News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1910-12-07
Montpelier Letter

cess and the members all returned =,
Montpelier full of wishbones and full O
hope. Many people thought the time o
meeting was fixed at 100 on Monday
evening so that members could draw pa,
for that day, but the amount of bushes.
done the first evening after the reces.
was proof that the members are willing
to work and are willing to permit mat
tiers OF Importance to come along fast
enough to suit the most fastidious.
After cleaning up routine business or
Monday evening the report from the Ju
dietary Committee recommending the
passage of Mr. Amey's Capital Punish
ment bill was taken up. Mr.. Amey spoke
interestingly and feelingly for the billand
in very logical argument showed where
in the passage of the bill would be a steI
forward in the administration of justice
Bills of this nature have been introduced
at nearly every session of the Legislature
but it has remained for Mr. Amey OF
| - 'toi'SOAi " IA ibS clpCuI lis PSiSSuDG.
The bill does not abolish capital punish.
nent in words, but it will to a large ex-
tent at least have that effect. 1t places
the question with the jury, and their
verdict is qualified by the use of the
words with capital punishment" if in
the minds of the jurors the respondent
ought to be executed
The bill was supported by Peck of Bur.
lington, Stone of Wallingford, Howard
OF Whiting and Others. The principal ar
, guments against the bill were by Hunt OF
New Haven and Stafford of Brattleboro.
The vote was in favor of the passage Of
the bill by 113 to 94. The Senate has
taken up the bill and advanced it to a
third reading and will probably have
passed it before the time when this is
published. Thus does the Legislature of
1910 dare to face the music and thus
does this Legislature break away from
lifelong traditions and take steps toward
making Vermont rank as one of the
progressive states. 1t is not afraid to
meet conditions as they exist today, and
that is why the people of the state nay
hope that this Legislature will meet the
tax problem face to face and decide i ac-
cording to present commercial conditions
rather than upon the conditions of vars
ago.
THE REFERENDUM
On Tuesday evening the Committe of
Temperance gave public hearing the
question of a referendum which was
largely attended and the so-called efer-
endum bill had many loyal Supporters
the chief of which was Mr.. Ferguson of
the Anti-Saloon League. The bill pro-
vides for absolute prohibition on ales
by individuals, but it creates system of
state dispensariesi in every town of 1000
people and smaller towns may hIe a
dispensary for the asking The buNng
and distribution is done by one manap.
pointed by the Governor. No person tan
buy from the town dispensary except
upon oath asto his intention to use he
liquor for mechanical, medicinal or chen
ical purposes The bill also carries The |
referendum clause permitting the people |
to vote upon the measure before it be-
comes law. The principal advocates
of the bill were Mr.. Burbank of Cabot, |
MIR. Ferguson of Burlington, Rev. Mr.. |
Moody of Island Pond and Rev. Mr.. |
Schneider of Danville The arguments in |
favor of the bill dealt largely with the |
evils of the rum traffic and with the evil |
dent advantages of a referendum. Mr.. |
Austin, former Mayor of St Adams made
the principal argument against the pro-
posed bill. He agreed with the preced-
ing speakers in verything they said as to
the evils resulting from the rum traffic
and the beauties of a referendum. No re-
sponsible person could well argue that
there was any good in intemperance and
under our form of government no man
would dare venture that the people
should not rule. The only difference be-
tween the thinking people of the state to-
lay is as to the very best method of
meeting the evils of intemperance and
the best method of permitting the people
to rule. Mr.. Austin made his fight. not
against the principles of temperance or
the principles of referendum, but against
the particular bill before the Committee
and as to that bill he made his position
very clear. His first objection to the bill
was that it contained the worst feature
OF the present law, viz: the sale of liquor
by the bottle by some person whose in.
come depended upon the amount sold
second. this bill puts the state of Vermont
into the wholesale and retail liouor h,,s;
ness, thus giving standing to a d;srenu.
table traffic: third, the opportunity for
graft by the purchasing agent would he II.
resistable and must in the nature of tbings
result in the building up of a political
machine of tremendous power Will
would be gladly supported bv the I Mm,Cn
interests, it such interests were orrra,i,: uoI
as Charged by the Amt; S"Ai%eu