The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1922-11-07

Gus progress OF Bennington durinl
the past two decades and enough Il
warrant the progress and publ,
spirited citizens of the town re-or
ganizing their board of trade for thu
purpose of continuing the towns
splendid progress.
Bennington" said Mr.. Howe, "is tn,
the only town in Vermont that hasn't
had real depression within the mem
ory OF the present generation, almost
the only town in New England"
George VI. Hawks. president of the
board of trade, spoke briefly urging
that prospective members of the new
organization endeavor to secure the
lgreatest possible cooperation in
carrying the purposes into which so
much preliminary work has been in
jected.
Robert E. Healy said that when he
first began TO give serious consider
alton to the proposed reorganization
OF the board OF trade he was disposed
+ to harken 10 his Inheritance from a
Scotch ancestor and look with
askance upon the membership fee
that has been placed at $25 but a
second thought convinced him that
the membership was not even a sec.
ondary consideration. The predom.
mating feature was the purposes OF
the new organization. The vital is.
sue was what the Bennington Board
of Trade proposed TO do and IL was
this issue that should become para
mount to all others. Bennington's )
public spirit, the speaker said, had
demonstrated its quality and power
Of accomplishment and tht proper di
rection OF this spirit through coop
Grafton was. in the speakers opinion
the thing to be strived for Mr..
Healy emphasized the fact that there
were bound to be differences of opin.
ion in any such movement as that
proposed in the reorganization OF the
board OF trade but he hoped these
differences would be tbreshed out in
open discussion and that the few
knockers and crepe hangers. happily
limited In number in Bennington,
would find themselves without force
OF influence.
John Spargo of Old Bennington IN.
terjected new element into the pro.
gram, the right growth of communi.
ty along other than industrial lines.
Mr.. Spargo even went to the extent
Of criticising the name Board OF
Trade" in that IL sayored too much OF
commercialism. The wellknown writ.
or and lecturer has spoken repeated.
ly in Bennington but never with
greater appeal. His address was
tion and housed in practical struc-
ture. He credited Bennington with
historical traditions such as are pos
sessed by few communities in the
world. traditions to live up to and
not lean upon, but constituting a rec.
ord worthy of the highest emulation.
With all of Benningtons industrial
PROGRESS, the speaker pointed out,
there had been neglect of essentials
and the time, he said, had come to
remedy and relieve as much as pos.
sible the future Bennington from the
consequences of this neglect. The
time had. he said, come TO check the
haphazard method of locating build
ings to meet the individual needs
and circumstances of individual build.
ers and To vest local government
with authority to control and regulate
future construction with a view to
clvic beauty.
He drew vivid word picture of
future public buildings not only beau
tiful in themselves but harmonious
in the aggregate and he voiced the
hope OF a public park in which the
natural beauty should not be too
much marred by human intelligence
and in which the central structure
should be a museum housing not only
antiquities but objects of education
al interest Steps he said, should
be taken to rescue some Of the num-
erous beauty spots out of the path OF
commercialsm that thew might be
preserved for the enjoyment and up
lift of present and future generation,
Mr., Spargos talk was an inspiring
presentation of the worth while
things that expand and advance com.
munity life. II is to be regretted
that its publication in full is impos
sible. The speaker later in the
evening said that he had come pre-.
pared with only few notes and that
so much of his address was spontane-
Gus that its reproduction intact was
impossible. Perhaps, this spontanei'
ty was partially responsible for the
intensity of the interest maintained
by his audience. Many of those pres
ent who have listened to Mr. Spargo
on previous occasions declared that
he never spoke better, certainly
more effective address is not on re.
cent record In Bennington.
Bruce Corliss. st. Adams banker,
gave short practical talk that was
of special interest because of certain
facts relative to successful attempt
at house building in his home city
Through contracting for the consruc'
tion of q number of houses at the
same time, the builder estimated that
he had saved thousand dollars on
each house and some of them We're
moderately priced. Mr.. Corliss also
described the effort by the bank with
which he ia connected in marketing
the maple products of Franklin coun.
" through which the maple sugar
makers OF that section were able to
derive much better prices
/ An appreciated feature of the oc'
casion was the singing Of the double