The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-11-21
LOVE OF ONES COUNTRY.
CLEVELAND SPEAKS ON 1T BEFORE
THE JEWELLERS.

America the Freest and Best. and
Greatest Country on Earth-Duty of
the People to Preserve it for Pos
terity-Why it is Our" Country.
NEW YORK, Nov. 20.-The Jewellers
Association gave its annual banquet to-
night Among the guests and principal
speakers of the evening was Grover Cleve-
land. He said
Mr.. PRESIDENT AND GENTTENEN-The senti-
heht assigned to me suggests a theme so vast
ana so aniniatlng that am embarrassed in my
attempt to deal with it. You surely will not
expect me on this occasion TO voice all the
thoughts and feelings which the men
| should do this / should merely tax
your time and patience by an expression of the
Tenectious which spontaneously fill your minds
Besides. ii should launch upon this subject in
t[ue tE IAN. american style know could not avoid
she quit OF making a Fourth of July speech
late In the month Of November. l hasten to
declare that / do not fight shy of my subject
because do not love il. On the contrary,
love 1t so well that / am anxious to
observe all the proprieties related to it.
and cannot rid myself of the idea that our
American eagle scars higher and better in the
warm days of July than in the cool atmosphere
OF the present season And yet am far from
believing that at any time, and in any assem-
olage OF Americans, the sentiment Our coun-
try is not proper one to propose; though l
nave sometimes thought that it speaks so elo-
quentIy for itself that it needs no inter
prefer. There seems absolutely to be no
necessity for the arousing of enthusiasm on this
topic, and there Is not the slightest danger that
any OF us will forget what We have accom-
phshed as nation, or what we propose to &C
compllsh or that we will fix too narrow a limit
upon the progress, development and greatness
OF our country.
AN INCLINATION TO BOAST
Sometimes those who unfortunately cannot
claim this as their country accuse us of dwell
ing with some exaggeration upon these things;
but every American is entirely certain that such
Imputations arise from ignorance of our
achievements or from envy and disappointed
rivalry. At any rate. it is our habit to glorify
our our country, and we propose to continue it.
we ell do II without prompting, aud we like 1t.
We can stand any amount of it without disturb
ance, and whether others like it or not we know
and we propose TO declare on every occasion that
America IS the freest and best and greatest
country on the face Of the globe The PROPOSE
tion is not original with me, but has been a
settled fact in the American mind for mapy
years. Though this might be said to dispose Of
the subject by a short cut, and though have
declined to deal with 1t in all its aspects the
American disposition to glorify our country is
strong with me, and am disinclined to abandon
my allotted sentiment in manner quite so
summary.
WHY 1T is "oUR" COUNTRY
"
know OF no better way to deal with it than TO
divide it and consider one branch or part of my
text, as is sometimes done with long text In
the pulpit, therefore propose to say something
ABOUT Inc word our as related to the senti
ment. Our country" This is our country
because the people have established it: because
they rule 1t; because they have developed it,
because they have fought for it, and because
they love it. And still each generation oi
Americans hold it only in trust for those
who shall come after them, and they are
charged with the obligation to transmit II as
strong and as sound as it came to their hands
1t is not ours to destroy, it Is not ours to sell
aud 1t Is not ours to neglect and inture. 1t is
ours as our families are ours, and as ouI
churches and schools are ours-to protect and
foster and improve. As its strength and its
fitness to reach its promised destiny depend
upon its unity, one of our highest duties toward
1t is to cultivate and encourage kindliness
among our people, to the end that all may
heartily cooperate in performing the terms OF
our trust. AS its exists for us all. so all should
DE accorded an equal share In its benefits
pERvERsIoN OF ITS OPERATION.
1t is so constructed that its work is badly
zone ana It's operation perverted when special
and exclusive advantages are awarded 10 any
particular class of our people. If we permit
graSping Selfishness to influence us in the care
OF our trust we are untrue to our obligations
and our covenants as Americans. Our country
is ours" for the purpose of securing through
ITS means justice, happiness and prosperity to
all-not for the purpose of permitting
the selfish and designing to be enriched
at the expense of their confiding fellow
countrymen. 1t is, then. our duty to defend and
protect our country. while IL remains in our
hands, from that selhshness which, if per-
mtted, will surely undermine It. as clearly as it
is our duty to defend it against armed enemies
Nor are We discharged from our obligations as
trustees of our country If we merely pre-
serve 1t in the same condition as when
we received it. The march of progress
and civilization throughout the world
imposes on us the duty of proving our trust so
that it may be transmitted TO others in such an
advanced condition of prosperity and growth
as shall bear witness to our faithfulness and
our devotion to its interests. He who hid his
talent in napkin and added nothing to it was
condemned as untaithful when called upon to
give an account of his stewardship. Let us
rejoice, then, in the greatness of 'our
country" bat let us remember that It will
be our blame If it is not made greater let
US boast of the country which is ours" but let
our boasting be tempered with the reflection
that its possession is charged with sacred
trust; let us constantly bear i'll mind that while
it is ours to use patriotlcally and transmit to
coming generations, our relation to it is made
mora serious by the fact that in its broadest
and most solemn meaning 'our country" is
something which, as an example and inter
prefer Of freedom, belongs to the world and
which in its blessed mission belongs to human
ity.