Omaha daily bee., 1918-07-19
PATRIOTIC DUTY
EMPHASIZED BY
COL. ROOSEVELT
Former President Given Most
Enthusiastic Reception by
New York G. @. P.
Convention.


quickly changed.
The colonel was received warml,
as he strode down one of the mair
alsles with bands playing "The Stal
Spangled Banner" and the crowd or
foot cheering. These reached theil
height when he declared that "ths
sinking of the Lusitania was the fir
ing on Sumter of this war;" and tha
ii the United States had declared
war at that time, eve would have hac
a couple of million men across sea:
months ago, Russia would never have
broken and the war would have beer
over now."
Loyal Idealism Essential.
The colonel adhered closely to hi:
prepared speech, except on one OF
Two occasions, notably when he ap'
realed to his hearers to perfect theil
ideal of citizenship. At no time die
he refer to the reported death If
France of his son, Quentin, but hi:
audience felt he had this keenly If
mind when he said:
"In this great world crisis, perhaps
lhe greatest in the history of the
world during the christian era. where
the events of the next few years will
profoundly influence for good or foi
al Our children and Our children's
children for generations;
surely in this great crisis where we
are making sacrifices and making
ready for sacrifices on a scale never
before known; surely when we are
rendering such fealty to the idealism
On the part of young men sent abroad
to die, surely we have a right to ask
and to expect loyal idealism in life
from the men and the women who
stay at home.
Our young men have gone to the
other side-very many of them to
give up in their joyous prime all
the glory and all the beauty of life
for the prize of death in battle for
lofty ideal. Now, while they are
defending you, can't we men and
women at home make up our minds
to try and insist, in public and private
on a loftier idealism here at home
am asking for an idealism which
shall find expression beside the
hearthstone and in the family and
i'll the councils of the state and ma
ton.
"And I ask you to see that when
those who have gone abroad to en-
dure every species of hardship, to risk
their lives, to give their lives-when
those of them who live to come
home, that they shall come home
to a nation which we by our actions
have made nation they can be proud
to have fought for and to have died
for"
Roosevelt's Address.
Colonel Roosevelt's address fol-
lows:
"The two prime purposes of the
{ American people at this time, having
precedence of all others, are: First.
to insist upon the absolute and thor
oughgoing Americanization of our
entire citizenship; and, second, to win
the war, to win it as speedily as posi-
Bile, and to end it by the peace of
overwhelming victory, peace which
shall guarantee to Gus, and to our al
lies and to-all the we'll behaved ma
tions of the civilized world, lasting
relief from the threat and horror of
German world domination.
"As regards Americanism, we must
insist that there be in this country
but one nationality, the American ma
tionality. There must be no perpe-
tuation in this country of separate ma
tional groups, with their separate lam
guages and special loyalties to alien
overseas flags. There can be no $3.50
Aniericanism in this country
There is room here only for 100 per
cent Americanism, only for those who
are Americans and nothing else.
1--WE must have loyalty to only one
flag, the American flag; and it is dis
loyal to the American flag to try to
be loyal to any other, whether that
other is foreign flag or the black
and red flags which symbolic either
anarchy or else treacherous hostility
20 all for which this nation stands.
Only One Language.
There is room in this country
for but one language, the language Of
the Declaration of independence, of
Washihgton's farewell address, and
of Lincoln's Gettysburg speech and
second inaugural; the English lang
uage. Americanism transcends every
party consideration. No man who is
not a 100 per cent American is en-
titled to the support of any party
which is itself entitled to be consid-
cred an American party.
"This is one side of Americanisrl.
The other and equally important side
is to insist that every man who
shows himself to be 100 per cent
American, wholehearted and single
minded in his loyalty to this country,
no matter what his birthplace, ma
tional origin or creed, be treated as
on full and exact equality with
every other good American. The bulk
of American citizens in whole or in
part of German blood (and | am my
self in part of German BLOODY are alb
solutely loyal. They have furnished
as large and as gallant proportion
Of the fighting men of our army and
navy as any other element; and of
course, it is the fighting men who
meet and furnish the highest test of
sound American. citizenship at this
:ime."
Colonel Roosevelt advocated uni
rersal obligatory military training in
the held tor period at least of six
months for all our young men be-
tween the ages of 10 and II years. He
also said that women should at once
have the vote in the nation at large.
he cautioned that government owner
c La