The Newtown bee., 1899-09-01
THE BEE.
CIRCULATION;
The Home Circle.
WOODBURY..

THE LAST TOWN MEETING OF WOODBURY.
Mr. Editor: AS our local paper seems
to be rather one sided, and isn't large
enough to publish in over three weeks
time what an ordinary farmer wrote after
chores were done before he retired,
would like space sufficient in your paper
to say few words about our last town
meeting and the graded school, which
beats all of my experience on the school
question. And | wish | could have
known when the first town meeting was
called what know to-day. don't fully
understand the meaning of such high
flown language as came out In 8 recent
Issue of the Reporter and for fear shall
insult or impose upon some one L will
not comment. But l did not take my
seat until the moderator called the house
to order and had finished my great -.
am afraid to use such big words for
fear 1 should misconstrue the meaning
The stamping of feet L considered an
honor and said some things l should not
have said IL certain ones had kept their
feet still. / have lived in the town Of
Woodbury. over 81 year, and during all
of these years | haven't occupied 30
minutes of time in town meetings. l
usually keep my lips closed and my
tongue inside OF my teeth, but / do not
remember of attending one single town
meeting without hearing from our ia mt
ed blacksmith orator. Sometimes he
talks sense and sometimes nonsense, but
he usually manages to get on the popular
side, and the editors and blacksmith's
views correspond as nicely as IL they
were run in the same mould. Perhaps
the people living in the remote districts
would think as they do IL they lived
where they and some of the non-taxpay-
ers, professional men and aristocratic
women do, and didn't pay any more
taxes. was told short time ago that
one farmer pays more taxes into the
town treasury than our local editor,
blacksmith orator and all of our profess
sional men put together, with the excep-
tion of one doctor, and he has sense
enough to let town business alone and
follow his profession. An old gentleman
In an adjoining town told me that when
he first commenced keeping house Wood
bury and all the adjoining towns were
run by farmers and were out of deb, and
the tax never exceeded five mills on q
dollar. But to-day be said that we had
so much of this floating population and
non-taxpayers that the Old Nick himself
couldn't keep a town out of debt, es-
pecially IL there were few professional
aristocrats in the town.
II farmer wants to be popular he
must either stay at home and fight po-
tato bugs, to pay his taxes with, or keep
his mouth closed so tight that fly can't
crawl in or word get out until he gets
outside OF the Town hall. And Ii he
should happen to open his mouth wide
enough to say anything about getting out
OF debt, decreasing the expenses OF the
town, and especially abating the tax Of
the poor farmer and taxing the bond
holder, there are certain ones whose
blood would rush to their head and they
would turn red In the face and their feet
would begin to move and they would
begin to call fer the question, and for
the sheriff, and they would want the
pocr farmer TO ride on their boot ont OF
the Town hall clear into bis doorysrd.
And II they dared they would boot him
after be got inside Of the door of his own
house, and then go around shouting !;
.Poor farmers. don't want any school,
mat because they, like NaDoth Of old,
aou,t want to give up the Inheritance Of
tbeIr fathers and have the ancient land
,rarrs removed. II the Wishes Of the
aonor. Or sha plan Of the chairman ofthe