Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1895-12-13
VERMONT STATE GRANGE,
Twenty-FOurthAnnual Session

Master Bells Message---the Public
MeetIng---SIxth Degree Conferred on
90 CRndIdates---a Large and Enthusi-
astic Meeting.
The Vermont State grange has held its
oath annual session in Bratteboro this
week as the guest of Protective grange,
The sessions, which began Tuesday morn
ing and ended yesterday afternoon, have
been held in Grange hall, to which the
visiting patrons were welcomed by the local
grange with feeling of just pride in their
new home.
The first session was held Tuesday morn
ing. When Worthy Master G, j. Bell call
ed to order nearly every official chair was
| filled Upon the secretarys calling the roll
it was found that nearly all the subordi-
nate oranges were represented. Other minor
matters, including the appointment of COM
mttees, were disposed of at the morning
session.
state Master Bells Message.
The annual address of State Master Bell
was presented at the afternoon session.
| The opening of the masters address refer
red to the condition of the order in the
state. The subordinate oranges have had
prosperous year. Eight new oranges
have been organized with membership of
| nearly 200 The reports of 20 oranges
show net gain in membership of 500. The
Pomona or county oranges have also done
good work during the year, having been
| especially helpful in the social work of the
order. The address also contained ref
erence to the recent meeting of the national
grange in Worcester at which it was evil
dent that the grange is controlled by true
American citizenship and its power and in
| fluence is for good.
Education, the master said, is the foun-
dation of the order and will ever continue
to be its strength To the town system
of schools, pure and simple, the support
of the grange should be pledged. The
legislature should cease granting charters
to incorporated districts, as the sparsely
populated part of town needs and de-
serves the support of the villages. Trans
portation should be controlled by intelli-
gent and conscientious legislation. In
turning to the subject of taxation, the
speaker said this was matter ever pres
ent in the minds of property owners. espec-
tally the owners of real estate. If, he said,
every owner of personal property was as
honest as the holder of real estate is
obliged TO be, the burdens of taxation would
be lightened Our state institutions, schools
and roads would be wonderfully improved
| If all wealth paid taxes in the same ratio
to its value as real estate does.
The liberal gifts of Vermont patrons to
the drought-stricken patrons of the West
were noticed in the report as a palt of the
work of charity done during the year.
A tribute was paid to the memory of the
late Z. p. Cotton of Irasburg, the first
state master, who was chosen at the tenn
porary organization in 1873 and served as
master for eight years.
In conclusion the master said the grange
needs the support and cooperation of all
organized agricultural institutions and that
it Is the duty of the grange to stand for all
that is progressive, temperate, loyal and
| American.
The report of the state secretary, d. D.
Howe of Burlington, showed that there
were "a oranges in good standing with a
membership of about $500. The treasur-
er, F. b. Pier, reported the state organiza-
tion to be in good shape financially.
The noticeable feature of the report of
the masters of the subordinate and Pomo-
ma oranges was that more and better work
has been done than any previous year, es-
pecially in the educational line, which was
more thoroughly discussed in the report of
the state lecturer, Geo. W. Pierce, given
at a later session.
The morning and afternoon sessions on
Wednesday were devoted largely to bust
ness matters. Among other reports a
committee appointed year ago to visit
the state agricultural college, endorsed
most heartily the work of the college, max
ing special mention of the efficient services
of Prof. j. l.. Hills, the director of the
state experiment station, and of d. D..
Howe, the superintendent of the expert
ment station farm.
Alpha Messer of Rochester and f. G..
Taylor of Guilford were reelected mem
bers of the state executive committee.
During the morning session L. G. Hutch
inson, secretary of the New Hampshire
state grange, extended the fraternal greet
ings of that body.
The exemplifcation of the third and
fourth degrees by Protective grange, which
was given Wednesday evening, received
the heartiest commentator of the state
officers and all who witnessed the render
ing of the ritualistic ceremony.
Business was the feature of Thursday S
session, the reports of the various commit
tees being received and acted upon. Reso-
lutions were adopted acknowledging the
courtesy of the patrons and citizens OF
Brattleboro, of the hotels and railroads in
granting reduced rates, of the electric rail
road in rendering the complimentary ride tC
the visitors. The helpful addresses of the
various speakers and the stimulus of the
example of Protective grange were also no
ticed appropriately.
Resolutions callGd out by committees re
ports on finance, taxation, transportation
legislation, education, agriculture, th,
good of the order, and the press were acteC
upon. The grange put itself on record il
favor of expert supervision of schools anC
endorsed the suggestions made by Superin
tendent Stone in his address at the public
meeting. A special report in favor of tn
exemption from taxation of money loaneC
at Al per cent on farm property in the stat
was made. A bill drafted by the commit
tee to put the matter before the next legis
lature was adopted.
The committee on agriculture endorse,
the administration of the state board o
} agriculture, especially its action regarding
3 bovine tuberculosis. The committee be
. lieved that farmer should be at the hea
2 of the department of agriculture. TIL
5 committee on transportation recommends
= that railroad fares should be placed by lay
at two cents per mile for regular ticket
atest II. 6. Govt Renort