The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-02-23

the wrongs that exist. So it is in every
field of public activity. States rights
should be preserved when they mean
the peoples rights, but not when they
mean the peoples wrongs; not, for in
stance, when they are invoked to pre-
vent the abolition of child labor, or TO
break the force Of the laws which pro-
hibit the importation of contract labor
to this country; in short, not when they
stand for wrong or oppression of any
kind or for national weakness or inn
the men who work in practical fashion
with their fellows. and not to those
who, whether because they are i'm
practical or incapable, can not thus
have had in dealing with every problem
which we have either solved or started
on the path of solution during the last
decade.
A Decade of Achievement
The last ten years have been years
of great achievement for this nation.
During that period we have dealt and
are dealing with many different mat
tiers of great moment. We have ac-
quired the right to build, and are now
building, the Panama, canal. We have
given wise government to the Philip
pines. We have dealt with exceeding
ly complex, difficult, and important
questions in Cuba and Santo Domingo.
We have built up the navy; our surest
safeguard of peace and of national
honor. We are making great progress
in dealing with the questions of irri-
cation and forestry, of preserving to
the public the rightful use of the pub
lie lands and of the mineral wealth
underlying them; and with that grous,
of vital questions which concern the
proper supervision of the immense
corporations doing an interstate bust
ness, the proper control of the great
highways of interstate commerce, the
proper regulation OF industries which,
if left unregulated, threaten disaster to
the body polite. We have done many
other things, such as securing the set
tlement of the Alaska boundary. We
have made progress in securing bet
ter relations between capital and la
Dor, justice as between them and as
regards the general public; and ade-
quate protection for wageworkers- We
have done much in enforcing the law
alike against great and small; against
crimes of greed and cunning no less
than against crimes of violence and
brutality. We have wrought nightly
for the peace of righteousness, both
among the nations and in social and
industrial life here at home. Much
has been done, and we are girding up
our loins to do more.
In all these matters there have been
some men in public life and some
men in private life whose action has
been at every point one of barren crit
icism or fruitless obstruction. These
men have had no part or lot In the
cess; the record of good work worthily
done. Some of these men have been
college graduates; but all of them
have been poor servants of the people, |
useless where they were not harmful. |
All the credit for the good thus accom- |
plished in the public life of this decaoe |
belongs to those who have done af- |
frmative work in such matters as
those I have enumerated above, and |
not to those who. with more or less
futility, have sought to hamper and |
obstruct the work that has thus been |
done.
In short, you college men, be doors |
rather than critics of the deeds that |
others do Stand stoutly for your
ideals; but keep in mind that they can
only be realized, even partially, by
practical methods of Achievements. (
Remember always that this republic !
of ours is a very real democracy, and
that you can only win success by
showing that you have the right stuff
in you The college man, the man or
intellect and training, should take the
lead in every fight for civic and social
He can take that lead /
only if in a spirit of thoroughgofng
democracy he takes his place among
his fellows, not standing aloof from
them, but mixing with them, so that
he may know, may feel. may sym
pathize with their hopes, their am
their principles-and even
their prejudices-as an American
among Americans, as man among