St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-06-28
Country Life Problems.

Country Lie ETOD1CmSs
Vermont is typical of the Union
in the way in which it has allowed
its country districts to lag behind. If
the process continues to sufficient
extent it will work literally irrepar-
able harm. ''-Theodore Roosevelt in
speech at White River Junction.
Any one familiar with conditions in
Vermont must recognize the fact that
for many years Vermont has allowed
it's country districts to lag behind"
This has been done unconsciously in
the autonomy that has been allowed
the town and generation ago the
school district. When the school
district was in existence mighty
changes in population took place.
Many districts that were once main
tanning the largest and best schools
in town lost population until they
could maintain only a small school
with half dozen scholars in a neg
lected school house and in charge
of a cheap and inexperienced school
teacher. They were simply allowed
to flag behind" until public spirit
and real progress were dead. The same
is true of towns today. We all know
towns whose population has been
drifting away, whose public spirit has
been diminishing until today they are
really tagging behind the procession,
a brake on the wheels of progress
and depressing influence on the life
of the state as whole.
The results of these conditions are
deplorable. We have recently had
many discouraging illustrations of
them in the flood of murders and
murderous assaults in the isolated
sections of the state. True the pres
ent wave of crime has not been con-
fined to the sparsely settled sections
but the figures for the past decade
prove that such serious conditions
prevail to a greater extent in these
decadent communities than else
where 1t is these same communities
that give such discouraging figures
in the census returns, that make i'm
possible the passage of many pro-
posed in the state legislature. Here
the cause of good roads and good
schools meet their most serious OPP
position, that the enforcement of
law is most difficult and the moral
life of people is most Indifferent. This
is a serious arraignment but the
truth of it cannot be denied.
That these towns will surrender
the power they now have in the state
government cannot be reasonably ex-
pected at this time. 1t cannot be
brought about so long as they are
allowed to LAG behind in their iso-
lation and disheartening conditions.
The remedy is a state wide education
regarding present conditions and
their causes and then a, state wide
education of the people as to the nee
essary developments. The first steI
should be a higher appreciation OF
the industrial and agricultural op-
portunities that exist in these Sec
tions. This should lead to a higher
appreciation of the advantages life
may have there. The only way tc
accomplish these things is to break
up the isolation of such communi.
ties. We already have the means o.
doing this in the increasing state
control of our schools and highways
In place of the present dishearted
ness and Indifference there must b.
developed a live and foreible com
munity spirit. 1t must come from
the children and from the outsid,
or these communities will continu,
to flag behind" The country lif,
problem in Vermont is large on
and there must be thorough organiza
ton and most persistent effort to Sc
cure a progressive solution.