Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-24
PARTYS PLEDGES KEPT
President at Union League
Club, Philadelphia.
SPEAKS AT BANQUET
HE OUTLINES THE POLICY FOR
THE FUTURE.
Declares the Trusts Will Be Dealt
With Firmly, but Faily-Two
Other Speeches.

speeches during his stay in Philadelphia
Saturday. Two of these were in connec-
ton with the dedicatory exercises of the
city's Central High School and the third
was at Founders day banquet at the
Union League Club at night.
In his speeches to the students the Presi-
dent made one of his characteristic efforts,
urging his hearers to strenuous effort In all
they undertook. At the Union League Club
bespoke as follows:
Forty years ago this club was founded, in
the dark days of the civil war, to uphold the
hands of Abraham Lincoln and give aid to
those who battled for the Union and for
human liberty. Two years ago President
Mckinley came here as your guest to thank
you, and through you all those far-sighted
and loyal men who had supported him In
his successful effort to keep untarnished the
national good faith at home and the
tional honor abroad, and to bring back to
this country the material well-being which
we now SO abundantly enjoy. 1t was no
accident which made the men OF this CLUB
who stood as in a peculiar sense the cham
pions and upholders of the principles OF
Lincoln In the early sixties stand no less
stoutly for those typified in the person OF
Mckinley during the closing years Of the
century. The qualities apt to make men
respond to the call of duty in one crisis are
also apt to make them respond to a similar
call IN a CTlSlS OF a OiHerenC character. Inc
traits which enabled our people to pass I'M
athed through the fiery ordeal of the civil
war were the traits upon which We had to
rely In the less serious, but yet serious,
dangers by which we were menaced in 1896,
1898 and 1900.
American characteristics.
From the very beginning our people have
markedly combined practical capacity for
affairs with power of devotion to an ideal.
yoo1 ~ o;%b
dered the possession of the other of small
value. Mere ability to achieve success in
things concerning the body would not have
atoned for the failure to live the life Of high
endeavor; and, on the other hand, without
a foundation of those qualities which bring
material prosperity there would be nothing
on which the higher life could be built. The
men of the revolution would have failed II
they had not possessed alike devotion to
liberty and ability, once liberty had been
achieved, to show common sense and self
restraint In It's use. The men Of the great
civil war would have failed had they not
possessed the business capacity which de-
veloped and organized their resources in ad-
these resources as freely as they expended
their blood in furtherance of the great
cause for which their hearts leaped It Is
this combination Of qualities that has made
been as devoted to liberty, and yet, be-
cause of lack of hard-headed common sense
and Of ability to show restraint and subor-
dinate individual passions for the general
good, have failed so sgnally in the struggle
OF life as to become byword among the
nations.
Thrift Without Patriotism.
Yet other peoples, again, have possessed
all possible thrift and business capa CITY.
but have been trampled under foot, or have
played sordid and ignoble part in the
world, because their business capacity was
unaccompaned by any Of the lift toward
nobler things which marks a great and gem
erous nation. The stern but lust rule of
Judgment for humanity is that each nation
snail be known by its fruits, and If there
are no fruits, II the nation has failed II
matters but little whether It has failed
through meanness of soul or through lack
OF robustness OF character. We must Judge
natlon by the net result Of it's life and ac-
tlvlty. And SO we must judge the policies
OF those who at any time control the destf-
MES of a nation,
Therefore 1 ask you tonight to look at the
results OF the policies championed by Presi-
dent Mckinley on both the occasions when
ne appealed to the people for their suf-
1rages, and to see how we'll that appeal has
been justified by the event Most Certainly
!! 90 not claim all the good that has be-
fallen US during the past six years as due
solely to any human policy. No legislation
however wise, no administration, however
efhcient, can secure prosperity to people
done by the lawmaker and the administra-
tor Is to give the best chance possible for
the people of the country themselves to
show the stuff that is In them. No law can
make fool wise, a Weakling strong or a
coward brave. but good laws and good ad-
ministration Of the laws can give to strong,
honest, brave men chance to do well.
Mckinley Kept His Pledges.
President Mckinley was elected In 1896
on the specific pledge that he would keep
the financial honor of the nation unfair
nished and would put our economic system
on stable basis, so that our people might
be given a chance to secure the return of
prosperity Both pledges have been so we'll
kept that, as Is but too often the case men
are beginning to forget how much the keep
ing OF them has meant. When people have
become very prosperous they tend to be-
cope slugglishly indifferent to the continue
ton Of the policies that brought about
their prosperity. At such times as these
1t ls or course mere law Of nature that
some men prosper more than others and
TOO often those who prosper less, in their
Jealousy OF their more fortunate brethren
forget that all have prospered somewhat
ask you soberly to remember that the COM
plant made at the present day of our in
dustrial or economic conditions never takes
the form of stating that any of our people
are less well off than they were seven or
eight years back, before President McKin-
ley came in and his policies had chance
| 10 DC dppiieu, tnaC Inc complaint Is that
| some people have received more than their
share Of the good things Of the world
| There was no such complaint eight years
| ago. in the summer Of 1894 Complaint was
| not then that any one had prospered too
much; 1t was that no one had prospered
| enough. Let each one of US think of the
| affairs of his own household and his own
| business, let each Of US compare his stand
| ing now with his standing eight years back
| and then let him answer for himself
whether 1t Is not true that the policies for
| which William Mckinley stood in 1895 have
| justified themselves thrice over by the re-
suits they have brought about.
Now Issues in 1900.
| In 1900 the issues were in part the same,
but new ones had been added. Prosperity
had returned; the gold standard was
assured; our tariff was remodeled on the
lines that have marked 1t at all periods
when our well-being was greatest But
| as must often happen, the President elected
| on certain issues was obliged to face others
| entirely unforeseen. Rarely indeed have
| our greatest men made issues-they have
| shown their greatness by meeting them as
| they arose. President Mckinley faced
| the problems of the Spanish war and, those
that followed 1t exactly as he had faced
the problems Of our economic and financial
| needs AS sequel to the war with Spain