Abbeville progress. (Abbeville, Vermilion Parish, La.) 1913-1944, 1915-12-11

own security and to make sure Of entire
freedom 10 play the impartial role I'm this
"v'"lSphere ana In the world which we
| All believe To have been provideutially
assigned 10 #. have had in mind no
,H"uSht or any immediate or particular
uahstr arising ont Of our relations with
"'"er haloaiS. We are at peace with all
we nations or the world. and there IS
reason 10 hope that no question in con
'"NerSy between this and other govern
iHthtS VIII lead 10 any serious breach OF
"HI'ablr relations, grave as some differ
'h''s OF atttud" and policy have been
ana may Yet turn out 10 be. | am sorry
TO say that the gravost threats against
"df national peace and safety have been
"'''t'd within our own borders There are
'II|enS of the United States. | blush To
"hinlt. born under other flags hut welcomed
| under our generous naturalization laws
| 10 IN" iulI freedom ana opportunity OF
America. who have poured the poison Of
| hlSI"yalty into the very arteries Of our
| national life. who have sought to bring
| 'H" authority and good name Of our gov
'ihh'nt into contempt. TO destroy our in
uuStrleS wherever they thought IL effeC-
| i've Tor their ViudiCtive purposes to strike
At thcm, ana 10 dchaSe our politics To the
| uses of foreign intrigue. Their number
| Is not great AS compared with the whole
! number OF those sturdy hosts 10y which
! generations out Of virle foreign stocks.
! nut It Is great enough to have brought
| deep disgrace upon us and TO have made
| II necessary that should promptly
/ MAKE use Of processes Of law by which
! We may be purgcd Of their corrupt dis
| tempers. America never witnessed any
thing like this before. 1t never dreamed
| II possible that men sworn into its own
! citizenship men drawn out Of great free
| "A cd pf hp
! ana strongest elements of that little. but
now heroic. nation that in high day OF old
| staked It's very life to free itself from
| every ENHANCEMENT that had darkened
| The fortunes OF the older nations and set
up a new standard here-that men OF such
| origins and such free choices of allegi-
! ance would ever turn I'm malign reaction
| against the government and people who
| had welcomed and nuTtured them and
| seek to make this proud country once
more a hOtbed OF European passion. a
! little while ago such thing would have
seemed incredible. Because il was in
! credible We made no preparation for II.
! We would have been almost ashamed to
| prepare for IL. as II we were suspicious
| of ourselves. our own comrades and
neighbors, But the ugly and incredible
has actually come about and we are with
| out adequate federal laws to deal with
| IL. | urge you to enact such laws at
! the earliest possible moment and feel that
in so doing l am urging you to do moth
| ing less than save the honor and self
respect Of the nation.
Must Be Crushed Out.
Such creatures OF passion, disloyaltv
| and anarchy must be. crushed out. They
are not many. but they are infinitely ma
| lignant. and the hand Of our power should
| close over them at once. They have
I fnV 1.Nar
| have entered into conspiracies against the
neutrality of the government. they have
| sought TO pry into every confidential
| transaction Of the government in order
| TO serve interests alien to our own. 1t is
| possible to deal with these things very
| effectually. l need not suggest the terms
| In which they may be dealt with.
| I wish that II could be said that only a
| few men. misled by mistaken sentiments
| OF allegiance to the governments under
| which they were born. had been guilty OF
| disturbing the self-possession and misrep-
| resenting the temper and principles OF
| the country during these days OF terrible
| war, when IL would seem that every man
| who was truly an American would in
| stinctively make II his duty and his pride
| to keep the scales of judgment even and
prove himself a partisan OF no nation but
| his own. But IL cannot. There are some
| men among US, and many resident abroad
| who, though born and bred In the Unit
| ed States and calling themselves Amer
| leans. have SO forgotten themselves and
| their honor as citizens as to put their
passionate sympathy with one or the 9th
er side in the great European conflict
| above their regard for the peace and dig
nifty of the United States. They also
| preach and practice disloyalty. No laws
| I suppose can reach corruptions OF the
| mind and heart: but l should not speak
| OF others without also speaking OF these
| and expressing the even deeper humilia-
| ton and scorn which every self-possessed
and thoughtfully patriotic American must
| feel when he thinks OF them and OF the
| discredit they are daily bringing upon us.
| Many conditions about which we have
| repeatedly legislated are being altered
| from decade to decade, IL is evident. I'M
| der our very eyes. and are likely TO change
| even more rapidly and more radically in
| the days Immediately ahead of us. when
peace has returned to the world and ma
| lions of Europe once more take up their
| tasks of commerce and industry with the
energy of those who must bestir them
| selves to build anew. Just what these
| changes will be no one can certainly fore
see confidently predict. There are no
| calculable. because no stable, elements in
| the problem. The most we can do is to
| make certain that we have the necessary
|
| ly at our service so that we may be sure
| that we know exactly what we deal
| ing with when we come to act. IL II
| should be necessary to act at all We
| must first certainly know what II is that
| we are seeking to adapt ourselves to. I
may ask the privilege of addressing you
more at length on this important matter
| a little later in your session.
transportation Problem.
The transportation problem is an ex-
| ceedingly serious and pressing one in this
| country. There has from time to time
| of late been reason to fear that our rail-
| roads would not much longer be able to
cope with II successfully as at present
| equipped and co-ordinated. I suggest
that II would be wise to provide for a
| commission OF inquiry to ascertain by a
| thorough canvass OF the whole question
| whether our laws as at present framed
| and administered are serviceable as
| they might be in the solution OF the prob
| lem 1t Is obviously a problem that lies