St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1914-09-09


Great Britain 16, and Russia 2.
The investment in telephone plants
in the United States is 1,O95, OOO,-
| 900, whereas Germany, which leads
Europe in using this service, has an
investment of only 1892, GOO, 600.
Great Britain's lines represent an
outlay of $131,309, 200 and those of
France SITS, 100000. Russia, with
all its vast expanse, has only $780,
| 600, 600 in telephone equipment.
''Yet so generally is the telephone
made use of in the United States
that despite the overwhelming pre-
ponderance of the aggregate invest
ment, the investment per station is
only S125 here as against $17S for
Germany and Great Britain, $257 in
France, and $1O7 for Russia"
The European argument dwindles
almost into an absurdity in the light
of Mr.. Wallis explanation and these
figures. The telephone is under very
efficient management now and there
would be danger in a change ID pub
lie direction. The public safeguards
itself through it's public service COM
missions and there is no real call
for public ownership in this coun-
try.-St. Adams Messenger.
Mountains as Nations Property.
The state of Vermont owns Cam
els Hump, by the gift of that pub
lic-spirited Vermonter, Colonel Bat
tell of Middlebury. Who owns
Mount Mansfield? We frankly con-
fess that we don't know, and we
fancy that we have plenty of COM
pany in our ignorance. This is sug-
gested by the fact that the national
government is buying Mount Wash
ington. Word comes today that the
government and the owners, after all
of two years of negotiating have
agreed upon the purchase price, the
foresters are satisfied with the
terms, and it is altogether probable
that the Forest Reservation Com
mission will at once authorize the
transaction.
Already the government owns
some of the SUBMITS of the Presi-
Dental range, Madison and Adams
and their northern slopes. This lat
est purchase includes all of the
great central peak, Mount Washing
ton, together with it's TANKS and
spurs and six other Presidential
peaks as well, Clay, Jefferson and
Adams of the northern group, with
Monroe, Franklin and Pleasant in
the southern chain.
Nor is that all for the purchase
will include that long southerly
ridge, the Montalban, which for
fully eight miles flows down from
Boot Spur, close under the cone of
Washington, to the lower end of
Crawford Notch at Bartlett. This
embraces the knobs knowns as the
DaVises, Stairs Mountain, noted for
it's giant granite treads, Mount Re
solution, Mount Crawford command
ing one of the most sublime views
of the Notch and Mount Hope
In all it represents some $4,000
acres, which, added to what the gov
eminent has already taken on the
slopes south of Jefferson and Ran
dolph townships, in the Wild River
country, and in the Pinkham Notch,
makes an almost solid body of more
than 100000 acres in the northeast
quarter of the White Mountain
quadrangle News
Building Fine Roads.
Washington county is in the grip
of good roads fever and it is said
that the county is developing some
of the best roads in the state and
spending money generously in this
effort. Good roads are a good imam
cial investment as well as a pleasure
to nearly all the people. Vermont
as a whole can boast better than
average roads and it's rightly-built
gravel roads are a delight to tour
lists as they make the easiest road
bed of any that can be found Let
us all follow Washington county's
lead and spend more and more
money on our roads, being sure that
we get a hundred cents worth of
good road for every dollar expend-
Opinion.
Outlook Not Promising
According to reports received from
many sections of New England the
month of September starts out with
the demand for labor at the lowest |
ebb, for a corresponding period since |
the panic year of 1908. The similar |
report is made from towns and cities |
in Massachusetts and notably by the |
state employment bureau in Boston, |
it is equally notable that |
none of the officials, city or state, |
attribute this slack demand for help |
to either the European war, the low |
tariff adjustments or to any one sin /
gle thing.
the outlook is far from promising
from the viewpoint of labor. August
Is always a low point, almost the
lowest of the year. but the month
Just passed has been far below nor
nal, both as to demand for help and
Tor positions filled, at least such is
he statement of the superintendent
If the state employment bureau in
Boston, who further says that this
slack demand for labor is accom-
panied by its inevitable compliments
If swelling numbers of the unem-
1loyed. According to the bureaus
the most pronounced depres-
iiOn in business activities, as OWNED
rom the labor demand of the re-
'pective branches, exists in the ma
,hinists' trades, closely followed by
hat of firemen and engineers. The
building trades are also reported to
De exceedingly dull, and the print
ing trades are about the only branch
If which it may be said the condi-
ions are good. The worst feature
IF the situation is that men who