The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-06-23
vermont,s Rural Problem.

That Vermont has rural problem the
same as the majority of other states
have will be generally admitted. To
correctly state the problem is more diff.
ficult, though the attempt to do so may
be quite generally made as the adj
mission of its existence. People most
casually tell you what is "the trouble
with Vermont" but their conception Of
its difficulties is as loosely formed as
their expression of it. These general
expressions of the VermOnter's faults
are too familiar to need repetition here.
We wish we might instead give a well
thought out intelligent statement Of
some substantial citizen Of the state of
the rural problem.
1t might be more correct to say the
state problem, because the villages and
cities of the state are as much affect.
ed by wrong conditions in rural sections
as those sections themselves. Perhaps
failure to realize this constitutes part
Of the real problem. The resident of
the village or city is too ready to look
upon the rural problem as the other fell
lows and quite as ready to tell him
how to remove the mote from his eve
He is wrong in both propositions. He
is more responsible for rural conditions
than he thinks and certainly is not quail
flied to wholly correct them. His re
sponsibility for rural decadence is meas
ured by the service he gives in supply
ing rural people with the necessities Of
their business and the toll he takes from
their marketable products If he sim
tols AZ
and then sends his boarded profits to
some other section of the country for
investment he saps the rural communi-
ty Of its resources as wickedly as he
would if he stole part or all of their
poeketbooks. He is entitled to reason
able profit upon his business bht there
is a larger responsibility of educating
his customers to desire the most service
able and useful commodities or in the
purchase of goods that will be profitable
to them as well as to himself.
He should not sell farmer grain un.
less he can sell it to him cheaper than
the farmer can produce It; he should not
overload the farmer with machinery
simply for the profits there is in it for
him; and above all he should not send
all OIL MS pTOHJS out OF MS HelRnUOI-
hood for investment, because to do so
will rob the community Of a. part of its
wealth. To invest a part Of his wealth
in the community from which it is drawn
is fair. If it is intelligently invested
to increase the wealth and production of
the community it will bring him larger
and better returns than mere interest.
The town man should not be a mere
leach of the farmers, be should be CO.
operator with them in the development
of their wealth and his.
1t can safely be assumed, then, that
the town resident is partially respon-
sible for the decadence of rural com
munities; and, while he can not die
tatorially solve rural problems, he can
be of great assistance in reaching a cor
rect and beneficial solution. If every
town resident will honestly determine
how much he fails in performing these
obligations, he can correctly and truth
fully tell his neighbors how much he is
'the trouble with Vermont" He hope to
discuss in future articles other fea-
lures of this trouble in the hope that
discussion may draw from us and 9th
ers helpful suggestions as to their rem
es.-Brattleboro Reformer.