Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1908-07-03
The Platform.

The Republicans of Vermont, by their del
egates in convention assembled at Montpelier
July /, 1908, do declare:
l. We are proud to be Republicans in this
history making era. The primary principles of
our great organization have ever been the pro-
lection of the weak from the might of the
strong, the uplifting of the masses and the con-
troll of the classes; the faid deal, the square
deal to every man. Never have those prin-
ciples been SO grandly exemplifed and so force
fully applied as under the leadership of Theo-
dore Roosevelt. We praise his administration
and rejoice in all the great works it has per-
formed
We heartily endorse and adopt as our own
the. platform of the Republican party of the
nation. We endorse the candidacy of that
great American who has, by the overwhelming
expression of the will of the people, been
Taft of Ohio. To him and to his associate we
pledge our fealty, our best endeavor, and we
promise the support OF Vermont to Taft and
Sherman by a vote so nearly unanimous that
our state shall maintain its honored position as
the first of Republican Commonweaths.
8. The Republican administration of the
state of Vermont brings open book the
account Of its stewardship for the last two
years. We confidently make the assertion,
proved by that account, that we have met
every promise with performance.
We pledged ourselves by our platform of
1906 to continued efforts to upbuild and
strengthen our public, schools. Our admins
tration has made and enforced laws to pro-
vide state aid to the higher education of the
young to lend the aid of the state to better
and more efficient supervision of our common
schools; to extend and make more beneficial
our care for the weak and the unfortunate;
and to add substantially to the permanent fund
dedicated to tine support of elementary educa-
ton. We recommend such alterations in the
penal laws as would work to their eff
fcient administration, and result in more di-
rect and speedy punishment of crime. There
has been placed upon our statute books a law
requiring all sentenced prisoners to work, and
in its administration it has worked to the up
lifting and improvement of the criminal class.
We promised such needed changes in the
administration, Of our penal institutions as
would tend 10 make better men and women
of the inmates there. By a statute law and
by rules established, a long step has been
taken to that end.
We pledged our support to the cause of bet
ter highways. The Republican legislature has
| passed and the Republican administration has
carried out law appropriating from the gen.
| eral funds of the commonwealth a substantial
| sum toward the building of permanent high
ways and providing efficient county super
vision.
We urged the reorganization of our ju-
| dietary system, to the end that the adminstra-
ton of justice might be more speedy ana that l
| the crowded dockets OF our courts might be
| relieved. That reorganization has been
| brought about with the result that today the
courts are relieved and the number OF long
! standing causes has been reduced to the min
| imum. ,
We promised legislation to strengthen and
make effective our laws for the control OF pub
! lie service corporations: That legislation mas
| been passed. Our railroad commission has
been endowed with authority and power to the
resulting good of both people and corpora,
| tons Effective measures have been passed
by our legislature and enforced with, the judg-
ment of the highest court of the land, to make
all corporations domestic and foreign, subser-
Went to the process and orders OF our courts.
ture Of the money OF the people should at all
times be the aim. =, So carefully have we Kept
| that pledge that all the expenses of the state
government, with its widened scope and gen
erous aid to schools, and highways, have been
| met without one dollar of direct taxation.
We nominated for governor in 1906, young
man whom we placed before the people with
| the assertion that he was a man OF marked
| ability and progressiveness, a believer in the
| application OF thorough business principles and
methods to the affairs OF government and 3
| champion of the greater Vermont. There
stands in Vermont today not a man who can
| question that our governor is all we claimed
| for him. We take pride in the administration
| and the work OF Fletcher ID. Proctor, and our
best endorsement Of him Is our claim that nc
one has ever better filed the gubernatorial
| chair -.