Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-05-18
A NATIONAL SPIRIT.

- ma IOINSI
Last Saturday in New York Guy
one hundred and forty-ave thousand
men and women marched in parade.
II was part Of great effort now
being made in this country to arouse
a national spirit for the United states
IN the United States. To every think
ing man and woman in this country
It has deep and far reaching mean
ing. It is now that the citizenship OF
this country must wake up and de-
velop 4 phase Of it's duty that II mas
been for the past twenty years ne
glecting. ... ...
The citizenship of this country mas
been ignoring national spirit. Inere
has been no effort to build any patrl'
otto feeling In this country. In fact
the man who referred to our constr
tuition and cited the acts OF our past
statesmen as an example and a prece-
dent, was made fun of as being an
old timer and out of date. The man
who called attention to our past
achievements, to our constitution, 10
our fundamentals of government as
being necessary to the growth OF tnls
great nation, was in manner MADE
light of. The constitution of our ma
ton and our older states have been
spoken of as being out of date. The
younger generation has grown up in
an atmosphere that tended to the
thought that it indicated old ,fogyism
to study the constitution. to be famil-
lar with American history and to ad'
vocate patriotism and respect for our
country.
For the past twenty years the peo-
ple Of the United States have devoted
their efforts to commercialism WITH
out patriotism, and to politics without
craftsmanship. One part of our popu'
iation has devoted itself exclusively
to business thought and business
building. It has been immensely sue
cessful and collectively great finan-
cial prosperity has been the result.
Others of our people have devoted
themselves to study of how to attract
the public mind to themselves for the
purpose OF getting elected to office.
In casting about for some propaganda
that would quickly ingratiate itself
into public favor, they found that they
could attract attention by attacking
everything that was success. This
element in the political life Of this
country attacked the business inter-
ests because they were success, and
also attacked our government because
It was a success Men who have not
the ability to build, attract attention
by attempting to destroy that winch
those of ability have constructed.
These forces, working as they have
in our country, have created condl'
tons not conducive to statesmanshlp.
Craftsmanship must have patriotism
and an instructive appreciation OF the
nation as its basis.
It must be remembered that at the
time of the adoption of our nauonal
constitution there was no dominating
atmosphere of commercialism or de-
sire to be elected to Office surrounding
the trainers of that constitution. The
constitutional convention was not
body to which a man could be elected
again. The men who were powerful
factors in that convention were not
there to further their political for
tunes. Washington, Franklin, Madi-
son Hamilton and others who were
prominent in that body had but one
object in view and that was to frame
and form a constitution for the build
ing and governing of free and lib
erty loving nation.
This was new country. At that
time much of it, had not been ex-
plored and practically nothing was
known of the greater part of it. The
national constitution was finally made
and adopted. The population moved
westward and state lines of new
states began to be made. Those lines
marked the boundary Of what was
still new country. The men who
made the constitution of these states
as they came into the union tried to
and did make up just as able docu-
ments for the fundamental govern
ment of the different commonwealth
as were ever made or ever will be
made. Like the nation, at the time OF
the adoption of its constitution. these