The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-01-08
SEE AMERICA
HAS THE FLOOR
Movement Grows More Popular as
Salt Lake Conference APP
proaches.
FRANK WIGGlNS IN LINE
Los ANGELES HUSTLER GIVES
HIS VIEWS.

See America First" has become the
war cry about the Commercial club.
The air is charged with the sentiment.
Extra help is already made necessary
by the flood of correspondence due to
the crusade. Publications in all parts
of the country have taken up the idea
and are pushing it vigorously. This is
especially true of the west, southwest
and northwest.
In the mail of Secretary Fisher Har-
ris yesterday were communications
from the POcatellO Commercial club,
from the sovereign grand lodge, L o.
O. F., of Marengo, Ia, from the Iowa
Homestead claiming to represent cir
culation of 500, 600, from w. j. Black,
passenger traffic manager of the Santa
Fe system, and from Governor Miguel
A. Othero of New Mexico. Governor
Othero has appointed James @. Nc
Nary of Las Vegas and P. F. McCanna
of Albuquerque as delegates to the con-
ference to represent New Mexico.
Virgins Sends a Letter.
Frank Virgins, secretary of the Los
Angeles chamber of commerce, sent
communication in which he discussed
the See America First" propaganda
and presented q number Of ideas well
worth considering. His letter follows:
L scarcely need say that 1 heartily
approve the spirit and plan of the See
America First" movement. and con-
graduate you, your organization and
Salt Lake City on the conception of the
enterprise. rand upon the manner in
which you have taken it up.
There Is everything to gain. and /
had almost added that there is nothing
to lose, by entering upon such a pat
riOtic campaign. Whatever may be the
measure of the practical results
-1Faf
tional effects can never be entirely lost
and they will produce favorable i'm
pressiOns along widely diverging lines.
THE more I study the object and
plan of the See America First cam
paign, the more I am impressed with
its magazine, its possibilities and its
necessities. That is why I qualify the
statement that there is nothing to lose
Because insomuch as we fail to take
advantage of those possibilities just so
much will be lost Therefore. it will
be necessary to do something more
than merely to induce the people to
travel in their own country. in order
TO produce the best and most lasting
results.
Easier Than Twenty Years Ago.
There is no doubt but that a great
deal of enthusiasm can be aroused by
a well managed, intelligently conducted
campaign. The work will be much
easier than it would have been. say, ten
s. or twenty years ago. Americans have
better conception of the beauty and
grandeur of their own country. 1t is a
great deal easier for them to see it now
than it was then.
1T will bes comparatively easy. too
to arouse the interest and enthusiasm
of the people of the west, and to con-
vince them of the Importance of the
movement which means so much to
them. There is a great deal more of
'sthe priceless essential we call public
enterprise in the west than there is in
tie east, and more than that, it is to
our interest that we do this thing Then
there are the auxiliary agencies-like
the railroads-which may be depended
. upon for much helpful cooperation.
That we c convince the people of
the east that they should exploit their
own country and become familiar with
its attractions before going abroad
I have not the slightest doubt we
have a good workin- basis. and the
Salt Lake convention should start the
ball rolling in splendid shape.
Only a Start Made.
II would like to suggest, however,
that the work will not be done when
we get that far. 1t viii not be done
when the new tidal wave of travel
from the east to the west is set in
motion. When we reach this stage the
job will be about half done, with the
hardest part yet untouched. In other
words, we are making an appeal which
is on the same plane with asking peo-
pie to 'patrOnize home industry We
have got to deliver the goods or fall
short on the patronage. The people
viii 'patronize home industry other
things being equal, provided they are
educated up to it. But they will insist
upon as good or better than they can
obtain elsewhere.
metaphorically speaking, we have got
to be prepared to handle the crop
properly. We've cot the raw material,
there's no doubt about that. But are
we prepared say Europe is pre-
pared, to receive the tourist hosts
which we shall expect as a result of