Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1905-12-29
HELD UP BY TECHNICALITY
oUMMERsToN SCHOOL DIRECT
oRs CAN GET NO MONEY.
Town Treasurer Stops Payment on
Their orders-They Did Not Move
Sehoolhouse as He Thinks They
Should Have Moved II.

: The Boston Sunday Globe containe
} the following from It's Brattleboro cor
, respondent. under date OF Dec 90:
II Is u rare day when the town q
Dummerston does not furnish topi
for outsiders TO talk about Whethe
In politics or town business there ar
certain factions which may be depend
ed upon to make things interesting, No
tees were posted In that town yes
terday calling the voters TO a specia
town meeting In the vestry OF tn
church at 10 o'clock Tuesday. Jan.
1906. ito see II the voters will appro
pirate a sum OF money. not to ex
coed $500. for labor and material use,
In repairing the schoolhouse In distric
No. l." Thereby hangs a tale.
Until recently the schoolhouse stool
near a brook. II was asserted by som,
that the close proximity OF the school
house TO the brook endangered III,
health of the pupils. As result OF
this condition a special town meeting
was held late In November. first. &c
see IL the town would vote to move
the schoolhouse to a more suitable To-
cation. and second. to see II the town
would vote to build a good, roomy
schoolhouse
Lewis II. Lynde. town treasurer. was
moderator at the meeting. He is a
widely known citizen. Although a
farmer he is a justice of the peace
and spends considerable time familiar
izing himself with the statutes. He
| likes to raise n point with the Brat
tleboro lawyers and he never comes
to Brattleboro without making a round
of the law offices and getting into
some argument
The article relating to moving the
schoolhouse was passed over at town
meeting and the article relating to
building a new schoolhouse was voted
down 40 to %. Moderator LYnde sug-
gested that it would be in order to re-
consider the first article which was
done. and II was voted to move the
schoolhouse
ID. NJ. Stockwell of Dummerston hill
resigned as member of the board of
school directors and Edwin II. Miller
was elected in his place. The board
as then constituted. which is the one
now in office. consisted of John +.
Houghton, II. II. Hall and Edwin Fl.
Miller.
Instead of moving the schoolhouse
bodily the directors tore ii down. In
talking about the matter to a Globe
reporter one of the directors said:
We took counsel in the matter and
We're told that ii would be Just as
well to move the building in pieces as
to move ii whole. When we came to
tear 1t down we found that some of
the timbers were rotten. and we are
replacing them with new timbers. but
we are using all of the old lumber
that we can"
When Mr.. Lynde saw what was be-
ing done he. as town treasurer came
to Brattleboro and notified the Ver-
ho nIy u-b ba nm,
merston town funds are deposited. not
to pay any further orders of the school
directors without permission from
him. This brought a storm of protest
on his head. but he was firm. and no
orders have been paid That is why
another meeting has been called.
To a Globe reporter Mr.. Lynde said
his reason for stopping payment on
the school directors orders was that
the voters made no appropriation for
doing the work and incidentally he
that he did not consider that |
The voters intended to have the school |
house moved in any such way as 1t |
has been moved.
IF | should allow school directors |
orders on this work to be paid when |
10 appropriation for 1t has been made I
might be held personally responsible |
o the town." said Mr.. Lynde. land
is l will not allow them to be paid
lnder the present situation 1t looks as
hough the school directors had a
on their hands.
THE fact of the matter is that they
we're bound to have new school
louse although the town voted not to
,uild one. They thought they could
tut up a new schoolhouse and unload
t on the town. but they didn't quite
- = 1nill a no Snhnnl-
louse without the town having some
hing to say about it. Where they
made their mistake was in getting up
warrant to do the work without
making any provision for paying the
ills"
"Will the town vote to pay the bills
t the coming meeting?" he was ask
d. Mr.. Lynde replied: I'm not pre-
AIRED to say. There is some question
bout it. / have heard several say
hey thought the town would not so
ote. but of course we have got to
1ake some provision for the children.
estry."
Harry Miller has been at work in !
rattleboro the past week. 6
The principal subject of conversa- !
on is the special town meeting next
tuesday,.
The ladies' club will meet with Mrs. q
o. Downs Thursday. Jan. T. at
clock. All come.
Mrs Amer Eddy. who has been with
er father the past two weeks. has h
turned to her home in West Brattle-
)ro. o.
One of the schools in the west part
the town is reported without :,
acher. the teacher having gone home
/ account of sickness.
Mrs. Leahy and her sister Miss
orence Laugh,on, were at f. III.
aughtOn's for Christmas and Miss d
lzina Amidon was at o. w. Amidon's.
MARLBORO.
Alvin johnson is in very poor health. Il