Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1911-07-06
NEVER BRIGHTER OUTLOOK
FOR YOUNG VERMONTERS
Boston Transcript Finds That w. S. Rossiter
Has Done the State Grave Injustice with
Conclusions from Census Figures.


are discussed by competent speakers with |
the object Of increasing popular interest
In the schools and awakening parents and |
guardians to the needs of the children In I,
them. The State has in the meantime set |
out upon the reconstruction OF tho normal |
schools on a higher plane Of usefulness
Las established teacher training courses in |
high schools and colleges, Increased It's
appropriations for the State colleges, |
passed teachers pension act and Gre
ated a permanent school fund that now
aggregates nearly 100000, tho snnual
Income from which Is distributed among
the local schools according to their needs.
people that are SO keenly alive to this
idea of their social responsibility can
hardly be said to be "decadent'
VERMONT AND HER CORPORATIONS
Take the matter OF regulation of public
I, service corporations. In some of the larg-
est and busiest States in the Union pub
| lie opinion has been struggling for years
| to attain the power and influence neces-
! sary to accomplish in this direction what
| Vermont has succeeded in doing with
| p-a ctically no struggle at all few years
! ago the State transformed its oldtimc
! railroad commission with limited powers
| into n public service commission, gave to
1t the oversight Of all public service cor
porations even to the point OF regulating
| their rates and clothed It with sufficient
authority under such wise restrictions
that to-day the problem vexing so many
| of It's neighbors is practically undiscusscd
| In Vermont. Public service corporations
have accepted the new order Of things
with philosophy, the law has been adj
rlinstered with tact and common sense,
and peace reigns and the public Is pro-
| tected When railroad passes were abol-
ished here several years ago another
abuse was quietly put out of the way
| with no one seriously dissenting. The
public service commission is now working
| under q law that Compels the abolish
ment of a certain number of grade cross
ings every year. the expense in each case
TO be borne in part by the State, the
town. and the railroad. one by one these
dangerous crossings are being eliminated
and In few years the transportation
lines will know them no more. Surely
this is as much progress In this direction
rs some far more populous States are
showing
Vermont has a very considerable high
way problem to handle because her terri
tory Is more or less mountainous or billy
and lies In climate where the frosts are
: prolonged and often severe For yesrs
there have been at work here influences
tending more and more to overcome the
old time local prejudice that stubbornly
retained pretty much all control Of the
highways. section by section, in 2l6 petty
local authorities in the 246 separate towns
In which those sections lay. The purpose
was gradually to reshape the law so that
the greater authority over the highways
generally could be exercised by the state
Within the past few years more progress
than ever has been made In this direction
law to-day gives the State highway com.
missioner an authority over the highway.
and the disbursements Of money upor
3 them that would hardly have been dream
ed Of ten years ago, and each succeedne
session OF the Legislature does n little bl
more toward reducing this business t.
the control Of centralized State author
, ity. working all over the State on uni
form system and according to n uniform
plan. The State highway COMMISSIONS
. holds an annual school for local super
, visors In each county in the State ant
thus educates his forces to a higher stand
: ard of work year by year. Thus com
! u
D ing made and this season the outlay 70
good roads in Vermont will be over
y million dollars. or about three dollars 70
- every man, woman and child in tn
State! That's "decadence! isn't II?
f The child labor law passed by Vernon
= six years ago was at the time regarde
t as n well nigh model statute by variou
j persons in the country at large intereste
: In this movement for reform, and thi
e ! veXed question OF sociology does not trou
= BILE this State to-day. 1t still trouble
y some of our more populOus neighhor,
! In this same period, also, Vermont Ia
e adopted law compelling the weekl
= payment of wages by corporations an
an employers liability law that Is I
+ sympathy with the modern development
Il OF thought along this line. This woul
e rather tend to indicate that, even if Their
n nrs not as many people in Vermont q
II Mr.. Rossitcr would like to see. they AL
r not standing stlll.
J. BOOMING AGRICULTURE.
In these same ten years the State ha
'e built a beautiful agricultural coleg
" building at a cost OF $4,000 and great
" extended the work of the college and III
II experiment station and farm connecte
Z with IL. Moreover. one agricultural his
" school has been established and the b,
+" ginning made toward the realization
]" policy that will probably erect at lea:
v one OF these schools in every county
the State. Tho State commissioner
OF agriculture makes an annual tour OF Il
d. farming sections. holding public meeting
10 Mt convenient points at which experts
Is this science treat agricultural problem
w from the Vermont's farmers viewpoll
to and discuss local conditions and loo
re needs with the local farmer that ms
40 have special troubles requiring spcci
to treatment The same school of mission
49, airy work has been done the past two SO
sons by running Better Farming speci
a trains The State Is most generous NJ
a. ambitious in conducting this campail
he OF popular education In the new unde
-e. standing Of the great science of agricl
n turc But this Is a sign of "docadence
od. Vermont has in this period forhiddii
to TO Mr. Rossiter's view entirely remodell
ng its system OF courts and substituted
d. its former judicial machinery courts G
IN ganized on modern lines that have
al ready cleared up old dockets, ana todd
Dr. do more work to better satisfaction III
Irt the courts have ever done before In
'e- dental 10 this has been the creation
gh the office Of attorney-general who has t
I'm oversight OF tho State cases in eve
ar county, and whose counsel and assstan
of to the local States attorney expedite IL
es. tice and save expense. The judiciary n