The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1915-01-07
Executive Department Transfer
red this Afternoon
BRIEF BUT POINTED MESSAGE
Retiring Governor Read Lengthy
Document Covering Incidents of
His Administration.

| minstration in the executive depart
ment of the state of Vermont began
at 2.30 o'clock this afternoon when
| Charles w. Gates OF Franklin took
his oath of office as governor An item
| of news OF unusual interest was the
| announcement that the new governor
had appointed as his successor in the
Office of state highway commissioner
| Stoddard b. Bates of Derby The
new head of the highway department
| has held the position of road commits
sioner in Orleans county for several
years and is an experienced road
| builder Governor Gates message is
as follows.
Our Constitution provides for gov
ernment of three departments--legis
| lative, executive and judicial-with
| functions separate and distinct, and,
yet the departments are so related
that they are dependant upon each
other Especially is this true OF the
legislative and executive departments
which we today represent in this
joint assembly, convened according to
our Constitution and time honored
custom.
In exercising the privilege of ad-
dressing you today, ! shall be very
brief. and shall only in general way
refer to the work that is before u.s.
Let me at the outset emphasize the
Importance of keeping constantly in
mind the fact that we have been elect
ed by the people whose servants We
are, and by whom our acts will be
Judged While our election by the
people for this purpose is an honor
rightly to be appreciated, yet nothing
short of full realization of our res
possibility to them, and the consci
tious discharge of our duty will bring
us an honorable acquittal at their
hands. To this end our best thought
and application is essential.
Never before have the voters of the
state taken more active notice Of the
acts of its public servants than at the
present time. Increased publicity of
all matters relating TO legislative and
executive action creates familiarity
with state problems. and this In turn
results in decided opinions opinions
varying widely on almost every quest
ion of Importance, which often makes
the discovery of the proper solution a
very difficult task-diflicult because
oftimes opinions most vigorously ex-
pressed may lead us astray 1t is
sometimes our highest duty to oppose
what might seem overwhelming pub
lie opinion. We are here to deliber-
ate, to weigh the facts, to legislate
wisely. We must also take into ac-
count the rapid change that has oc-
Cured, in business, social and pOlitt~
al ideas. So rapid has been this
change that some basic principles are
in danger of being swept aside to sat
isfy the popular will. One of the most
evident manifestations of this change
is the tendency to place upon the cen
trail government many varied powers
and responsibilities that heretofors
rested with the people themselves. |
Just how far, we, as a. state, should |
go towards parental government, will
be the question often to be consider
ed in our deliberations, and our de- |
examinations will require our wisest |
judgement.
BY such a government. some things |
can be done better more thoroughly, |
and more economically than by the |
people, or towns direct. We find by |
experience that the state should take |
charge in a very large measure, OF our |
public safety, of our courts, and police |
powers, and of our public health. and |
to certain degree, of our schools,
and state highways.
On the other hand, believe we will |
all agree that il would be most unfort- |
unate TO have our people entirely re
lieved of the active responsibilities OF
citizenship. with the exception of the |
election of necessary officials. Such |
condition, il seems to me, would de-
stroy the greatest safeguard we have
to our body politic--individua activi
ty. responsibility and independence.
Vermont has not gone far astray in
this matter, and has wisely chosen a
course between the two extremes. To
emphasize this point by way of illus
tration, let me refer to our highway
department, the department with
which | am most familiar. For sever
al years there has been an irresistab-
lie demand that the state assume more