Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1922-03-15
ORLEANS
Annual Village Meeting.


The legal voters of the incorporat-
ed Village of Orleans are warned to
meet in the Opera Hall at 7.3O p. m.
Tuesday, March q, 1922.
The reports are now out and should
have the careful attention of every
taxpayer.
The auditors feel that the electric
light plant and the water system are
as much tangible assets as the Opera
Hall and some other real estate, and
as much entitled to place in the in
ventory as the other items. They
now appear in this report for the first
time. The electric plant is in the list
at $4,000 and the water system at
10000. The Street, Hall and Fire
department., the electric department,
and the water department each show
net gain for the year, and the total
gain in all is $6636. 90. :
Besides the usual routine business,
the warning contains several articles
which are of Importance and should
command the attention of every vot-
er.
Two new bylaws are proposed as
follows:
"The trustees are hereby empower
ed to regulate, control and license the
exhibitions of common showmen, and
shows of every kind and character
not interdicted by law. The license
fees shall be not less than two dol
lars and not more than twenty five
dollars"
Authority is hereby given to the
trustees to grant licenses to timer
ant vendors, peddlers and hawkers
on the streets within the limits of
70
by exacting sum not to exceed the
amount declared in Section 6643,
General Laws of Vermont, and not
less than five dollars, and as to ped
dlers and hawkersl not exceeding ten
dollars and not less than two dollars"
Other new items are, "To see if the
village will instruct its trustees to
maintain night police service"
"To see if the village will furnish
water and electric current to- the
Orleans hospital free, for period of
five years from December 1, 1921"
"To see if the village will exempt
from taxation all new industrial
plants and residences erected during
the year 1922, for the tax years of
1922 to 1926 inclusive"
''To see if the village will instruct
it's trustees to reimburse George E..
Jennings, B. A. Scott, C. H. Atkins,
j. A. Bates and w. J. Jos1yn for the
amount of expense incurred by them
in defending actions brought against
them by Arthur Emery and Cora EN-
cry, alleging Illegal treatment by the
aforesaid officers while acting as
police officers during the Orleans cell
ebration in 1920"
"To see upon what terms the village
will grant the churches of the village
the use of the Opera Hall for Sunday
evening services"
Simple as the last sounds it is fill
ed with possibilities of great impor-
tance to the people of the community
of Orleans.
In past years the Methodist and
Congregational churches have occa-
sionally held union services in the hall
without charge for the hall, lights,
heat or janitor service. To still fur
Their develop the spirit of unity be-
tween the churches, and stimulate the
spiritual side of the community life,
the pastors of these two churches
conceived the idea of holding a series
of meetings in the hall in the early
part of the year, at which they might
| gain the attention of and speak the
Word to greater number of people
than would come to the churches.
! Arrangements were made for moving
pictures of a nature suitable to be
given on Sunday evening. Again no
charge for the hall and no admission
fees asked. Collections met the ex-
pense of the reels. Messrs. Pierce
and Caron very generously gave the
use of the picture machine while the
expense of an operator was paid from
the, collections. The pictures have
been selected under the advice of a
board of censors, and on the whole,
have been very instructive as well
as entertaining.
The popularity of a free show was
at once proven by the large attend
ance. This encouraged the pastors
to arrange for a continuation of
these services. Another factor soon
began to develop. 1t soon proved
that picture entertainments for which
an admission fee is charged can
not compete with similar entertain
ments where admission is free. The
attendance at the Wednesday, Fri
day and Saturday pictures dropped to
a point which means a steady loss to
the proprietors every week.
Pierce & Caron hold contract
with the village to exhibit pictures
three evenings each week, Wednes-
day, Friday and Saturday, for the
calendar years of 1921 and 1922. The
receipts are shared on a percentage
basis,> but Pierce & Caron guarantee
stipulated sum at the end of those
two years. Business conditions dur
ing the year 1921 were such that the
receipts were less than for either of
the two previous years. and Pierce q
Caron paid the village little over
1889 on the 1921 guarantee in addi-
ton to the usual division of receipts.
The free Sunday evening pictures
are now proving disastrous to the OPP
Grating side of this contract.
Pierce & Caron felt that thev could
not continue to furnish the free use
of machine to be used in a manner
which. unfortunately. undermined
their weekday business and the pas
tors ARRANGED to paw them stip-
ulated sum for the use of the machine
and an operator until June LIST.
IF the VILLAGE is to continue the fur
nish the hall for this purpose without
charge. it becomes partv. with the
churches. in undermining the business
of third party with whom the vii
Continued on page six)