Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1920-08-05
f. ". AGAIN TELLS WHY
HE SEEKS NOMINATION
opposes Eighteenth Amend
ment and Volstead Act, and
Declares That Last Legisla.
ture Voted Away Liberties of
VermOnters

| 80 the IlOtPl vermont Thursday
noon and attended by about go of Burling-
tons business men, Mr.. Agan. in n short
ADDRESS. told of the issues on which be
hoped to secure the nomination and why
ne advocated them. The principal topics
'eait with by Mr. Agan were the 18th
afnehoment and Volstead act, State rights
ana personal liberty, and the road oues-
ton.
Lew +. Smith, in introducing the speak
en- said that at this time there were
| financial, industrial and social problems
wn,ch were to n large extent political
problems. The trouble with a large num-
| Der OF business men at this time was
| tnat they were not Interested enough in
the political side. The time had come in
ms opinion when no individual or or
ganization could afford to ignore politics
ana IL 1t did, it was dead. The Chamber
| Vi commerce. in order to get the views
OF all candidates on political questions
had invited them to speaker and Mr. Agan
was the first one
Mr. .Agan, in opening, said that ne was
pleased to hear MIR. Smith URGE a greater
interest IN politics on the part Of bust
ness men. The tendency IN the past had
| been for the business man to apply all
mis- energies and time to his business. with
the result that politics had been left to
the politician, who wasn't a business man.
Then. when things went wrong, the BUSH
ness man was disgruntled
| The first topics taken up by Mr.. Agan
were the Volstead act and the 18th amend
ment. He said that ne had been slow to
get into the contest for the governorship
because he was not n politician and only
went in when it was necessary. At this
time. however, he had attempted to induce
| others to go in but they declined and he
ho1 ~, l.at
California, mainly to protect the local
option law He defended local option for
which he had worked two years and which
he had helped to pass in 1902. He said
| that he would put it against any liquor
1 law in the United States. He, like others,
had become sick and Disguised with the
old prohibitory law but the people and
public sentiment had stood behind the
local option law since it's enactment. He
was now out in its defence. At the time
Of announcing his candidacy, he did not
know but what the 18th amendment would
be declared unconstitutional, and now
that it had been declared the law Of the
land the decision had not taken the under
pinning from his platform, as some had
said, but had furnished it with greater
supports.
Mr. Agan said that there were doubts
! whether Congressman Volstead, re-
sponsibe for the Volstead act would be
returned to Congress. The second member
of the judiciary committee, who was dry.
had died since Congress had adjourned
and the next three members were wet.
He thought that the Volstead act would
not be modified but would be replaced
by another enforcement act which would
place the line defining Intoxicating liquors
at five per cent If this were the case,
the States could cut down the percentage
but they could not raise it. Mr.. Agan said
that the issue was to be fought out on
wet and dry lines in every town in the
State at this election and the people would
know whether or not the candidates for
the Legislature stod for the local option
law.
In speaking OF the manner-in which the
18th amendment had been ratified in Ver-
mont. Mr.. Agan said that 1856 men had
gone to Montpelier and given away the
rights of 10000 people. At no other time
than during the stress of war could such
an act have been passed, IT couldn't be
now or it couldn't be five years from now.
Seven years was allowed in which to pass
the ratification act but it was forced
through at that session when there was
plenty of time to submit it to the people.
The whole truth of the matter was that
those in favor of the act did not dare sub
nit IL to the people. On every occasion
that such action had been submitted
to the electorate. tho majority had been
Overwhelmingly in favor of the local
option law. as was last exemplified by the
defeat of the Perry bill. In voting away
the liberties of Vermonters, the legisla-
tors had voted away rights which had
been fought for by Vermonters, and which
had been guaranteed them by the State
Constitution. Even before Vermont was a
State, during the years that it was a
republic, these rights had been guaranteed
the voters and when Vermont was ad-
mitted to the United States it was with the
guarantee that this right would be held
inviolate. Mr.. Agan made it plain that
not in this election would men go To
Montpelier without making clear their
stand on such matters to the voters.
Mr.. Agan then took up the subject of
good roads. He said that tho present sys-
TEN of automobile taxation was wrong
and pointed to the fact that taxation
was not equally distributed IN the taxing
of automobiles Under the present law
the man owning a 5000 car WIS taxed
only according to the horse power and
might be paying S2, while the owner of
a 800 machine would be taxed 50. The
big car took five times out of the roads
what the small car did. AS compared with
lhe man VINO owned his own home, the
owner of the big car was only paying a
small fraction of the taxes eXacted of the
home owner of equal value. He favored
the increasing of road receipts from auto
mobile money to twice its present size by
taxing the big machines moro. They in
turn would be benefited for this money
when put into roads, would bring great
savings in &1e wear and tear on machines
and tires. and in gasoline. He had
statistics to prove that the saving would
[ amount to millions of dollars per year
if the loss in these respects were reduced
to the minimum reached in some States.
r The speaker also favored a complete
r change in the method of spending the
States money. He would have com
pctent man in charge, not 5000 man
3 but an engineer capable of earning $4,000
The present method of road commits
0 sioner going through the country with g
pocket full of money, placing a few dob
, lars here, there, and in the other place
g would be dispensed with. He would go ir
| for trunk lines and then for the roads t.
the back farms. The trouble in getting
@ people on the farms was not because o.
n the work but because of the isolation
e When the young farmer could take a ca
and ride to the village or town at nigh
e like the others, he would have no oh
f lection to living on the farm. He alst
:, advocated the French system of roat
: building. which has system of drainage
which is powerful factor in the preserva
= ton of roads.
S Personalities were carefully avoided II
j. Mr.. Agan's speech and he said tina