Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1902-05-16
Answer to Taxpayer.
Editor of Reformer :

Editor OF Reformer =
a Brattleboro Taxpayer in a letter
to your paper last week places himself
on record as opposed to the moving of
the county buildings to Brattleboro,
and asks a few questions. Permit me
to answer him in general way.
He asks what benefit would come to
| Brattleboro from the two short terms
each year of county court? These two
short terms come to at least three
months of the year, with an average
daily attendance of 100 jurors, wit
nesses, litigants lawyers and friends
of the contesting parties. Would this
attendance mean the spending of mon
ey in town, or would it not: Would
those who attend court from Whining
/ ton, Halifax, Guilford, Vernon, Whiting
ham, Dummerston, Putney, Westmin-
ster, Londonderry and Jamaica be apt to
! ira e, to a certain extent, or would
/ they return home to do their trading:
Do the people who now go to Newfane
spend money there, except for board?
/ No; but with our stores would they
not do their purchasing here:
Has the Taxpayer no pride in his
/ town! Does he want to have fine
building here and have Brattleboro
known as the county seat or is he SO
narrow minded and selfish as to sink
his town pride because at the outset it
may cost him few dollars?
Has any town in the county vested
right in the county seat: 1t was first
located at Marlboro. The county seat
should be placed where it viii accom-
modate the greatest number of people.
viii any one deny that this is at Brat
tleboro: IT, however, it will be of
some benefit to Brattleboro, why
should not Brattleboro pay for it?
The hotel question should not enter
into it except thus far We all know
that better Accommodations can be had
here, but the main question should
be where and how is it easiest and
most convenient for the people to
get to the county seat The legal
fraternity will go where the bust
ness is, whether it is in Newfane
Londonderry, Wilmington or Brattle
boro. 1t is better for the majority of
lawyers to have the county buildings
here because the majority of the law
yers live in Bellows Falls and Brattle- |
boro. Why Because the probate and I
county business is done in those two
towns. Does Taxpayer wish the pro
DdIb OllIct moved 10 NtNldut. ne p
county clerk 5 office is here. Why:
Because the county business is tran
Sacted here and there are no accommo-
dations for his office in the present /
court house. The county is at the |
present time spending an extra amount |
of money on this account. With the .
county buildings at Brattleboro, the
clerks office would be located in them
! - hot &c. !
growing, will it help Brattleboro to
have 100 extra people here 30 days in
the year, or will it hErt it? Does Tax
would like to have the Cheshire coun-
ty seat in Chesterfield? DO the people
Of Keene look on their county building
as a monument: Does the county bus
mess done at Greenfield help that
town, or does it not:
Brattleboro, as Il town, cannot eX-
pend so, 600 on private business. Il
Suppose it could, and that private bus
mess should fail? Once the county
are here they will be perma-
lently here, and there will be no fail
ire regarding it.
How is Brattleboro taking away any
hing from any town except Newfane?
tive us the county buildings, and in
addition to the county court, We will |
n all probability have jury term of -
he United States court. With no ac- 5
now, all we can have is :
court term.
Taxpayer exaggerates the cost of |
buildings; so, 600 to SO, 900 can be '
ut to SO, 600 to SO. 600. I
That the county buildings here will a
clip Brattleboro and accommodate :
ur-fifths of the population of the Y
ounty, can be seen and understood if I
ne carefully considers the question I
Yours very truly, II
Another TaXpaVer h