The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1918-09-26
Il STRENGTHEN THE WALL.


miles an hour piled up the waters Of
1.-THE Gulf Of Mexico in enormous waves
which swept over the city Of Calves
ton and all but wiped it out Of ex-
istence. Five thousand lives were lost
from q population Of less than O,OOO;.
property to the value Of SIT ,O0O,0 900.
was destroyed, and all the accustomed
activity Of that busy seaport came to
an absolute standstill.
"a catastrophe which killed one 'ii1n1.
eight Of the people and injured thous-
ands more, which destroyed their.
buildings and took away their means
of livelihood, might well have led to
the abandonment Of a location SO open
to the dangers Of the sea as the low,
exposed island on which Galveston
stands. But the people Of Galveston
did not desert. They had abiding
faith in the future Of their city. With
true American courage they solved the
problems Of immediate relief. The
politicians disappeared with the re-.
.ceding waters, and an efficient nom
partisan commission was created to-
govern the city. The people rebuilt.
and repaired their houses and business
places, raising the entire grade Of the
city in the process. And to insure
against a recurrence Of such a disas-
ter, they constructed along the exposed
eastern gulf shores Of the city great
sea wall-a strong massive bulwarks
rising above the highest mark that the
storm waves had reached. Galveston
was destined to live, and live hence
forth in security from the fury of the
sea.
That sea wall cost more than 81
000,0 00a huge sum for city Of
100000 population at any time. For
Galveston, in its terrible distress and
ruin, it seemed wholly impossible
amount. There was the reconstruc-
tion Of almost the whole city to be
undertaken, and while the generosity
Of the country and the world had been
poured out for the relief Of suffering,
faith in the future of Galveston had
been badly shaken and credit wasanot
easy to obtain.
But the people Of Galveston raised
the money for that sea wall This was
no ordinary municipal Improvement,
but the barrier that was to protect life
and property for themselves and loved
ones. They built the wall, they found.
the money to pay for it, because it
meant life or death to them. They
had to do it, and they found a way.
Over the United States today hang
the heavy storm clouds Of waroreA
hurricane Of awful destructive force,
with ,unspeakable woe and terrorlin
its train, has broken over the world
and threatens us all with destruction.
Against that angry flood Of disaster.
men are building a human wall a
barrier the most costly and precious
that ever was seen or imagined, be-.
cause it is erected Of our own flesh
and blood. That wall shelters all we:
hold dear in this world, all our hap
piness Of today, all our hopes for the
morrow. Daily now it grows stronger
and stronger against the time when
the storm shall be at length subdued
and peace shall come again upon earth.
It is not only the men at the front
who make the wall. It is not only the
men who build ships, who produce
guns and munitions and supplies, who
make the wall. It is you and l, every
man and every woman and every child,
who must build and maintain that
wall with everything that we have,
just as the people Of Galveston in the
midst Of sorrow and distress turned
all their resources to the building Of
a wall which was their only hope.
For the most Of us, money is the
only contribution we can make for the
building Of that wall. That we can and
must provide. No American with son
or brother in France is going to hest
tate to pledge the purchase Of Liberty
bonds. No American worthy Of the
name is going to haggle over the
amount. There is only one amount for
any one of us, and that is the utmost
limit Of our ability to pay and borrow.
. Those bonds are not to be regarded as
an investment, though they do provide
the safest security in the world. They
are rather a sacred pledge that the
men who hold the line in France and
Italy shall have the same spirit Of
4 loyalty behind them that they them
selves so bravely display; that while
they offer their lives, we shall not
/ withhold that which is infinitely less
in value our money.
Commensurate with the growing ex-
| tent and expense Of the nations mill
tary and naval effort, the next Liberty