The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-10-22

what they believed to be right and tri- umphed and for those who fought so valiantly for what they with equal sin cerity, thought to be right and lost. (Ap- plause.) Mir Mayor. it is a good thing for an American President to travel over the country, not for what he can teach, but for what he can learn. (Applause.)
 'I have twice been down here in this alluyial delta of the Mssippi: in each case l came primarily for bear (voice: did you get any? The last time got 'em. the first time all I can say is that the bears and l broke even Qaughter). I got as many of them as they did of me QaughteD but on which occasion learned a lot that had not anything to do with the bear hunting, and 1t seems to me that no American President could spend his time better than by seeing for himself just what the rich and wonderful region of the lower Mississippi valley is, so that he may go back, as l shall go back to Washington with the set purpose to do everything that In me lies to see that the United States does its full share in making the Mississippi river practically a part of the sea coast (applause), in making it a deep channel to the great lakes from the gulf. And as an instance of building the levees for the lower part of that great river I wish to see them so built as to remove absolutely and completely from the minds of all the dwellers in the lowands of Mississippi, Louisiana and in portions of Tennessee and Arkansas, nearby, to remove com pletely from the minds of the dwellers of those lowlands all apprehension of a possible overflow.
 Advocacy of Big Levees.
 4- me that we need to construe the consti- tuition broadly In order to get power to do what I want. I think I heard you mention that you are good federalst. l heard man say once, man whom l have never seen afraid of anything, that inc was afraid of the Mssissippi; that he should be afraid to dwell by it and feel that it might overwhelm the land on which he might live. I wish to see the federal government build a system of dykes of levees down the course of the Mississippi which shall make the farm, the plantation of the man that lives by tine Mississippi as safe as If he had a plantation by the Illinois, the Hudson, or the Red river of the north (applause) I advocate no impossible task, no diff ficult task. The people of Holland, lt- tie nation, took two-thirds of their coun- try out from under the ocean, and they live behind the dykes now, and have lived behind them for centuries in safety. With one-tenth of the effort we, an infinitely greater nation, can take these incompar- ably rich bottom lands of the lower Mis- sissippi out from all fear of ever being flooded ever being overfiowed by the Mississippi and while I do not like gen. erallY to say In advance what I intend to do, I shall break my rule in this case and say that in my next message to Con- gross ] shall advocate. as heartily as l know how, that the Congress now elected shall take the first steps to bring about that deep channel way, and the attend ant high and broad levee system which will make of these alluvial bottoms the richest and most populous and most pros porous agricultural land, not only in this section but on the face of the globe. And, gentlemen, here Is one of the reasons why I am particularly glad to be able to ad- vocate such a policy: I think that any policy which tends to the uplifting of any portion of our people In the end dis tributes it's benefit over the whole people. But it is far easier ordinarily, to put into effect a policy which shall at the mo- ment and direction help the people con centrated into centers of population and wealth, than 1t has to put into effect a policy which will help the dwellers in the country and tllers of the soil. Now. here we have a policy whose first and direct benefit will come to the man on the farm, the man on the plantation. the tiller of the soil, the man who makes his fortune out of what he grows on the soil.
 Must Make Good Start.
 We are now digging the Panama ca nal (applause). and 1t Is being well done. One reason why the work is be- ing handled well is that we refused to Uo int af 0arefpI otlr that we should know that we did not make any false steps; in other ords, we acted on Davy Crocketts principle. Be sure you are right; then go ahead I want when we start on this great. l think I may justly say. this epoch mak- ing work of the improvement of the Mississippi. I want to be sure that we start on principles that will prevent waste, extravaganza, misapplication of eff fort Now I shall have no small diff iculty, men and women of Mississippi, In persuading some people in my own locality, of the wisdom of policy such as that l advocate, policy that means the expenditure of an immense sum of money, policy which must continue over a long course of years. If that policy is tainted in any way by jobbery or fol- ly it will make 1t immeasurably more difficult to carry 1t through and what we shall have to look out for, is the ac- tion of the men, probably very we'll meaning men, who in their anxiety to serve some particular district, will try to divert what should be a national effort to deepen a great national highway into a succession of efforts. spread out so thin as for all time to be effective a little bit for a river here and a little bit for river there and little bit for a harbor over yonder-do the big job first