The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1917-06-05
PATRIOTISM IS
KEYNOTE OF BIC
PUBL|CMEET|NG
Opera House Packed Last
Night to Hear Speakers
ALL ADDRESSES GOOD
Effect of Meeting Shown by Enlist.
ments FolloWins-5ennington Leads
in Red Cross Members.

Patriotism in Bennington surged for
| ward in a great wave at the public
meeting at the opera house Monday
evening and the effect was shown by
| the fact that after the gathering more
| than score of young men met Capt
+. W. Gibson Of Brattleboro to talk
! over enlisting.
Nine of these signed up and will SO
| TO Fort Ethan Allen tomorrow for
| their physical examination. A dozen
| more wanted to talk the matter over
with their parents before making their
| cludes:
Fred Greenwood
John Toomey
Louis Goodbeau
Amos La Crosse
Marshall La Crosse
Napoleon Boutin
Wilfred Langlois
Frank Cavanaueh
Elmer Dwyer
The opera house was packed for the
meeting and every bit of it was full
of interest and enthusiasm. The meet.
ing was under the auspices of the
Liberty loan committee and the ar
rangements were made by Guy b.
Johnson, II. III. Webster and other
members of the committee, but the
range OF the meeting covered the eff
fort of the country to meet the pres
ent crisis in all its phases.
haantifulIx
decorated with flags and bunting.
while big american" eagle was
poised over the stage. The decorating
was done by !. +. Walker. H. p. Wood
man and Nichols & Warren. The Ben
nington band played several patriotic
selections as the crowd was assembl.
ins.
Judge f. II. Holden presided and
spoke briefly at the opening on the OBJ
iects of the meeting. The audience
stood and sung America after which
John Spargo was introduced Mr.
Spargo made q brilliant address and
introduced the following resolution,
which was unanimously adopted at the
close of the meeting:
WHEREAS. numerous assaults up
on the indisputable rights and pre-
negatives of the United States by the
armed forces of the German Imperial
Government, the ruthless and coward
ly murder of our citizens while in
peaceable pursuit of their lawful
business, the destruction of our ships
and the violation of our fundamental
rights as an independent nation left
our government no honorable alterna.
tive to war, and
WHEREAS, Congress has declared
that a state of war exists between this
country and the German Empire, and
has passed a law providing for the
immediate raising of an army by
means of a selective draft TO uphold
the cause of the United States and
all other free peoples, and
WHEREAS, tLe interests of our
own nation and of our allies require
the efficient mobilization of our com.
plete resources. human and material,
to the end that the Hohenzollern
menace to the freedom and well-being
of mankind may be ended, and
WHEREAS. adequate forces must
ut ldloCu W uDllOlu Sit1l CduSt VI
freedom and democracy upon land
and sea, and such forces must be
adequately equipped and surrounded
by every possible safeguard for their
physical and moral welfare, and
WHEREAS. our obligation to our
allies, and our own self-interest re-
quire that our production of food shall
be increased as much as possible and
all waste reduced to a minimum. be it
RESOLVED, that we the men and
women of Bennington, in mass meet
ing assembled. regardless of differ
ences of race, creed, sect or party,
bound by common love of democracy
and liberty, unreservedly pledge our
lives and our all to insure the defeat
of the German conspiracy against the
liberties of mankind. We pledge
ourselves against all waste of food in
order that there may be as much as
possible for the use of our allies. And
if the need to accept some privation
shall. in the fortunes of war, be i'm
posed upon us we pledge ourselves to
bear it with loyal good will, conscious
that thereby we serve the cause of
our nation and civilized humanity.
We rejoice in the proud conscious
ness that the young men who are to
go forth from this historic community
of hallowed and heroic memories will
uphold its great traditions worthily
with dignity and courage. To them
we pledge our friendship and full
support. And be it
RESOLVED, that we commend the
great work of the Red Cross in car
ing for the sick and wounded of all