The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-02-05

Governors Executive Clerk - Animus
of Writer Clearly Revealed.
Walter S. Fenton of Rutland has
written the following letter to the Bur
lington Free Press, replying to the Mer-
rill article, which The Reformer printed
last week Saturday:
To the Editor of the Burlington Free
Press:
l have read with considerable interest
the article appearing in the issue of your
paper under date of Jan. -, bearing the
heading Comprehensive and Striking
Survey of Vermont Finances" purport-
ing to have been written by one Olin
Merrill, also your editorial in the same
issue commenting on the Merrill letter
Were it not for the fact that it un-
dertakes through the columns of a pub
lie journal, to utter so many palpably
misleading statements and so much gross
transformation about matters of public
record. it should not be dignified by a Sc
rious reply and certainly not by me.
But when your newspaper under
takes to stand sponsor for such an arti-
Gle, it suggests the fact that not only
has Mr.. Merrill never forgiven Percival
w. Clement for being elected governor
of Vermont, but that the Free Press has
never forgiven him for that act nor has
it forgotten its experience with the board
of control. with respect to its state print
ing contracts.
Scents Merrill Animus.
Had you or Mr.. Merrill undertaken
to make a fair and accurate statement
of the actual conditions of state finances
for the benefit of your readers. it could
have been done in much less space and
might not only have passed unchallengcd
but would have been highly commended
The animus of the Merrill article and
your comment thereon is, however, only
too apparent.
In the first place there is not a per
son in Vermont, who has read Governor
Clements retiring message, who does no.
know that with the state tax a bond Is
sue 10 provide the military bonus wa,
unnecessary. and who does not know
tnat VITA the bond issue, a state ta2
was Unnecessary.
After Governor Clements analysis o
the proposition in his message. the rea
son stands out in bold relief. that thu
appropriations made for running tn,
state government were not wholly ex
pended during the biennial period an,
it was found that revenue was provided
for in excess of what was necessary L
meet actual maturing obligations, and
would respectfully call the attention o
yourself and Mr.. Merrill to the state
ment appearing in the governors retir
out this state tax there would have beer
at all times during the biennial periOI
a working balance cash on hand of NOR,
than Sj00,000'
GratuitOus Insult.
If you would take the trouble to ex
anime the report of the budget commit
tee submitted to the legislature of 1919
you would find it there stated that will
the estimated revenues, a state tax o.
20.
S1,JOO,000, there would still exist de
felt of S631 ,OJ9.J6, including the spe
cial appropriations of S229. 231 "A, theI
pending before the legislature.
Mr.. Merrill lightly brushes this little
detail aside with the suggestion that i
is matter of common knowledge tha
the governor has it in his power to die
tate the sum total of the appropriation.
and the tax required to meet them dur
ing the biennial period of this incum
bency in office
I notice that among the names signet
to to that report and recommendations arr
those of Walter F. Scott, BenjamiI
Gates, John f. Weeks, Will L. Davis
Charles l.. Stuart. Charles +. SchOff
Marshall II. Alexander and George L
Durham, and, having some acquaint
ance with those gentlemen. l am wonder
ing which ones Mr.. Merrill had in minC
as having meekly bowed to the dictatiOI
of Governor Clement or any other mar
in Vermont. L am rather inclined to be
lieve that none of them will relish Mr.
MerrilfS gratuit0uS insult.
Clement Asked Thirty Cents.
AS a matter of fact, Governor Glen
ent in the message referred to told the
legislature that while the committee felt
that a 4O-cent tax was necessary, he
personally thought that 80 cents would
be more than sufficient. As it turned
ha Oh nrI,
with the bond issue, the state tax was
unnecessary.
Mr.. Merrill speaks of the method il
New York which permits the veto oi
separate items of the appropriation bill
but says that the influence of a governor
in Vermont is potential enough so that
a veto of an appropriation bill reported
by the ways and means committee is I'M
known.
In the first place neither the appro
priation bills nor the budget bill are re
ported by the ways and means commit
tee.
Amendment Now Proposed.
In the next place the budget bill is
almost always the last piece of legisla
ton enacted and no portion of it can b,
vetoed without carrying with 1T TIL
whole bill. Does not Mr.. Merrill know
that there is now pending a proposed
constitutional amendment to permit thu
veto of separate items and thereby rem
edy this very difficulty.
I'VE come now to the second PROPOSE
ton advanced by Mr. Merrill with regarC
to that part of Governor Clements mes
sage relating to finances. and here W.
find that Mr.. Merrill is possessed of sin
gular ability to shift his position.
Starting with a false premise as t.
what Governor Clement said in his re
firing message 1.-THE falsity of which
shall point out a little later) Mr.. Mer
rill faces squarely about from the posi-
ton he took to support his answer tt
the first question. He now says in eff
feet that because of the unexpended bal
ances of appropriations which will ex
list at the end of the fiscal year. the &C
tual cash then on hand must be retained
to take care of these unexpended appro
priations. For the purpose of argumen
let this be conceded. and then perhaps
Mr.. Merrill will tell us how he would
have paid the soldiers bonus withOu
the bond issue.
Premise Is False One