News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1913-03-05
How the Legislature Fulfilled
Pledges Made to the People

IlcuSeS Ndue W the feOple
burlington Free Press1
The Vermont Legislature, which re.
Gently completed it's work, was guilty
like all its predecessors. of sins of omis-
sion as well as commission 1t probably
left undone more things it ought to have
done than it did things it ought not to
have done, but it unquestionably full
filled more campaign pledges made to
the people in its behalf than any General
Assembly within the memory of the
present generation.
In this connection we can reply to an
inquiry by the Ri. Rev. Arthur @. A.
Hall, bishop of Vermont, as to the ulti-
mate fate of various important measures
and at the same time afford our readers
in general an idea of the way in which
campaign p edges were fulfilled.
The platform adopted by the State re-
publican convention in Burlington in
June incorporated i'll It's declaration of
| principles i'll order more direct system
of nomination of candidates for public
office; publicity of campaign Expenses;
| equalization of general taXation equal
zAtiOn of 1.-THE tax of individual lenders
OF money and savings institutions" and
as far as possible that "the ultimate
benefit of such lowered rate be assured
| the borrower" uniform low rate of
taxation of money loans and credits as a
means Of incrt asing the public revenues;
factory inspection; workingman's COM
| pensatiOn law; as soon as the constitu-
| ton permits, a State board of concilia.
| ton, meditation or arbitration; modern
reformatory methods; more progressive
education in the public schools; enlarged
highway improvement; uplift of agricul-
ture through model farming and eXten.
sion WORK; the promotion of forestry the
conservation If natural resources and the
enCouragemenG Of water power develop
ment; the re- adoption by the Legls allure
of the constitutional amendments and
the submission of the same to the people;
legislation as to court procedure TO pre-
vent unnecessary appeals and 10 eXpe
date final decisions.
Taking up the campaign pledges full
filed in order, we find that the Legisla-
ture not only provided for more direct
expression of the popular will, but it also
adopted referendum whereby the peo- |
pie may choose at the town meetings in ,
March, 1914 preceding the next State
election between three distinct systems |
of political nominations.
At that time the voters may select a
preferential primary expressing mere
preference TO be carried out by represent
tatives, or direct primary whereby the
people may choose their own candidates
directly, or vote to retain the present
system of caucuSeS and conventions.
A belief that direct primaries would
initiate against the small towns helped |
to prevent a conclusive disposal of the |
problem without reference TO the people. |
The inequalities of taxation to be rem
edied embraced the extension of offset |
privileges to one class of taxpayers and |
not to others, the taxation of private |
money lenders at full local rates and the |
collection of small taxes from the rail
roads based upon the gross earnings
Governor Fletcher urged that both the
offset inequality and the differences be-
tween taxation of individuals and the
favoring of borrowers be remedied by
the simple eXpedient OF exempting from
taxation at 8 per cent. or less loans to
those paying double taxation.
The Legislature equalized the bur-
den by going in the other direction and
aboishing all offsets 1t also went be-
yond the call of the platform by exempt
ing from taxation all loans on both real
estate and personal property at rate
not to exceed five per cent, a provision
which, acc ording TO Attorney General
Brown, does not relieve banks from the
franchise tax of seven-tenths of one per
cent. on deposits. i
The Legislature abolished the taX on
gross receipts of railroads and confined
the tax to the appraised value, which
adds more than 500, 900 to the revenue
of the State, but it refused to raise the
rate of such taxation from II per cent.
10 IL per cent failure which Governor
Fletcher has sought to have remedied by
appealing from the appraisal by the
of taxes.
As shown by the State Forester Halves
in his talk before the Brotherhood of ,
the First Church, the Legislature not |
only made an increased appropriation
Tor general forestry purposes, but it also
exempted from taxation young growing ,
.rees and made special provisions as to
AVIATION to encourage the developing of
and to forestry as well as to orchards,
,ne of the greatest needs of the people I
Of Vermont
The Legislature fulfilled the pledge
o provide for factory inspection, as we'll
IS improved heating and ventilation of
actories, and Governor Fletcher has |
appointed factory inspector.
The Legislature also carried out
blank accidently omitted from the State ,
platform by providing for the exemp-
ion of wages from the trustee process
o the amount of ten dollars and pro- :
,ided for a board of arbitration and
The wage earners of the State were S
urther benefited by the passage of
aw to limit the hours of labor of women
md children.
The Legislature through the cousti- i
utional amendments passed and sub
nitted to the people for their approval
+ The coming town meetings in March
las done its part toward the fulfilling of I
he pledge toward workingmen's COM
,ensation system !
State agricultural and scientific train
no. promised by the platform, have
zen promoted by appropriations for |
work in both directions, and there has f