
native born NermOnters living to-day resid,
in other parts OF the country: 50 il becomes
important and should he gratifying to know
that, as general rule, Nermonters hay,
made splendid record outside of Vermont
1t has been charged that what Nermonter
are most proud of is, not that they live il
Vermont but that they are from Vermont
| do not admit the truth of this assertion
| lint tl,Ia any fnIIn,lat inn f,,, il - mo,