The Caledonian-record. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1920-current, 1921-11-10

Two or Jnfee approach II. only
eleven States surpass Vermont in
actual number of water systems in
farm houses irrespective of area
and population and Vermont is one
of the smallest of the States. For
purposes of comparison the per-
centages for the States previously
mentioned are given:
Vermont, 62.9; New Hampshire,
52.4; Georgia, 1.8; Iowa, 1873; Wis
consin, II; Illinois, 11.2; Ohio,
16.1 michigan, 15.1; Indiana, ia;
Minnesota, 6.3 North Dakota, 90;
South Dakota, 1872; Kansas, 90;
California, SIT.
Only ten States report higher
per cent of telephones per farm
than Vermont. The automobile is
becoming a necessity on Vermont
farms and the per cent of farm
owned cars is probably greater
than of the villages and cities of
this State. Although in the defat-
ion of values, the farmers have
suffered heavily, general farming
conditions seem to the writer of
this article far better than they
were ten or twenty or thirty years
ago. The average farmer has more
money to spend, his house and
barns are better, he has more Ia
Dor saving machinery, and he
wears better clothes. Much of the
old-time isolation is gone. After
the days work is done he and his
family can go to the nearby village
or city for entertainment in an
automobile over road that, if not
ideal, is vastly better than any he
could use fifteen years ago. He
takes daily papers and reads them.
Vermont farmers are not "Rubes'
whatever the comic papers may
say. They are intelligent business
men.
There is much more now to in
duce young men and women to
stay on Vermont farms than there
was in 1900 or in 1910, because
financial returns are surer and bet
ter, and much of the old-time iso-
lation has passed with the coming
of the automobile. Mr.. Rossiter
mentions the need of teaching in
the public schools some sense of
obligation to Vermont. This is an
excellent suggestion, and along
this line it may be said that the
Legislature of 1915 authorized the
preparation and publication of a
book on the resources and oppor-
tunitieS of Vermont. This book has
been used in the schools since 1916
and when it was published no
other State in the Union was car
rying on this kind of teaching.
The State department of agricul-
ture has been very active in promo
ting cooperative creameries, in
investigating marketing conditions
and in encouraging the production
of certified seed potatoes. The
agricultural extension service of
the University of Vermont, with it's
agents in every county but one, is
doing a real work in promoting I
better farming and household con-
ditions. More cooperation certain
ly is needed, but efforts are under
way in the dairy and maple sugar
Industries. Greater cooperation is
needed in apple growing, one of
our great opportunities. With the
best markets in the world only two
hundred or three hundred miles
away, great number of apples
arA Shipped East from the Pacific
coast, and the freight rates to Bos-
ON and New York are approxi-
nately five times higher than the !
rates from Northern Vermont to T
he same cities.
Ii Vermont is to increase pop 7
alation it seems to me that there r
must be more manufacturing, in,
Vermont and that we must ttke
of our opportunity TO
levelop cheap water horse power.
TO this end survey of our powers
our possibilities, including hydrau-
ic power developments, ,ncludin@
torage possibilities, together witt.
. list of the owners of such powers
would seem to be the first step, to
AXE. The successful industrial
already in opera
ion in this State indicate that
here are no prohibitive obstacles
% the erection and operation of
others.
While much remains to be done
% bring Vermont agriculture up
70 it's highest possibilities, the
writer believes that conditions
steadily are improving and that
hey compare favorobly with those
n other eastern.States. To pic
;ure Vermont as ga hard or precar-
ous grind" does not seem to the
writer to be accurate or helpful
publicity.
WALTER H. CROCKETT
ILL., ,,,o,x,o =, ,,,t, an,,poA bi1c-