792 



VERMONT. 



September 1, consisting of bonds, sinking 

 fund, and cash, $988,532.80. 



The financial policy of the State govern- 

 ment, is indicated in the following language 

 of the Governor in his message to the Legisla- 

 ture in October : " However desirable it may 

 be to discharge our entire debt, and however 

 compatible with the economical habits of the 

 people to be and remain free from public debt, 

 it seems to be very doubtful economy to bur- 

 den ourselves with onerous taxes, for the sake 

 of purchasing our bonds at a large premium, 

 which have only a few years longer to run. 

 It seems to me specially improper, in view of 

 the fact that many towns in the State are still 

 indebted to considerable amounts, and there- 

 fore liable to heavy taxation, for debts con- 

 tracted in furnishing men and other means for 

 suppressing the late rebellion, and for repair- 

 ing damages by floods, fires, etc." 



The charitable and reformatory institutions 

 of the State are reported to be in a flourishing 

 condition. The insane of the State are cared 

 for in the asylum at Brattleboro, which is 

 owned and governed by a corporation. The 

 State, however, appoints a commissioner of 

 the insane. In this institution there are three 

 classes of inmates : 1. Those supported entire- 

 ly by the State ; 2. Those supported in part 

 by the State; 3. Those who do not receive 

 State aid. Of the first class there are about 

 88, whose support amounts to $13,539.06. Of 

 the second class there are about 250, who re- 

 reive about sixty-five cents apiece, making the 

 $5,000 appropriated for this purpose. In the 

 third class there are about 200 supported by 

 friends or charities. 



The committee appointed pursuant to an act 

 of November 22, 1870, to investigate the ques- 

 tion of changing the site of the State-prison, 

 has reported "that neither the welfare of the 

 prisoners nor the interest of the State de- 

 mands the removal of the prison from Wind- 

 sor at the present time." The committee 

 further found that " the ruinous contract for 

 the labor of the convicts, that has existed for a 

 number of years, expired in 1871, and a new 

 contract was entered into whereby the State 

 receives seventy cents per day, instead of 

 forty-two cents, as before, and from present 

 estimates the prison will be self-sustaining and 

 the State be relieved from the yearly appro- 

 priation for its support. Your committee 

 were assured by the superintendent that the 

 present occupation of the prisoners, shoemak- 

 ing, is more healthy than the making of 

 scythes, and the change has thus far had a 

 beneficial effect upon the convicts." 



The affairs of the Vermont Central and 

 Vermont & Canada Railroads have recently 

 been topics of wide discussion. Not only has 

 the general policy of the companies in extend- 

 ing their lines been criticised, but grave 

 charges of mismanagement have been openly 

 made. The original line of the Vermont Cen- 

 tral Railroad was about 118 miles long, but it 



has been extended by leases' and other ar- 

 rangements until the whole mileage owned, 

 operated, and leased, amounts to 1,044 miles, 

 including the small steamboats on Lake 

 Champlain, and the line of steamers plying be- 

 tween New York and New London. The ex- 

 tent of these lines is indicated in the following 

 statement : 



Mileage of the Vermont Central Railroad Confed- 

 eration. 



MAIN LINE. Milet 



Vermont Central Windsor to Burlington, Vt 118 



LEASED LINES. 



Northern New Hampshire Concord to Lebanon 82 



Concord Railroad Concord to Nashua, with branches 119 



Boston & Lowell, with leased lines 70 



Vermont & Canada Railroad .. 58 



Montreal & Vermont, junction line 26 



Stanstead, Shefford & Chambly Railroad Canada... 43 



Ogdensburg & Lake Champlain Railroad 118 



Missisquoi Railroad St. Albans to Rocklord, Vt. ... 28 

 Sullivan Railroad Windsor, Vermont, to Bellows 



Falls, Vt 26 



Rutland Railroad Bellows Falls, Vt., to Burling- 

 ton, Vt 120 



Vermont Valley Railroad Bellows Falls to Brattle- 

 boro, Vt 24 



Vermont & Massachusetts Railroad Brattleboro, 



Vt., to Grout's Corner, Mass 21 



Montreal & Plattsburg Railroad Plattsburg, N. Y., 



to Canadian line 23 



Whitehall & Plattsburg Railroad, with branches 37 



Addison County Railroad Leicester, Vt., to Ticon- 



deroga, N. Y 15 



New London Northem Railroad Grout's Corners 



to New London, Conn 100 



Ware River Railroad Palmer, Mass., to Gilbert- 



ville,Mass 16 



Total leased lines 926 



Total mileage operated 1,044 



Owing to the prevalence of these charges, a 

 meeting of " the security-holders of the Ver- 

 mont & Canada and Vermont Central Rail- 

 ways" was held in Boston, October 2, 1872, 

 when an official statement of the managers 

 was submitted. From the treasurer's report 

 accompanying this statement, it appears that 

 on June 1, 1872, the total floating debt was 

 $2,878,164.42, and the available assets were 

 $1,349,249.57, leaving the actual floating debt 

 $1,528,94.85. The debt consists in large part 

 of the deficiencies in the earnings of the Og- 

 densburg and Rutland roads to meet the ex- 

 penses of the rentals. The result of the busi- 

 ness of the roads for the two years ending 

 June 1, 1872, and the financial condition at 

 that time, will appear more fully from the 

 treasurer's report : 



The grops earnings of the Vermont Central 

 and Vermont & Canada, including the 

 Stanetead, Shefford & Chambly Railroad $4,395,384 17 



The expenses 3.004.890 84 



The net $1,390,493 33 



The gross earnings of the Rut- 

 land road and branches from 

 the time of lease to June 1, 



187217 months $1,869,589 64 



The expenses 1,333,63648 



Thenet 535,958 16 



The gross earnings of the Og- 

 densburg & Lake Cham- 

 plain Railroad from time of 

 lease to June 1, 187227 



months $2.232,46-* 64 



The expenses 1,568.281 75 



Thenet 664.185 83 



Total pet , 



