News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1916-08-30
Bank. Commissioner Williams
brandon UniOn)


Nearly every newspaper in YER
mont this week is carrying full
page article purporting to be
Bank c Commissioner Will a m s
expose of Senator Pages bank
ing methods in connection with
the Lamoille County Savings
Bank. The expose is paid for at
regular, advertising rates by the
Allen ,M. Fletcher Sen a torial
Club, which would indicate that
Mr.. Fletcher is quite enthusiastic
in his efforts to procure for this
exposure wide reading. There
seems to, have been a difference OF
opinion four or five years ago be-
tween Senator Page and Mr..
Williams regarding methods of
advertising and that difference OF
opinion seems still to exist.
This so-called expose cannot
help but be a very beneficial ad
to the Lamoille County Savings
bank as Commissioner Williams
could not evade the confession
that at all times and always tn:
depositors of this institution
were amply secured. That is the
point in which most Vermonters
will be interested. This whole
hub-bub is simply a game of poll
tics, this so-called exposure adj
vertising matter in the political
campaign. Senator Pages polit-
ical enemies would have given
their boots if they could have dis
covered just a shadow of weak
ness in the Lamoille County Saw
ings bank. And had that shadow
of weakness existed they would
have found it. There were mil
lions of dollars behind the search
and where could the Allen M.
Fletcher Senatorial club have
turned for a more competent or
a more INSCRIPTIONS detective to
search out.
A little inside history may help
the voter to comprehend some
thing of the syndicate that are
trying to do Vermont great in
justice. For it would be a great
injustice to this state to send
Allen M. Fletcher to the United
States Senate.
Back in 1913, the list of Janu-
airy, there was distributed over
Vermont a calendar attached to
which was a photograph of
group, Gov. Allen M. Fletcher,
Lieut.. Gov. Frank E. Howe and
tn, speaker of the House, Chas.
A. Plumley. This calendar dis
plays both the brains and the
financial backing of the Allen M.
Fletcher Senatorial campaign.
With Mr.. Fletcher's record as
governor staring him in the face,
the last act of which, the disrupt
ion of the supreme court OF Yer
mont, was condemned as a will
full and malicious act all over
Vermont, it was thought then
any future desire of his for politi-
cal recognition would be a for
lorn hope. 1t was often men,
toned that Mr.. Fletcher would
probably leave the state as he
would Craze nowhere except in
political fields. Had Mr.. Fetch
er been a poor man or even
reasonably wealthy he were done,
but with unlimited dollars neatly
stacked where nobody but him
self could find them he plans a
campaign. Woefully limited in
frien Is but abundantly supplied
with dollars he launches the
Allen M. Fletcher Senatorial club.
No matter how desperate a case
may look, a lawyer who will
whisper encouragement may al
ways be found if the client is
amply able to foot the bills-and
{. A. Plumley, one of the photo
graphic group, is found at the
head of the club.
The attack on Senator Pages
senatorial record was not re-
scented by Senator Pages friends.
They recognized that they were
legitimate campaign methods
and that it was up to Senator
Page to defend himself, and
when he did defend himself so |
fully and completely, when his |
vocational ed uca tional bill
passed the senate the Allen M.
Fletcher Senatorial club became
desperate. And they resorted to
desperate methods. Bank Com
missioner Williams, law part
ner of the head of the club, is
easily accessible and they pry |
business secrets out of him that |
had lain dormant for six years. |