University of first attempt to establish a college in Vermont was that of New York as a measure of conciliation in 1772. The institution was to be located in the town of Kingsland, now Washington, on the divide be tween the Connecticut and Lake Champlain. When this plan failed it was proposed to locate the college farther south in Williamstown, but finally through the influence of Im Allen, who was a generous contributor to the new institu tion, it was placed in Burlington and chartered in 1791. Ira Allen was not only active in found ing the University of Vermont, but was one of its first trustees. The first class was not graduated till 1804. Until 1865 the university was little more than an arts college, but in that year the general assembly incorporated the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College and in the same year the Agricultural Expenment Station was established. Engineer ing, first a department was developed into a college in 1866, the subject having been taught since 1829. A medical college, whicn was founded in 1809 and since 1853 affiliated with the university, was incorporated with it in 1899. An Agricultural Extension Service was begun in 1912.
Middlebury College is located in the town of the same name amid beautiful scenery. This college has courses in arts and sciences and is coeducational. It was chartered in 1800. It has an excellent equipment and a faculty of 40; in 1917 there were 475 students.
Norwich University was founded as a military school in 1819. It has from the first made military instruction most prominent in its curricula, following closely the example of West Point. In 1834 it was incorporated and in 1866, the buildings at Norwich having burned, the institution was moved to Northfield. Besides the purely military courses, instruction is given in the arts and science. The students are cadets in the National Guard and form the °first squadron of the first Vermont cavalry.° There is a faculty of 19 and a stiadent body, 1917, of 145. Many eminent men have graduated from these institutions.
Saint Michel College is located at Winooski Park. It is carried on by the Brotherhood of Saint Edmund and is distinctly a Roman Catho lic institution. It is largely given to secondary school work • there being very few college students. In 1917 there were a faculty of 14 and about 100 students.
Public libraries are found in many of the Vermont towns, many of them in good memorial buildings. In all there are 221 of these besides 14 club libraries and there is a li brary commission which loans small libraries to towns not otherwise supplied. The library of
the university contains 100,000 volumes be sides many patnphlets; there is an excellent State library and a historical library at Montpelier and each of the colleges has a good library. Illiteracy is decreasing. At present about 5 per cent of the whole population may be classed as illiterates.
Government.— No other of the colonies adopted as completely. a democratic form of government as did Vermont in 1777. This gov ernment continued until 17')1, a period of 14 years, during which Vermont was an inde pendent republic, as will bt noticed later. In 1791, after several applications to the Conti nental Congress, Vermont was admitted to the Union as the 14th State. In the beginning there was a legislature composed of one house, the delegates, one from each town, being elected by popular vote. In addition to the legislature, or general assembly, there was a governor and 12 councillors. In 1836 a second house, the senate, was added. At present the house is composed of 248 members, one from each town as at first, while the senate has 30 members, from one to four according to population, being sent from each of the 14 counties. The lieu tenant-governor is president of the senate, but the house elects one of its own number speaker. The sessions of the general assembly were annual until 1870; since then they have been biennial. The counties were formed gradually. At first there were two, Cumberland and Glou cestor, east of the Green Mountains, and two, Albany and Charlotte, west, but later these were divided into 14 which were established as fol lows: Bennington and Windham, 11 Feb. 1779; Orange, Rutland and Windsor, 22 Feb. 1781; Addison, 17 Oct. 1785; Chittenden, 22 Oct, 1787; Caledonia, Essex, Franklin and Orleans, 5 Nov. 1792; Grand Isle, 9 Nov. 1802; Jefferson, 1 Nov. 1810,— changed to Washington, 8 Nov. 1814; Lamoille, 26 Oct. 1835. The town meeting has always been one of the most cherished insti tutions of the State. This is held on the first Tuesday in March of each year. At the town meeting local ofhcers are elected and such other business as may require the attention of the inhabitants transacted. State officers are elected biennially on each odd year, the election being set for the first Tuesday of November. Mem bers of Congress are elected at the same time. The Australian ballot is used. Women over 21 years of age are entitled to vote, if they pay taxes, for town officers and for all matters pertaining to schools and temperance. Women may also be elected to several of the offices and to some of the State boards.