The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1915-02-06


not particularly handsome thing or
not particularly intelligent thing.
The advantage about n chamber of
commerce of the United States is that
there is only one way TO boost the
United States and that is bv seeing to
1T that the conditions under which
business is done throughout the coun-
try are the best possible conditions.
There can not be any disproportion
about that. If you draw your SAP
and your vitality from all quarters
then the more sap and vitality there
is in you the more there is i'm the
commonwealth as a whole and every
time you lift at all you lift the whole
level of manufacturing and mercan-
| tile enterprise.
Moreover, the advantage of it is
that you can not boost the United
states in that way without under
standing the United States. You learn
great deal. / agreed with a col
league OF mine in tho cabinet the
other day that we had never attended
in our lives before a school to COM
pare with that we are now attending
for the purpose Of gaining a liberal
education.
"Of course, / learn great many
things that are not so. But the in
teresting things about it is this:
Things that are not so. do not match.
III you hear enough of them you see
If you hear enough of hem you see
there Is no pattern whatever. 1t is q
crazy quilt. Whereas the truth al
ways matches piece for piece. With
other parts of the truth.
NO man can lie consistently. and
he can not lie about everything if he
talks to you long. So that | would
guarantee that if enough liars talked
to you. you would get the truth.
Il had somewhat that experience
about Mexico, and that was about the
only way In which l learned anything
that was so, for there have been
vivid imaginations and many special
interests which have depicted things
as they wished me to believe them
to be.
Now seriously. the task of this
body is to match all the facts of busi-
ness throughout the country. and see
the vast and consistent part Of them.
That is the reason--and / think YOU
are to be congratulated upon the fact
that You can not do this thing with
out common counsel. / have asked
myself. before l came here tonight.
what relation you could bear to the
government of the United States and
what relation the government could
bear to YOU. There are two aspects
and activities OF the government
which you will naturally come into
most direct contact.
The Grst is the governments power
OF inoWry--systomatic and Gisiutornst-
cd inqpily--and its power Of acien-
tific assistance. You get an illustra-
ton of the latter. for example, in the
department OF agriculture. Has it oc-
CURED TO you, / wonder, that we are
Just upon the eve of a time when ouy
department of agriculture will be of
infinite Importance to the whole
world?
There is n shortage Of food i'm the
world now. That shortage will be
more serious few months from now
than 1t is now. 1t is necessary that
we should..plant a great deal more.
II IS necessary that our land should
yield more per acre than it does now.
IL is necessary that there should not
be plow or spade idle i'm this coun-
try If the world is to be fed: and the
methods of our farmers must feed
upon the scientific information to be
derived from the state department Of
agriculture and from that tap root of
all. the United states department
Of agriculture.
The origin and use of that depart
ment is to inform men of the last
developments and disclosures of
science. with regard to all the pro-
ccsses by which soils can be put to
their proper use and their fertility
made the greatest possible.
Similarly with the bureau Of
standards. 1t is ready to supply those
things by which you can set forms,
YOU can state bases for all the scicn-
tific processes OF business.
THE government Of the United
states is very properly a great in
strumcntality Of inquiry and informa-
! ton. one thing we arc Just beginning