The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1908-06-04
CLASS GRAFTON
At Commencement Exercises of Class
of 'O8, Leon High School,
By LILLIAN BIGLEY.

quiry. The cornfields whisper, the wheat
field murmurs, while the cattle low con-
tentedly, and the theme of their Law
iS-SucceSS.
Our rivers furnish water power for
the great manufactures of the east, and
more than this the long Mississippi, the
broad Amazon and the ST. Lawrence
greatly surpass in magnitude those of
the old world, and still more in the
facilities they present for enabling the
most inland district to communicate
with the sea. The majestic hills and
mountains have disclosed their secrets,
and the misery boards so strongly
guarded have been brought forth, and
the mineral products of America prov
en- to be of unequalled richness and
variety. Gold is abundant to proverb
in California, likewise in Nevada and
Montana; silver is obtained in enormous
quantities from Mexico, while Pennsyl-
vania rests on foundation of coal.
Was ever people more richly blessed?
Not an air castle builded with Amer
ica's opportunities as base has crum-
bled, because she has fulfilled all her
wonderful promises. Every year thous-
ands of foreigners seek admission at
our Atlantic sea ports and along the
Canadian and Mexican borders. Honest
christian men, women and children fresh
from the lands of their birth have had
their hearts gladdened by the first sight
Of America and the realization of what
it means to stand on free soil and en-
joy the advantages of a free government
as we'll as the society of free people.
Since the year 1920, when the first
immigrants of which we have any
record reached the shores of America,
more than 20,000,000 have passed the
inspection at our open gates. What
brings this endless stream of foreigners
to our country? What attraction has
America strong enough to draw them
from their native land? 1t is the OPP
| portunities of our country that foreign
lands cannot offer. A simple comparison
of the conditions of America with those
OF some of the European countries such
as Russia will convince one Of their utter
dissimilarity. First, how does America
compare with Russia in the opportun-
tiles she offers to her inhabitants to
earn an honest living. The majority Of
the laboring class Of Russia called the
peasantry are engaged in agriculture
but most of the land belongs to the
government, or to the mobiles. And
while Russia today produces more
wheat than any other country ex-
cept the United States the farmers rear
little profit from their efforts because
most Of this grain must pass into the
hands of the grasping mobiles as rent, and
then it is exported, while the farmer
must grow rye for his own use, and rye
bread is almost the only food of this
class of people. Can you picture an
American farmer sitting down to black
bread and brick tea? Why, it is the
boards of our farmers that are richest
with white bread, pure meat, wholesome
vegetables and luscious fruit. We often
think as we drive through the rural dis
tricts in our own state that many Of
our farm houses look miserable without
paint and with ill-kept lawns, but com
pared to the wretohed huts in which
the Russian peasant exists, our people
live in land which is but little short o.
paradise. In the few manufacture.
Of Russia the workmeu are of a new
class, only beginning to come into ex
istence. The workers are not children
of working men, born with certain
amount of skill in their hands and
, habit Of rapid work in their blood, blu
are largely the first generation Q