St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-03-15
VERMONT NEWS
Street Railway a Failure.

The affairs of the ST. Adams street
railway, which has not been pay
ing proposition from almost the
start, are approaching crisis. For
the past five years, the road has not
paid a cent of interest on the invest
ment and the bondholders have lost
$4,000 each year. This means that
the road has been maintained and
operated as a benefit to the people
of the city with no returns on the
capital invested. 81 decision in the
matter will probably be made before
the summer service begins.
Called to Schenectady.
Rev. Frank D. Penney of the Bap-
fist church, Burlington, has been
called to the First baptist church in
Schenectady, N. Y, a city of 5000.
On June 1 Mr.. Penney will conclude
nine years pastorate in Burlington.
His Mania to Set Fires.
Homer SpOoner, boy from Brook
field, who is confined at the Chelsea
Jail for safe keeping until the quar-
antine is raised at the state industrial
school at Vergennes, to which insti-
tuition he will be committed for
arson, has admitted to Sheriff Adams
that he set the fire which destroyed
the Jail barn Sunday afternoon. He
is unable to give any reason for his
act, other than that he wanted to see
fire, but he also stated that he
wanted to prevent Mr.. Adams or
anyone else from getting the stock
out of the barn. He was seen by one
of the near neighbors to go into the
barn and in a short time to come
out and withdraw quite little dis
lance from the barn, When he turned
around and watched the building in
tensely for a few minutes Then he
ran into the house and in a few
moments, while this neighbor was
still looking toward the barn, the,
flames burst forth. At the time the
fire was set, Mr.. Adams had gone
only a few moments before to his
sale stable to do some chores, and
when the Spooner boy ran into the
house he told the folks that the barn
was on fire. The lad is but nine
years old and is evidently afflicted
with a mania to see a fire and of
course is not capable of realizing the
extent of the serious results to
property or the effect upon his
future 1t seems to be an insane
desire he cannot control and is to be
pitied, rather than blamed. He lis
now confined alone in the cell con-
structed for female inmates. i
In Burlington City Court.
Sanford ]. LaPierre pleaded guilty
to an information in city court before
Judge E. c. Mower, charging the
embezzlement of $500 from EF. G.
Fletcher, a Burlington shoe dealer,
by whom ne was employed, and was
fined 500 and costs, and sentenced
to serve not less than four nor more
than five years in the state prison.
The sentence however, was sus-
pended, and Mr.. LaPierre was placed
in the hands of the probation officer.
After travelling half way across
the continent in an effort to evade
the law, Richard Nichols, the co1ored
man whose place near Fort Etha1
Allen was raided by the sher1t
shortly after the affair in which two
hackmen and two young girls inquired
has returned and appeared In Bur
lington city court, where he furnish
ed bail in the sum of $500 on
charge of furnishing liquor. Nichol
went to Kansas City, where he for
merly lived. After remaining ther
a number of weeks he decided t
return to Burlington and face tn
music.
To Be General Sunday SchOC
Secretary.
The Rev. Edward M. Fuller, VIII
has been pastor of the First Baptl:
church at Manchester Center for til
past two years mas rendered his resi-;
nation to take effect Easter da
April 6. He has accepted call
become general secretary of the Ne
Hampshire Sunday school assocI
ton Mr. Fuller was in the Sunds
school work in this state. for MAJ
years but was obliged to give 1t
on account of his health, which
has regained in the past two yeal
work
Wins Suit Against Quaker Oats
The jury in United States fedel
court at Burlington in the case
Edwin H. Grice, of Richford, agalI
the Quaker Oats Co. reported "
diet for the plaintiff. The case or
out of an explosion of the elevator
the Quaker Oats Co., at Richford
1908, when a considerable amount
property belonging to the plain
was destroyed and several lives lt
Mr.. Grice alleged negligence on
part of the defendant and asked
damages. There were five suits
the federal court docket dealing W