McNairy County independent. (Selmer, McNairy County, Tenn.) 1902-1969, 1914-07-03

Pittsburgh, July Following Is
the speech which Col Theodore Roose-
yelt delivered at the Pennsylvania
Progressive Conference:
am glad to speak for such men as
Clifford Pinchot for senator and Dean
Lewis for governor. These men by
their lives have honored the republic.
1t would be supreme good fortune to
have them in public position for al
ready in private position they have
been among the best and most useful
public servants.
Moreover I am glad to speak for
the second time at a meeting held
under the auspices of the Progressive
Service of Pennsylvania, first, be-
cause Pennsylvania has taken an ad.
vanced position in fighting for the
Progressive Party and for the princi.
pies which that Party represents, and
second, because the most striking,
and | am tempted to say, most i'm.
portant Of those principles is both
sylhbolized by and embodied in the
fact that We have made the Progress
siye Service an integral and and es-
sential portion of the working machin-
cry of the Progressive Party. This is
one of the ways in which we make
1t evident that our promises are to be
made good by our performances that
our platform was a solemn ple9ge,
contract of obligation and that the
planks it contains were neither put in
merely to catch votes before election
and to be cheerfully repudiated after
election nor put in with such reckless
disregard Of feasibility that the prom
ises they contained were certain to
be falsified the moment the attempt
was made to reduce them to practice.
Our whole fight centers around the
great principle Of social and indus
trial justice, Our platform was q
veritable charter of democracy. Each
promise in 1t set forth some principle
of conduct which itself represented
one method Of achieving our great
central purpose.
We axe devoted to. things, not
names. We are not fighting for re-
venge nor rancor aor to crafty grudges.
When we oppose certain public men
we oppose them merely because they
embody ana represent evil principles.
or else acause their practices have
been such that thsy cannot be trusted
to stand in good faith for those great
and vita, principles of public morality
which are essential to the permanent
wei, being OF our people. We wish
to see these vital principles incor-
porated into our governmental system
and become part of the habit of
thought and habit of action among
our people. We will gladly work
selves with open sincerity work for
these principles, provided that. they
are men of such character as to justi-
fly confidence in their good faith. In
this spirit we ask all good citizens 90
cooperate with US when, as here in
Pennsylvania, we hold aloft the flag of
good citizenship in the fight to trans
late these sound and lofty principles
into governmental practice. In such
q fight it is equally necessary both
to clesVe steadfastly to a lofty ideal
ism and also to show hard-headed COM
mon sense In trying to remove this
idealism from the domain of words
into the domain of deeds. We realize
| that mere material well-being is new
er enough in itself, but only as foun-
dation for higher morality, moral
| ity of justice and fair dealing and
spiritual aspiration; we realize also
that material well-being is absolutely
essential, because without it as foun-
dation, there will be nothing what
ever on which to build the lofty super
| structure Of higher life. We stand
for justice to all nd therefore we feel
| bound to work with heart and brain
for that material prosperity the lack
| of which will prevent our doing JUS
| tlce to anyone. We do not intend to
| let the business man of brains use
| these brains to the dstrlment either
of the men who work with or under
| him, or CT the men who are his rivals,
or of the general public; but we wish
20 shape conditions SO that If he acts
s9usreiy he Will succeed, and this not
only as a matter Of justice to him, but
because his success is factor Of
prime Importance to the success OF
wage-worker and farmer alike. We
wish to pass prosperity around and
| for that very reason we desire that
there may be in existence prosperity
| sufficient TO pass around.
The present nationa, administration
Is pursuing course tLat prevents the