The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-05-10
AMERICA BEST
FRIEND OF The
man WHO Tolls
Father Komara Thrills
Hearers in Eloquent Flag
Raising Address.

Co. when Rev. A. E. Komara, pastor
of ST. Johns Nepomuck Slovak R. c.
| church, delivered his address at the
fag-raising. The several hundred
employees of the foundry department
present, many of whom came from
Europe to America, showed unmis
takably their love for the Stars and
| Stripes and their new homeland by
their appreciation of the sentiments
| embodied in Father Komara's adj
dress.
Father Komara reminded his hear
ers that real patriotism must be ac-
| companied by some sacrifice. He
| expressed the view of Bridgeport
| Slovaks when he declared he believed
| they will give of themselves as well
as their property In the coming strug
| gle His address follows:
| when Mr.. Billion asked me to speak
| to you, accepted because of the oc-
casion of raising the flag and I came
mainly to rejoice with you and to cL.1-
graduate you on your splendid dis
play of your love for the land SYM
bolized by the flag which you bought
1 for the place where you are continu-
ally toi1ing for your own as we'll as
| for the welfare of the land we all live
| in. Your splendid tribute of loyalty
is worthy of your dignity as Ameri-
can citizens. or to be citizens. I know
that your love for the flag in the past
was not less than what it is now
But this is a special occasion where
by you show your Utmost thoughts of
loyalty. But, my friends can say
| this: That blessed and happy is the
lAand which can bring out of her citi-
zens a new fervor and a more intense
love for her prosperity, in proper
ton to her new problems and new sor-
rows that may weigh upon her. That
land has already a glorious future of
power and prosperity secured in the
hearts of her faithful sons. And this
occasion, my friends, is the best evil
i dence of your faithful lial heart beat
lings for the land of the Stars and
i Stripes.
''It is well, however, to remind our,
selves my friends, that America is a
great and glorious land, known the
lworld over as the land of freedom
and opportunity. She welcomes all
to her shores. From the very begin
ming she has been the one hope in all
the great wide world for the OPP
Il pressed and downtrodden multitudes
of men. And those who were forced
out of their own land by prosecutions
who were forced-to seek better OPP
portunities for self development,-s
welcomed them all, she sheltered
them, she protects their sacred right
to live, she protects their right to- be
-lfree, and she protects their God-given
Iright to pursue their own happiness
Eunder her Stars and Stripes! What
else could she have done that she did
mot already do for humanity? Most
Iy all of us. my friends. are here be-
cause of her blessings. Between those
who only arrived recently and those
of us whose ancestors came here be-
| cause of some sort of prosecutions
| across or of desire for betterment,
there is only difference of time.
/. "But the fact is, we are all here,
and we are here to stay, and we are
Egratefu1 to the land and faithful to
her flag, and our gratitude is not
only in words, but if needs be, our
property our honor and our very
lives we shall be ready to lay down
upon the altar of our country to up
hold the honor of the stars and the
stripesi
Another thing well for us to re-
member; That this land is the best
tfriend of the workingmen. It is true,
my friends, that we are not free from
the social evils SO common world
over. The social evils will always, to
a certain degree exist as long as the
human nature exists. The individual
freedom consists precisely in the
power to choose the good or the bad
And it is precisely from choosing the
bad for us or for the community
that social evils arise. But one thing
we all know: That America, like our
good mother, tries to soothe and to
elevate these evils by protecting the
poor workingmen with her just laws
The workingmen's interest in her in
terest, because it is the workingmen's
: labor, as well as the capitalists share,
that made possible the achievements
Of her prosperity today. We can
safely say, then, that America truly
is protecting the interests of all work
ingmen. And we nope that when
this was is over a day will come
when through our government of the
people, by the people and for the peo-
pie, it will be possible to perfect our
selves so as to be able to reduce the
still existing economical and social
evils to it's very minimum. Then the
mission of our country will be to be
4 the shining star for the whole world
in her unsurpassed interest in the
welfare of every individual loyal son
of hers.
mother and friend Of ours, is passing
through a great crisis. She beholds
with motherly look the sad reality
ahead. Few of us realize, because
peace and prosperity had been ours
for a long time. She realizes that
many war. means: Homes destroy
ed; loved ones killed or captured by
4 a cruel enemy-a tale of blood and
ruthless destruction! She knows from
her own experience in the past, that
A war is dreadful in it's consequences
Therefore, she calls to her loyal
sons of the Iaboring class and of every
profession and walk in life to stand
\ by her, to uphold and to strengthen
her by support in this her hour OF
I trial. We are all her sons, she recog-
nizes no religious or racial distinc-
tons, for she sees in us only Ameri-
cans and as such we are glad to be
known. For the blessings of prosper
4 ity and liberty we are grateful and in
return we pledge now our whole
! hearted support. And we can help
her each one in our own sphere if we
faithfully fulfill the duties which fall
y on US to fulfill.
"Now, this flag which is now raised
is bar flag and therefore it is or