The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-07-05
PRESIDENT SPEAKS . ID VAST THRONC AT INDEPENDENCE HALL Advocates Application of Principles of Independence to Business and Politics TOUCHES ON WORK
 OF ADMINISTRATION Americans Must Manage Affairs to Do Honor to Founders of the Ma
 tion, He Declares-Praises
 C0ngressmen

modernization of independence by ap-
 plying its principles to the business
 the politics and the foreign policy oi
 America and principally on Mexico
 President Wilson thrilled a vast throng
 at Independence hall, where the declar-
 ation of independence was signed. to-
 day. The President touched on the Pan-
 anna tolls repeal subject, his anti
 trust programme, business generally
 and his modern idea of patriotism
 Pounding his fist on the table on
 which the declaration of independ-
 ence was signed, he declared Americans
 today must manage thef raffairs to do
 honor to the founders of the nation.
 There are men in Washington today,
 he declared, whose patriotism Is not shown in precedence of whole page. but who accomplish patriotic things.
 They are staying in hot Washington
 doing their duty. keeping a quorum in
 each house of Congress to do business,
 he said.
 T am mighty glad to stay there and | stick by them," he added. Touching on business conditions of the country the President said many allega-
 tions of facts were being made, but that | a great many of these leading facts do
 not tally with each other. 1 Are these men trying to serve their | country something smaller than their | country?" MT Wilson asked. If they
 love America and there is anything wrong
 it is their business to put their hands | to the task and set 1t aright" | Efghty-five per cent of the Mexican people, the President said, in touching
 on Mexico, never have had a right to | look in on their government" while the
 other 15 per cent were running it, he | said.
 Now the American people have heart | that beats for them just as it pulsates for other millions, MT. Wilson said. I hear a great deal about the property loss in | Mexico, and I regret that with all my heart, but back of it all is a struggling | people, he continued Let us not forget, | he said, that struggle in watching what | Is misleading in front.
 I would be ashamed of the flag, he as- serted, if we did outside this country
 that which we would not pattern in it. Continuing on Panama tolls the Presi- | dent said the treaty with England might
 be a mistake, but it's meaning cannot | be mistaken in the thread he said He
 believed in keeping the nations obiga-
 tions, he said. He believed he added, in l keeping the name of the United States
 unsullled.
 Before the President got his speech un- der way well, the crowd surged forward | in such confusion that a panic was 1 threatened.
 Two companies or marines and sailors
 stood before the speakers stand and MT. | Wilson was forced to stop several times. | The crowd was finally controlled. Liberty does not consist in trying to get front seat" President Wilson said with a smile at one point. While the President was waiting to speak, Mrs. Smith, mother of one of the | first sailors killed at Vera Cruz, greeted | him.
 President Wilson told her she should | be proud of her son and shook her hand | warmly.
 Mother of Hero "It must be great comfort to you | to have been the mother of such hero," | he likewise said
 On returning to the railroad station the President was unanimously cheered. During the trip a woman in the crowd threw a bunch of daisies which nearly hit the President in the face. It was caught by Mir. Tumulty. his sec retary.
 When the train drew away a large SiOWu NiltSItu NHllt lHt 1ItSlutnI, on the observation platform, smiled and bowed.
 "The declaration of independence" said the President in his talk, uoes not mean anything to us merely in | its generic statements unless we can append to it a similarly specific body of particulars as to what we consider our mutual liberty to consist of" Liberty. he declared, consists In the translation of general declarations of principles as to the rights of man into definite future action.
 Patriotism, he said, consisted of some very practical things twisted. He enum- erated the stay of members of the House and eSenate in hot Washington to maintain a quorum of the houses and transact public business. "I honor them for this" he said, land I am mighty glad to stay there and stick by them until it Is over. It Is patriotic also to know what the facts are and to face them with candor. I have heard great many facts quoted about the present business conditions in this country, for example, a great many allegations of facts at any rate, and 1t Is strange that these facts as pre- scented as stated do not tally with each other"
 Truth Always Matches Now, the truth always matches the
 
 men insisting everything is going wrong when it is demonstratable ev- erything is going right, l wonder what they are trying to do. Are they trying to serve the country or are they try ing to serve something smaller than the country? Are they trying to put hope into the hearts of men who work and toll every day, or rather are they putting Encouragement and despair into those hearts? If they love Amer lea and anything is wrong, 1t is their duty to the race to put their hands to the task of setting 1t right. 'I have had some experiences in the last four months which have not been entirely refreshing. It was universally admitted that the banking system of this country needed reorganization. We
 set the best minds we could find to the wheel"
 This task was to discover the best meth
 cd of reorganization he said We met
 with hardly anything but resistance from
 the bankers of this country. or at lea st from the majority of those who said
 anything, he said. Yet the very next
 day after that act was passed. MT. Wilson continued there was an universal chorus of small letters from the bankers of the | United States applauding. Now. if 1t was wrong the day be fore if was passed, why was it rig he | day after it was contracted?" he l You know the declaration of independ- | ence has, In one sense, lost it's signifi- canoe. Nobody believed he could be in-
 dependent when the document was writ | ten. Now, nobody would dare doubt we
 are independent. But it is one thing ] to be independent and it is another thing