The Arvada enterprise., 1913-03-06
WILSON SPEAKS
TO THE NATION
Inaugural Address Delivered by
the New President.
SEES WORK OF RESTORATION
Task Of Victorious Democracy Is to
Square Every Process Of National
Life With Standards Set Up
at tho Beginning.

Washington, March 4.-President
Wilson's inaugural address, remark
able for its brevity, was listened to
with the greatest interest by the vast
throng which was gathered in front
Of the capitol's east portico, and at its
close there was heard nothing but
praise for its eloquence and high
moral tone. The address in full was
as follows:
There has been change of govern
ment. 1t began two years ago, when
the house of representatives became
Democratic by a decisive majority.
It has now been completed. The SEN
ate about to assemble will also be
Democratic. The Offices of president
and vice-president have been put into
The hands of Democrats. What does
the change mean? That is the ques-
tlon that is uppermost in our minds
today. That is the question / am 60
Ing to try to answer, in order, if l
may, to interpret the occasion.
Purpose Of the Nation.
1t means much more than the mere
success of a party. The success of
party means little except when the
nation is using that party for a large
and definite purpose. No one can
mistake the purpose for which the
nation now seeks to use the Demo
cratic party. 1t seeks to use it to in
/ terpret a change in its own plans and
point of view. Some old things with
which we had grown familiar. and
which had begun to creep into the
very habit of our thought and of our
! lives, have altered their aspect as we
have latterly looked critically upon
them, with fresh awakened eyes;
have dropped their disguises and
/ shown themselves alien and sinister.
Some new things, as we look frankly
upon them, willing to comprehend
| their real character, have come to as
sumo the aspect of things long believ-
ed in and familiar stuff of our own
/ convictions. We have been refreshed
by a new insight into our own life.
We see that in many things that
/ life Is very great. 1t is incomparably
great in its material aspects, in its
body of wealth, in the diversity and
sweep of its energy, in the industries
which have been conceived and built
up by the genius of individual men
and the limitless enterprise of groups
Of men. 1t is great, also. very great,
in its moral force. Nowhere else in
| the world have noble men and women
exhibited in more striking form the
beauty and energy of sympathy and
helpfulness and counsel in their efforts
to rectify wrong, alleviate suffering,
and set the weak in the way Of
strength and hope. We have built up,
moreover a great system of govern
ment, which has stood through long
age as in many respects model for
those who seek to set liberty upon
foundations that will endure against
fortuitous change, against storm and
accident Our life contains every
great thing. and contains it in rich
abundance.
Evils That Have Come.
But the evil has come with the
good and much fine gold has been
corroded. With riches has come In
excusable waste. We have squan-
| dered a great part of what we might
| have used, and have not stopped to
conserve the exceeding bounty of ma
| ture, without which our genius for en-
| terprise would have been worthless
and impotent, scorning to be careful.
shamefully prodigal as well as admir-
| ably efficient. We have been proud of
| our industrial achievements. but we
have not hitherto stopped thought
! fully enough to count the human cost,
| the cost of lives snuffed out, of ener-
| giles overtaXed and broken, the fear
| ful physical and spiritual cost to the
men and women and children upon
whom the dead weight and burden of
| It all has fallen pitilessly the years
| through. The groans and agony OF it
| all had not yet reached our ears, the
| solemn, moving undertone OF our life,
/ coming up out OF the mines and fac
| tories and out of every home where
| the struggle had its intimate and IA
miliar seat. With the great govern.
| ment went many deep secret things
which we too long delayed to look
/ into and scrutinize with candid, fear.
less eyes. The great government we
| loved has too often been made use OF
for private and selfish purposes, and
those who used 1t had forgotten the
people.
At last a vision has been vouch.
safed US OF our life as n whole We
see the bad with the good, the de.
based and decadent with the sound
and vital. With this vision we ap,
| proach new affairs, Our duty is TO
cleanse, to reconsider, to restore, to
correct the evil without impairing the
| good, to purify and humanize every
process OF our common life without
weakening or sentimentalizing IT,
| There has been something crude and
| heartlc~s and unfeeling in our haste to
succeed and be great Our thought ha,
been Let every man look out for him
self. let every generation look out for
! ITSELF while we reared giant machin-
cry which made It impossible that any
but those who stood at the levers OF
control should have chance to look