St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1910-06-08


of its appraised value If he has not the
balance he cannot buy. and often leaves
| the state. With the mortgage untaxed,
| many man in our state would be Will
ing, and glad, to sell to young man. IN
| whose ability he had confidence, farm
1 with scarcely nothing down; and the
| young man, if he had to pay only tour
| and one-half per cent interest on his IN:
| vestment, would stand better chance
| for success, and be more apt to stay IN
| Vermont. We need more of our yourg
j men to stay in our state. We have lost
| altogether too many of them in the past.
/ The only interests that would naturally
| oppose such a law are our banks. which.
| under our present law, have multiplied
! rapidly. Such law would also help the
business man of small capital who could
| mortgage his stock in trade and get his
money at low rate of interest. Cheap
money would encourage all kinds of in
| dustry. With such a measure there
would be little occasion for the present
| Offset law, with its attending evils.
Our constitution provides THAT every
member of society hath a right to be
protected in the enjoyment OF lite. Iiber-
| ty, and property, and therefore is bound
| to contribute his proportion towards the
expense of that protection" This is sup
posed to mean that every one shall con-
| tribute his share and no more. The in
| tangibles probably comprise one-half the
| wealth of our state The special tax
| commissioners say in their report, "Sta-
| tistics show thatintangiblesg generally es-
| cape taxation" We believe in the enact
| ment of law providing that no one shall
receive any share in the distribution of
an estate until he produces proof that
| all moneys, credits, and securities of the
| deceased were duly returned for taxation
| by him in his life time, and if such proof
| be not made, an amount equal to what
| should have been paid, with interest
| thereon. be paid, one-half to the town in
which the deceased lived, and one-half
| to the state. This would make men of
| wealth careful to leave a clean record.
| There can be no question but what the
state has the unbounded right to pro-
tect its revenues. To-day too many seem
to regard it as all right to take a false
oath relating to taxation. Such law
would tend to improve public morals.
| No one can make a reasonable argu-
ment against such a law. and no one
| should be elected to the legislature this
year who will not support such bill.
Any one who would put upon his fellow
citizen his share Of the public burdens is
not a safe man to make our laws for us.
| Our laws should be changed so that triv-
ial affairs could not be taken into county
court. Our state and county expenses
are out of proportion to population. The
| establishment of district courts with final
! jurisdiction, would decrease the cost, and
greater and quicker justice would be
| obtained.
Agricultural and Industrial Education.
The movement for agricultural and vo-
cational education is world wide. In our
country fourteen of the states have laws
requiring agriculture to be taught in all
| the rural elementary schools, and thirty
one other states and territories have made
beginning in taking up this work. In
this respect Vermont, the best agricultur-
al state in New England, is behind every
otherstate east of the Mississippi River.
TIE development of applied science is a
strong factor in this new movement, and
it is evident that all industry, whether
agricultural, mechanical, or commercial
must, in the future. rest upon the founda-
ton of science. In our high schools
Greek and Latin will have to give way to
more practical curriculum with applied
science as the ground work.
While we had but ten agricultural high
schools in this country twelve years ago,
we now have more than sixty agricultur-
al schools or secondary courses in colleges,
over 400 public high schools teaching
agriculture, 12O state or county normal
schools, and 16 agricultural colleges
training young men and women to teach
agriculture. besides large number of in
situations offering correspondence
courses. Not only agriculture but
domestic science must soon be taught in
all our high schools, and in some of them
the various industries.
Elementary agriculture, or nature
studies, should be taught in all our rural
schools. The first step necessary is to
prepare large number of teachers. Our
next legislature should make provision
for this by establishing department of
agriculture and domestic science in our
State Normal Schools, and by giving
little state aid, for time at least, to
such high schools as will introduce such
a course to prepare teachers for the rural
schools. Space forbids our discussing
the benefits to be derived from such
policy but suffice it to say that necessity
compels US to keep pace with the other
states i'll the march of progress.
For the past ten years we have wanted
to see an Agricultural school established
in every county in our state. with farm
connected, where an application could be
made of the science taught. Where our
boys could learn to judge stock of all
kinds and alance rations for the same,
how to handle and test milk and cream,
and to make the finished product, how
to manage soils and feed plants. the
manipulation and care of improved farm
machinery, and everything connected
with modern up-to-date farm equip
ment. Such farm would be good in
vestment for%the farmers of the county
as an object lesson.
The only school we now have of this
nature is our state institution at Yer
gennes This is an institution of which
our state has reason to feel proud. The
superintendent and matron are surely the
right people for the place. They are to
be congratulated on the splendid home
like atmosphere and Christian spirit that
prevails in and about the place, and the
love and devotion the children accord
their foster parents. 1t is the duty ofthe
81 te To encnnra cre hem h,r m a l,inor the