St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1915-09-01
REUNION PICNIC
Corner Studentc and Citizeus Gath
cred at Old Red School House
In South WheeIock

Last Wednesday was the date of
the annual reunion and picnic of the
Old Red School House association in
South Wheelock and there was a
good gathering of former students,
teachers and residents of the neigh
borhood. Family picnic dinners were
enjoyed After dinner was cleared
away Superintendent M. E. Daniels,
chairman of the committee of ar
rangements called the assembly to
order and spoke of the organization
of the Community league at Lyndon
vile as an example of the interest
that is being taken in community
work and enlarged upon the power
there is in a community move COM
pared with the limitations of the in
dividual
He then presented w. J. Bigelow
of st. Johnsbury who spoke of the
valuable monuments to the love for
the old home town that have been
erected in many Vermont towns by
successful men who had achieved
prominence elsewhere and stating
this was a great asset to every Yer
mont community as it is a help and
loyalty that can always be called
upon whenever these communities
seek any Improvement He also en-
phasized the necessity of cooperation
in Vermont rural life and supporting
rather than blocking any move in
tended to improve the community.
He closed by calling attention to the
demand there was for teaching bet
ter citizenship in the public schools
and said that in his judgment a re-
version to the plain democratic spirit
of the district schools of a generation
ago would be the strongest step tow
ards good citizenship the public
schools could take.
Mrs. John B. Chase of Lyndon
was next introduced to speak upon
the garden class work. She spoke of
the Importance Of having the boys
and girls live in their home com
munity and utilizing their ability in
the development of its resources
There are now AZ states having paid
leaders for promoting garden class
work and 470 paid teachers. The
purpose of the garden class is to
teach children to make the most of
their environment, to make the boys
and girls stay at home rather than
come back again. This work must
be promoted for a generation and
then she believed the public schools
would take up the instruction.
Rural sections need this kind of
work for the reclamation of much of
the land that has been abandoned.
Inc garden class is adding thou
sands of dollars to the economic val
ue of the town of Lyndon. In the
state of Arkansas the children in
the garden classes have increased
the value of land there 100000.
me teaching of canning is introduce
ing real economics in the household.
She believed that children should
oegln practtcing some of this practi-
cal work at the age of five. The
garden class does not teach the
child to work for prizes but to take
pride in the excellence Of their own
work.
Mrs. L. V. Menut told many ANUS
ing "reminiscences of school life in
the old red school house and of a
time when the whole school was af-
h1cted with mumps. There was no
quarantine then and every child was
In school and added to the immense
show of cheek.
Hon. M. M. Taplin of ORLEANS
spoke of the pleasure it was to him
to be present as this was the former
home of his wife and of the hearty
welcome always extended at these
gatherings. We must go forwards.
not backwards. The question is are
We doing as much for those who
come after us as our forefathers did.
Weshould utilize state aid to the full
est extent in our educational work.
We must teach Our chiIdra1 - Love
their town, home and state if we are
to have a greater Vermont.
The exercises closed with the pro-
posal of a toast to the president of
the Old Red School House associa-
ton, c. H. Goss, who had done so
much to make the remodeling of the
building and the reunions there a
striking success.