Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1905-07-07
FRIDAY, JULY !. 1905
The Adequate Penalty.


appointed to investigate state institu-
tions is made public so far as 1t con-
Germs the waterbury asylum. The re-
port justifes the investigation ana
iustifies the action of the legislative
committee in recommending the
further investigation.
Among other things the committee
finds that the cost of maintaining
patients at the asylum is 40 cents a
week more than the average in other
like institutions
For an average of sos patients TINS
means the snug sum of $203.20 week.
The committee thinks there has been
no graft, corruption or dishonesty
in the conduct of the business. FER
haps not. Who got the $2O3.2O week?
Does II matter much to the taxpayers
whether the money was stolen or
wasted? The report shows at pest
incompetence and shiftlessness. the
natural results of the system of COM
mission management which the poll
ticians have loaded on to Vermont TOT
the sake of providing berths for them
selves and their friends.
what "other states" are taken as a
basis for comparison only the COM
mittee knows Is it not a fact that
comparison with Massachusetts,, Con-
necticut. Rhode Island or New YORK
(Tammany- hall Tom-Platt ruled New
York; shows a difference Of four or
five times 40 cents? How much COM
fort is there even in the accent fig
ures?
The republican state committee last
summer declared that lin all the
world there is no better and cleaner
government" or more economical tnan
ours. and that it "is a state govern
ment that would be absolutely impos-
sible in any other state
The latter statement is true enough,
and the reason is apparent-'in no
other state is the balance of political
power so overwhelmingly on one side.
The ruling party can misrule in YER
mont with impunity. The only ade-
ouate penalty is a political revolution.
This Waterbury affair illustrates the
situation perfectly. In general out
limo the facts have been evident for
wears. The Reformer has repeatedly
called attention to them. And yet no
move was made to correct them until
the small democratic minority party
bought advertising space in the news I
papers and forced the opposition TO
take notice. The first step was
legislative committee before which
every possible obstacle was put and
whose report it was attempted to dis
credit. In spite of these obstacles,
certain facts were brought to light;
the SUPERINTENDENT Of the state prison,
who should have been removed, was
allowed to resign; but no summary
penalty was imposed. Will any PEN
atty be imposed as a result OF TINS
latest report? Will the taxpayers have
any assurance that the investigations
i
there any adequate penalty for such
a condition of affairs as exists except
a political revolution?
These disclosures and the manner
in which they are minimized by those
in political control prove conclusively
that the greatest evil that threatens
our political and economic life is the
lack of two evenly matched factions
to dispute supremacy If the mem
hers of the undefinable but self-ap-
parent ring" do not take to heart
the plain duty that lies before them
and remedy the obvious defects in the
system of government they are CIV
ing us, it is high time that every clti-
zen of Vermont should differentiate
between national and state issues ana
for a while at least forget to vote the
republican ticket at state elections
To forestall this, do something