Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1914-01-09
BY J. w, BARROW.

bandry, was held in the city Of Man
chester, n. ii. The meeting Of last
year was held in Spokane, Wash. The
thirty or more states entitled to dele
gates at the annual meeting were rep
resented by the master of each state
grange and his wife, who make up the
voting body. In the grange men and
women stand on an equal plane; hence
II Is that one of the two voting dele
gates Is q woman. There has been an
effort on the part Of some OF the dele
gates at each session for the past few
years to have the method OF repre-
sentation In the national grange
changed from state representation cor
responding to the senate Of the United
States to membership representation.
more after the order of the house of
representatives. but there is strong
prejudice against making change
which might work to the disadvantage
of the smaller grange states. Those
who favor such a change. while be-
lieving that proportional representa-
ton Is the correct and most equitable
basis Of representation, are not united
on the details of the proposed plan for
such representation. particularly with
reference to the number Of members
that should entitle a state to extra
votes. Consequently the matter as
often as it comes up for action is laid
aside. because there is disagreement
on this point. Then the matter of in
creased expense for additional dele
gates is one for serious consideration,
and to avoid this others would en-
power the present delegates to cast ad-
ditional votes. and this in turn has its
serious objections. State Master Vary
Of New York presented n resolution at
the last annual meeting to make the
basis of representation as follows:
Every state master and his wife shall
have each one vote on all questions
and in addition shall have one vote
each for every 10000 members above
the first 10000. The resolution was
turned down.
The Order Is strong financially. hav-
ing assets amounting to over 100000
and in membership having now well
on toward Il million members. The
membership is largest in New York.
that state now having upward of 105.-
600 members. Some counties In New
York have each more members than
entire states in the west. For instance,
Jefferson county has a membership of
over 100. Chautauqua has 7,4S6 and
st. Lawrence and Wayne over 5000
each. Other states Of large member
ship, ranging from 10000 down to So
600, rank as follows: Maine second.
Michigan third, Pennsylvania fourth.
Ohio fifth, New Hampshire sixth.
The grange has always been active
in the interests of all legislation that
would help the farmer, be It in state
or national affairs. Besides that legis-
lation which has primarily to do with
agriculture, 1t has always stood for
legislation In behalf of all the people
as the grange has viewed it. Many of
its policies, instituted even before they
had been incorporated into any party
platform or Legislative measure have
been enacted into law, and while the
grange does not claim to have been
the sole cause of such legislation it
does claim to have lent most efficient
aid in bringing certain things to pass
and in putting certain excellent laws
upon our statute books, both in state
and nation 1t refers with satisfac-
ton to its work in behalf of postal re-
forms. direct election of United States
senators, the conservation of our ma
tional resources, road Improvement,
effective railroad and express regula-
ton and to numerous measures affect
Ing the dairy interests of the country
as well as other legislation in the spe-
citc interest Of better and more profit
able farming and the elevation of the
farmer to higher educational and So
cial plane.
The position of the national grange on
the important question of road improve
ment was enunciated by last wears
convention of the national grange 1t
favors federal aid in road construction.
an idea which is strongly opposed I'm
some quarters. After calling attention
to the fact that our farmers have to
pay Sl.2G per ton more to get n ton Of
produce to market over our roads than
they would If we had highways equal
TO those in the agricultural countries
of Europe and to the fact that what
the farmer needs is n system of mar
ket center roads as well as cross state
highways, it cites the expenditures
nade by the government making bet
ter roads in some of our outlying pos
sessions as 100000 for roads in the
Philippine Islands, $4,000, 900 for roads
in Porto Rico. nearly $1.OOO,OOO for
building a dog trail through Alaska
and so on. Our navy costs $175, OOO,00
year, and in 1911 1t cost $14, 100000
to send our fleet around the world
In target practice alone we burn S14,-