The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1909-04-09
The MeddLer
"U the coat fits yOa. put it on.

A reader of The Meddler's column has
made suggestion in which perhaps lies
an explanation of the ease with which
prisoners make their escape from New
fame jail. Pitch is favorite game at the
county institution and the prisoners, with
little else to do, become highly proficient
in it. Is it unreasonable to think that
Streeter, st. Peter and the rest of the
bunch "smudged out?''
|
Reference to the jail reminds The Med
or Saturday afternoon, the scene of oper-
ations being the local lookup. In the
lookup at the time were Janitor HI. d.
Harris and Painter Bert Ware at work
on the long-promised renovation. Select
man John E. Calvin dropped in to see
how things were progressing and on going
out snapped the lock on the outside door;
Then he went down to the municipal
courtroom and made arrangements for a
mock trial of the occupants of the bas-
tile 1t was agreed that Deputy Sheriff
G.. |. Knapp should after a time get the
prisoners and escort them through the
street to the courtroom where they would
be arraigned on. some framed-up charge:
This program doubtless would have proved
extremely amusing had it not been for
leak in the lookup. When the sheriff
went to the lookup about an hour later
he found it empty, Messrs. Harris and
Ware being at work in another part of
the building. An explanation of their
mysterious escape will be demanded at
the next regular meeting of the town
fathers.
The ianitor of the American building
is in the habit of washing the highway In
front of that building by means of hose.
Noticing the spick and span appearance
of the pavement after such a course OF
treatment the other day, a bystander
asked why it would not be a good idea
occasionally to attach a length of village
hose to the hydrant at the top of the hill
and clean the pavement from there 10
Main street bridge. The Meddler relt,,
crates this inquiry. Just at this time OF
year the pavement, particularly at the
edges. is covered with a winters accumu-
or sweeping will remove. But a stream
of water under the pressure obtalnable
at this point would in few moments
make Main street hill resemble one of the
highways in mythical Spotless Town
Merchants whose places of business Dor
der this thoroughfare would benefit great
ly if such fushings were given the pave
ment from time to time through the sum
mer. 1t would do away with practically |
all the dust which is now stirred up every |
time an auto climbs the hill at a speed
lbove the limit to avoid throwing into
he low.
=,
Every spring the railroad bank in the
ear of Main street gets on The Meddlers
nerves. The view from his office window
1orthward presents an eXpanse OF ashes,
,ustv cans and broken bottles, punctuated
It frequent intervals with telegraph and
,lectric-light poles at various angles and
4 infreduent intervals with signboards
which once bore the legend Dump, no
ubbish here, per order of the board OF
,ailiffs" Not so many years ago the VII
age fathers appropriated sum of money
o clean the bank every spring. OF late,
Iowever. this particular portion of Brat
leboro has been allowed to go unmolest-
d save by the tenants of the buildings at
he top who find it easier to throw rub
ish out of their rear windows than to
IT it accumulate in a suitable receptacle
nd have it carried away. Every stranger
vho comes into Brattleboro by train
rom the north or by automobile or team
cross the Connecticut river bridge IS '
bliged to take this eye sore into consld. s
ration in forming his first impression of ]
ne town and its inhabitants. That means
black mark at the outset. '
I'll. ,,-o,s+ arra ionmnnt of Dresent | 1