Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1901-01-29
OUR CITIZENS AROUSED.
A Concerted Effort Being Made to Divide
the col1ege-Zir1 Seeks to Annex 4
Portion Of Benton.


the college-Ziu1 Seeks to Anrcx a
Portion Of Benton.
If ever a community was con-
fronted with issues that would
test its metal to the utmost, the
people of Corvallis constitute that
community, and there is every
evidence that it will prove equal
to the emergency. These issues
involve the welfare of the city,
county and state. To consider
them, meetings of prominent
business men and others were
held in the par1ors of the First
National Bank, Friday and Sat-
urday evenings of last week, and
a mass meeting has been called
for tomorrow night at the court
house.
The matter of most vital i'm
portance to be given attention is
the proposed division of the
State Agricultural College. A
concerted effort to this end is be-
ing made by the Union county
delegation in both houses. Bills
have been introduced in the house
by McAlister, and in the senate
by Wade, to secure the location
of the eastern Oregon Agricul-
tural College" at Union, the real
purpose of which is to secure one
half of the funds now appropriat-
ed by congress for the support of
the State Agricultural College
and experiment station. They
ask an appropriation of 500, 900
for - buildings, and $1o, 900 an
nually for maintenance, and
want a board of nine regents to
take charge of the institution. So
deterrninened and insidious is
this attack upon this great insti-
tuition, that the public and press
knew nothing of the movement
until the introduction of the bill
in the senate on the 23rd, al
though the original bill had been
read in the house as early as the
18TH.
At the meeting III this city,
Saturday evening, committees
were appointed to represent the
people i'll guarding the welfare of
the college in this emergency.
The sentiment of those present is
embodied in the following ex-
preston by Senator Daily which
appeared in Sundays Oregonian:
'It would be a great blunder for
the state to cause the appropria-
ton to be cut down, and the edu-
cational interest and labors divi-
ded with another. Rather than
maintain two schools, it would be
better to move the whole institu-
ton away from Corvallis, and not
to endeavor to build up a rival
school at its expense and at the
expense of the public, both in an
educational and financial sense"
Another matter of vast i'm
portance is the movement on the
part Of Linn county to annex a
piece Of territory four by seven
miles, from the northern part of
Benton. Councilman Gibson in
formed the meeting that during
a recent visit to Wells, he learned
that a petition had been circu-
lated among the residents of that
section, and about one hundred
signatures had been secured.
The inducement offered signers,
was that in the event Of the AL
bany bridge becoming a toll
bridge, if they were annexed to
Linn they would be given free
passage over the bridge.
A committee was appointed to
prepare and circulate remon-
strances against the proposed leg
islation to be presented to the
Legislature. The rank injustice
of robbing Benton county,
already one of the smallest coun-
ties in the state, of a portion of
her territory, when such a move
ment is opposed by practically all
of her citizens, should be suf6-
Gent to defeat any action of this
kind on the part of Linn county.
A resolution was also adopted
declaring it to be the sense of
the meeting that there is no occa-
sion for amendments to the Cor
wallis city charter with reference
to sewers. The latter action was
taken in opposition to charter
amendment that has passed both
houses which amend1nentrestricts
the powers of the council with
reference to sewers. Our dele
gates in the legislature have been
apprised of this action, and they
have given assurance that moth.
ing further shall be done in the
matter until action is tax en- by
the citizens of Corvallis.
The act is entitled can act to
amend sections I27 and 128 of
chapter XI of the Corvallis city