The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-04-30

expansion in which the Louisiana pslr-
chase was the most striking single achieve
ment- To stands out IN marked relief even
among the feats Of n nation Of pioneers,
a nation whose people have from the BE-
ginning been picked out by a process Of
natural seiectlon from among 1 ne most Ell
terprising individuals of the nations of
western Europe lhe acquisition OF the
tsrtieoIS IS a crefAt 20 TIE broad ant Tar
sighted craftsmanship Of the great states
men to whom il was Immediately due and
above all to the aggressive and maStcrfui
character of the hardy Dioneer folk TO
whose restless energy these statesmen gave
expression and direction whom thev fol-
lowed rather than led The history of the
land comprised within the limits Of the
purchase is an epitome of the entire his
nave gradually built up state after state
until now they many times over surpass
in wealth. in population and in many
s.oeu ueNeiopmcnts, the original thirteen
states as they were when their delegates
met in the continental congress The people
OF lneSe states nave shown themselves
mighty in war with their felloW-nan and
mighty IN strength to tame the rugged
wilderness. They could not thus have
conquered the forest and the prairie. the
mountain and the desert. had they not pos
sessed the great lighting virtues, the quail
the forces of hostile men and hostile ma
tJre. On the other hand they could not
have used Alright their conquest had they
not in ADDITION possessed the qualities of
sglf-mastery and self-restraint the power
of acting in combination with their fel-
lows. the power OF yielding obedience 10
the law and Of building up orderly civ
ilizatiOn. Courage ard hardiho0d are in
diSpelSable virtues in people. but tha
people which possess no others can never
rise high in the scale of power or of cul-
ture. Great peoples must have in aedi-
ton the governmental capacity which
comes only when individuals fully rec0g-
nize their duties to one another and to the
whole body polite. and are able TO join
together in 1eats of constructive states
manship and of honest and effective adj
minist~ation.
The old pioneer days are gone, with their
roughness and their hardship. their incred-
ible toll and their wild ha1f-saVage ro-
nance. But the need for the pioneer viz
tues remains the same as ever. The pecu-
liar frontier conditions have vanished but
the manliness and stalwart hardwood of
scope under the conditions surrounding the
complex industrialism Of the present day.
In this great region acquired Tor our I5so-
pie under the presidency Of jefferson. tnls
region stretching from the gulf TO the Ca
madam border, from the Mississippi to the
Rockies the material ana social progress
has been so vast that alike for veal and
for woe its people now share the oppor-
tunities and bear the burdens commol to
the entire civilized world. The problems
before us are fundamentally the same east
and west of the Mississippi. In the new
qualities are required for their successful
solution
We meet here today to commemorate
great event, an event which marks an
era in Statesman ship no less than in piO-
neeTing. It is fitting that we should pay
our homage Ia woTGs; but we must N
honor make our words good by deeds We
have every right to take Just pride in the
great deeds of our forefathers, but we
show ourselves unworthy to be their de-
scen6auts if We make what they did an
excuse for our lying supine instead OF an
incentive to the effort to show ourselves
by our acts worthy of them. In the ad-
ministratiOn of city state and nation. ia
the management of our home life and the
conduct of our business and social reis.-
tions. we are bound to show certain high
and fine qualities Of character under PEN
aItv of seeing the whole heart of our civ
llization eaten out while the body stlh
lives.
We justly pride ourselves on our mar
velous material prosperity and Such pros
perity must exist in order to establish a
foundation upon which q higher life can
he built. but unless we do in very TACT
prosperity itself VIII go for but very little.
Now in 1903 in the altered conditions, we
must meet the changed and changing prob
lens with the spirit shown by the men
who in 1868 and in the subsequent years
gained. explored conquered and settled
this vast territory, then desert. now flied
with thriving and populous states.
The old aiaVS were great because tho
ties: and we must make the new DAYS
great by showing these same qualities. we
must insist upon courage and resolution
upon hardihOod. tenacity and fertility 10
4 resource: we must insist upon the strong
virile virtues and we must insist no less
upon the virtues of self-restraint. self-nlsis-
! terry. regard for the rights OF others, we
must show our adherence OF cruelty, brll-
/ tality and corruption, in public and in pri-
Vate life alike. If come short in any
I of these qualities we shall measurablN
/ fail. and if as believe we surely Will. we
4 develop these qualities in the future tie an
4 even greater degree than In the past theI
! in the century now beginning we shall
make of this republic the freest and most
nation which has ever come forth from fht
womb OF time