Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1904-04-14
A NEW VERMONT.

In the last issue OF Expansion we
statad a certain condition, believed TO
eyist which is commonly character
ICED under the head. "A New YER
mont We then attempted to answer
the query: What are the forces oper-
ating as causes Immediately back oil
In this number win be taken up the
inquiry: Have We really new Yer
mont? an.
An East Indian proyerb says: "He
that would bring back the wealth OF
me Indies must carry forth the wealth
of the Indies Our New England
Emerson has reproduced the same
thought when be has said Though
we travel the world over 10 find the
beautiful. we must carry il with usl or
we find il not. If we would ind
New Vermont, we must carry It with
MS. To be here it must be within our
selves. We can not search for II and
searching find save as by analysis and
introspection. "Know thyseli, writ
ten in Greek over the door Of the
Temple OF Delphi, is the kinetic force
which makes us TO conclude that we
have a New Vermont.
Farms and factories, shops and
quarries, banks and railroads, libra
ries and public schools, electric plants
and newspapers, good roads and rural
free deliveries-the door plate OF the
purely subjective is on them all,
reckoned from comparative stand
point. They are of us and we are OF
them. What are we, what are we
doing, and what have we done9 III
Won seek monument, look around
YOU, read the Greek inscription on the
mound within the Pass Of ThermopylG,
where four thousand Greeks withstood
the millions of Nerxes. If you seek a
monument on which to read the story
of our growth and our strength, look
around you.
Our population remains about sta
tionary. We have increased only n
few thousand in the last decade. The
tendency is very marked away from
the farms and into the manufacturing
while the foreign immigrants
who settle within the state more than
ever before have been moving toward
the farms. so that the character OF the
in some of our rural COM
munities has been essentially changed
but take Il all In all, allowing Tor the
increasing admixture Of new blood, the
old time character, peculiar still and
typical still, Of New England, remains
with Us. We have not, the writer is
departed far from the fam
ily and religious conditions and in
stincts OF our fathers.
Commercially the change has been
decided. Within a decade electric
railways have been introduced into
nearly every county, yet the begin
ming is only made. Not a county In
the state but at present has new lines
In contemplation, either planned with
in its limits or coming in from outside.
Country villages everywhere with us
are being reached by this metropolitan
vastly increasing our
and capability by saving of
lime and labor and by rendering us
quick 10 respond to outer business and
social influences.
The very remarkable growth in the
resources OF Vermont banks and i'm the
AMOUNT OF individual deposits during
he last few years has been with us an
/ source OF pride and satisfaction,
pride in the permanence and stability
If institutions important to our well
are and improvement, satisfaction in
his criterion of our industry, frugal
ty and individual prosperity. The
lank wrecker is a public enemy. He
wrecks his own bank, but more, he
wrecks confidence in an important
public institution and strikes blow at
he heart of what perhaps most con-
erns the business welfare OF our state.
Above the occasional instance rise the
power and conservatism of
he great majority.
That great has been the progress to
Is in methods, i'm attendance, in ex-
,enditures for salaries, tor buildings
md for appliances in and for our pub
ic schools, is a statement so generally
Illustrated by concrete examples as 10
,e known TO all. All this has been
by the work, corre-
lunuluHA1 btNiti anu increasing. OF
'ur academies and colleges, while the
ystem OF public libraries. admirably
uited to our state, has been developed !
nd has proved an adjunct of no mean
Importance and has brought much in
considerable entertainment
nd a good deal of culture to many a |
Jack country town.
To meet the higher order of intelli- |
,ence and to foster it have come a |
nrge number of newspapers, better i'm |
very respect than before. These
lace subscription rates within the
each OF all, and almost all take adj |
antage of them. The newspaper. as
n educator and as promoter of the
seful and the up-to-date is a factor |
90 important not TO be classed highly. |
Manufacturing in lumber, in farm
in the textile industries. in
II kinds OF iron and wood work. and |
indeed in almost everything attempted /
within our borders has received an
Impetus during the last decade never
'efOre known.
In agriculture, pure and simple. has
ONE an Improvement varied and i'm
'ortant. Every decade during the last
orty years has seemed revolution
'ut the last decade stands head and