The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-07-11

Asbury Park, n. j., July IA crowd
Of 10000 persons which turned out to
welcome President Roosevelt made Sri
day, the closing day of the National
Educational Association convention.
the most impressive of all the great ed
ucatiOnal meetings.
The duties of the rich. wa the SUBJ
ject matter of the speech which the
President delivered to the educators.
Although this was the last day of the
convention the President found 1850
delegates, nearly all school teachers,
waiting to hear his speech, which was
made in Ocean Grove auditorium. Sew
eral pretty receptions marked the trip
from the depot to the auditorium. Out
side the depot the Indian band FROM
Carlisle school was in waiting, and fell
into line Immediately before the Pres
1dents carriage. AS the carriage turn
ed into Main street it passed a wagon
filled with negroes, who began to cheer.
In response the President waived his
hand at the delighted negroes.
When the President entered the aud-
itOrium thousands mounted chairs md
cheered him. AS soon as quiet had been
restored he began to speak.
PRESIDENT ROOSEVELTS AID
DRESS.
The President said:
| am glad to have the chance Of
greeting the National Educational AS
ISOLATION; for ir all this democratic
land there is no more genuinely demo
cratic association than this. It is truly
democratic, because here each member
meets every other member as his D63r
without regard 20 whether he is the
president Of one of the great universI-
ties or the newest recruit to that high
and honorable profession which has in
its charge the up-bringing of those
boys and girls who in a few short years
will themselves be settling the desti-
MES OF this nation. 1t is not too much
to say that the most characteristic
work OF the republic is that lone i.y
the educators, for whatever our Short
comings as a nation may be. We lave
at least firmly grasped the fact that
we can not do our part in the difficult
and all important work of self-govern-
ment, that we can not rule and govern
ourselves, unless we approach the task
with developed minds and trained char
acters. You teachers make the whole
world your debtor. If you did no! do
your work we'll this republic would not
endure beyond tie span of the genera
ton. Moreover, as an incident to your
avowed work, you render some well
nigh unbelievable services to the cJuIi-
try. FLOR instance, YOU render to the
republic the prime, the vital service OF
matchmaking into one homogeneous
body the children alike of those who
are born here and of those who come
here from SO many different lands
abroad. You furnish a common train
ing and common ideals for the children
Of all the mixed peoples who are here
being fused into n nationality. 1t IS
in no small degrees due to you and yoIr
efforts that we ale one people instead
of a group of ja1rlng peoples.
Moreover, where altogether tool ucn
prominence is given to he mere pos
session of wealth the country is under
heavy obligations to such a body as
this, which substitutes for the ideal OF
accumulating money the Infinitely lott
Ter ideal of devotion to work worth do
ing simply for that works sake. ! co
not in the least underestimate the nGei
of having material prosperity as the
basis of our civilization, but L most
earnestly insist that if our civilization
does not build a lofty super structure
on this basis, we can rank among
the really great peoples. A certain
amount of money is of course a neces-
sary thing, as much for the nation as
for the individual; and there are lew
movements in which | more thoroughly
believe than in the movement to secure
better remuneration for u teachers.
But. after all, the service you render is
i~ncaIculable, because of the very fact
that by your lives you show that E"u
believe ideals to be worth sacrifice, n
that YOU are s~plendidly eager to 10
commemorative work if this work Is
of good to your fellow men.
To furnish in your lives such a real
lied high ideal is to do Il great service
IT, the country. The chief harm done
nv the men of swollen fortune TO the
community is not the harm that the
demagogue is apt to depict as spring
Aup from their actions, but the fact
thai their success sets up a false
and so serves as q bad eX-
ample for the rest of us. If we did not
ourselves attach an exaggerated I'M
portance to the rich man who is dis-
tinguished only by his riches, this r1cn
man would have a most inslgnlhcant
influence over us. It is generally u
own fault if he does damage TO us, LOT
he damages us chiefly by arousing D
envy Or by rendering us sour and dls-