The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-07-04
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

do it even though it gets on the nerves of neutral, 8 pacifist or an alien.
 
 The eagle is fitting emblem for Amer ican youth here in America. Travellers in Japan who are familiar with Japanese life report that the Japanese boy has a flag of his own. flown over every Jap anese home having a male child on one day in the year. The flag represents a carp. fish noted in Japan for it's pluck and endurance. It has the characteris- tic of a game trout. It fights its way up stream, mounting the lesser waterfalls with ease and even leaping some of the swiftly flowing cataracts.
 
 Training foreign born children and our own blessed young children in civic loy- alty should be great feature of Indepen- dence Day. We must give to our boys, men in making, the American eagle as their true emblem We must teach them to be clear eyed, to look heavenward, but at the same time to be rooted to the earth for every helpful patriotic service which their country may make upon them.
 How significant just now are the words Of John Hay:
 Not in dumb resignation we lift our
 hands on high
 do and die.
 Our faith springs like eagles, who soar
 to meet the sun
 And cries exulting unto The, o Lord,
 Thy will be donen /"
 The father of his country said:
 There is a rank due to the United States among nations, which will be withheld, if not absolutely lost, by the reputation of weakness.
 If we desire to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it.
 "If we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity it must be known that we are, at all times, ready for warn'
 We must give our boys a vision of America's destiny as the torch-b bearer of democracy to the nations of the earth still sitting in the twilight of autocracy. We must teach them that the elect na- tions of the past were chosen of God to carry out certain purposes of his, as the chosen people of Israel Babylon, Greece and Rome.
 England was for years an elect nation but now the mantle is dropping from the mothers shoulder and her strong young son of the west must pick it up or 1t will be trailed in the dust to make a German holiday. There is no question but that now and in the future America is to be the elect nation under God for solving the problems of liberty for the world.
 The God of our fathers whose favor was invoked by the patriots of l776 is still prayer hearing and a prayer an- swering God. Let us not forget this as we go out in His name. When the Conti- mental Congress was organized, Benja- min Franklin, although not a church member, suggested that the sessions be opened with prayer. At Valley Forge, George Washington, who led our little but self-sacrifcing army to victory, was
 
 knees supplicating the God of nations to save his country which lay bleeding, and his prayer was answered.
 fear that most of those who will cele- brate the Fourth today are probably more thankful for a holiday than grate- full to the fathers for what they did to preserve American liberty. Sports and games are not inconsistent with the day, but it will be pity if we let them be- come the exclusive form of our national celebration.
 I am truly glad that such splendid has been arranged for Capi- tol park Better the old-fashoned cele- bration with patriotic music, parade and speeches, than for it to degenerate into a mere day of pleasure, froic and sports. Birmingham is beginning to awake to the seriousness of the war, and by her recent acts is showing to the world that she expects to do her full duty.
 
 No national holiday should be more en- observed by the American people than the Fourth of July. or Inde- pendence Day, as it is most properly called, since it is commemorative of the signing of the document which started this nation on its prosperous and inde- pendent way. Every citizen of these United States should do all in his power children the civic and religious blessings bought by the blood of his forefathers, thereby guaranteeing to posterity those free institutions under which it is his privilege to live.
 I look back with pride upon the 56 men who represented the colonies in the as- sembly. The signing of the Declaration of Independence was no small matter; placing a name there meant victory or death, for after the names were down there was no retreat. As one of them said: We must either hang together or hang separately" John Hancock, the president of the assembly, was the only one who signed it on the Fourth of July. On August it was signed by all but one, Mathew Thornton, of New Hamp- oHio, Wiio Sisheu " III 1NoVSiupei. oul all had the spirit of Charles Carroll, who when twitted that there were so many Charles Carols the right one might not be easily identified. wrote after his name the words, "Of Carroll ton.'' so they would know where to find him.
 The loyalty of such men is needed to- day, when some are still asking why are we fighting Germany? Let loyalty express itself in no unmistakable way,