New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-05-21

/ Of fire Of pure passion are you gong
| 70 keep burning under the pot in or
/ der that the mixture that comes out
may be purgcd of It's dross and may be
/ the fine gold Of untainted American
| ism9 That is the problem.
War n Competition of Nations.
/ want TO call your attention to an
/ other picture. America has always
been making and 20 be made. and
while we were in the midst of this
process. apparently at the acme and
/ crisis of this process. while this
travail Of soul and fermentation of
/ clements was at its height, came this
/ great cataclysm of European war, and
almost every ether nation in the world
became involved in tremendous
struggle which was-what. my fellow
/ citizens? What are tho elements in
the struggle? Don't you see that in
this European war is involved the very
thing that has been going on in Amer
lea? IL is n competition OF national
standards, of national traditions, and
Of national polities-politieal sys-
tens.
Europe has grappled in war as we
have grappled in peace TO see what IL
going to be done win these ulnEs
whom they come into hot contact with
one another. For do you not remem-
her that while these processes were
/ Going on in America some very inter-
esting things were happening IL was
a very big world into which TINS ma
ton came when IL was born, but II is
a very little world now. Ii used 10
take as many days to go from WASH
ington 70 Charlotte IN those DAYS as
!, ro,,, takes hours. heard an Irish
man say il the power OF steam con-
t;ruod 10 increase in the next nifty
vesrs as il had in the last we would
Get 10 Charlotte two hours before we
left Washington.
Became Closer Neighbors.
And as these processes OF intercom-.
runication nave been developed and
nriekened. men of the same nation
not only have grown closer neighbors,
Int men of different nations have
grown closer neighbors with each
otber. md now that we have these
invisible tongues that speak by. the
wireless through the trackless air 10
the ends Of the world every man can
make every other msn in the world ms
neighbor and speak 20 him upon the
moment. <..
While these processes OF fermenta-
ton and travail were going on. men
were learning about each other, ma
tions were becoming more and more
acquainted with each other, nations
were more and more becoming inter
related and intercommunication was
being ouickened in every possible way,
50 that now the melting pot is bigger
I than America. II is as big as the
world And what you see taking place
on the other side Of the water is the
/ tremendous had about said final
process by which contest Of elements
may in Gods process be turned INTO
coordination and cooperation OF ele-
merits.
Processes Of War Stand Still.
For it is an interesting circumstance
that the processes of the war stand
still These hot things that are IN con-
tact with each other do not make very
much progress against each otner'
When YOU cannot overcome you must
take counsel. See, then. ladies and
gentlemen, what a new age we have
come into. ! should think that It would
quicken the Imagination Of every man
and quicken the patriotism OF every
man who cared for America.
Here in America we have tried to set
the example Of bringing all the world
/ together upon terms Of liberty and CO.
operation and peace, and IN that great
experience that we have been going
\ through America mas DttH a SUI - ]
prophetic sample Of mankind. Now, the
world outside of America has felt the
I forces of America; felt the forces OF
I freedom, the forces Of common asplra-
/ ton, the orces that bring every man
and every nation face to face with this
/ question, what are you going TO DO
/ with your power? Are you going TO
/ translate it into force, or are you 60
/ ing 10 translate il into peace and the
/ salvation of society,""
America Led the Way.
Does it not interest you that America
/ has run before the rest of the world in
| making trial of this great human ex-
periment, and is il not the sign and
/ dawn OF a new age chat the one thing
upon which the world is now about TO
/ fall back is the moral judgment of
mankind? There is no finer sentence
/ in the history of great nations than
/ that sentence which occurs in the Dec
| laration Of independence q am now
! referring to the minor declaration at
Z Philadelphia, not TO the Mecklenburg
| declaration) in which Mr.. Jefferson
| said: "a decent respect for the opin-
| ion of mankind makes it necessary q
/ am not now quoting the words exactly
/ that we should state the grounds upon
which we have taken the important step
Of asserting our independence"
| A recent respect for the opinion Of
Imankind-it is as if Jefferson knew that
| this was the way in which menkind it
self was to struggle to realize its as
pirations, and that, standing in the
presence of mankind. this little group
of 100000 people should say, Friends
and fellow citizens of the great moral
world, our reason for doing this thing
we now intend to state to you in can
did ard complete terms, so that you
will never think that we were merely
throwing off a yoke out of impotence,
but know that we were throwing Oft
this thing in order that a great world
Of liberty should be open to man
through our fundamentally"
would like, therefore. to think that
the spirit Of this occasion could be
expressed if we imagined ourselves lift
ing some sacred emblem Of counsel and
of peace, of accommodation and right
eous judgment before the nations of
the world and reminding them Of that
passage in Scripture, "After the wind,
after the earthquake, after the fire, the
still small voice of humanity"