Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-05-27
PRESIDENT WILSON DELIVERS
ADDRESS TO PAN-AMERICAN
DELEGATES AT BIG BANQUET


tween North and South
America.
Paris, May 27.-"It is very delight
full, for one thing, if may say SO,
to know that my presidency is not
ahead of me and that his presidency
is ahead of him." said President Will
son in referring to DR.. Epitac1o Pes-
soa, president elect of Brazil. at the
dinner given DR.. Pessoa by the Pan
American peace delegation last night
) .sThe honor has been accorded me" !"
President Wilson said in beginning,
'of making the first speech tonight
I want to say that feel very much
at home in this company, though aft
er all I suppose no one of us feel
thoroughly at home except on the
other side of the water. We all feel
in a very real sense that we have
common home because we live in the
atmosphere of the same conceptions.
and / think with the same political
ambitions and principles
Pays His Respects.
IT am particularly glad to have the
opportunity of paying my respects to
Mr.. Pessoa.. 1t is very delightful, for
one thing, if I may say so, to know
that my presidency is not ahead OF
me and that his presidency is ahead
of him. wish him every. happiness
and every success with the greatest
earnestness, and yet I cannot, II I
may judge by my own experience. ex-
pect for him a very great exhilaratlon
in the performance of the duties OF
his office. because after all, to be the
head of an American state is a task
of unrelieved responsibility.
American constitutions. as rule,
put so many duties of the highest sort
upon the president, and so much OF
the responsibility of affairs of state
is centered upon him, that his years
of office are apt to be years little
weighted with anxiety, little bur-
dened with the sense of the obliga-
tion of speaking for his people. speak
ing what they really think, and en-
deavoring to accomplish what they
really desire.
"I suppose no more delicate task is
given any man than to interpret the
feelings and the purposes of a great
people. I know that if I may speak
had has been to be the true interpre-
ter of a national spirit, expressing no
private and peculiar views, buf.I Itry-
: ing t6s express tht general spirits a
nation.
Nation Looks to President. -
''And nation looks to Its presi:-
dent to do that; and the comradeshtp
of an evening like this does not con-
sist merely Of the sense, of neighbor-
hood. We are neighbors. We have al
ways been friends. But that is all old.
Something new has happened. am
not sure that I can put it into words
but there has been added; to the COM
mon principles which have united the
Americans time out of mind a feeling
that the world at large has accepted
those principles, that there has gone
throughout the nations of the world
which somehow seems to- have its
source and fountain in the things we
always believed in. 1t is as If the pure
waters of the fountains we had al
ways drunk from had been put to the
lips of all peoples, and they have
drunk and were refreshed.
"And it is delightful thought to
believe that these are fountains which
sprang up out of the soil Of the
Americans. I am not, of course sug-
gesting or believing that political lib
erty had it's birth in the American
hemisphere, because of course, it had
not but the peculiar expression Of it
is characteristic of modern times,
inc feeling and practice of democracy
that becoming characteristic of the
modern world,-did have its origin in
America, and the response Of the peo-
Piles of the world to this new express
sion is, we may perhaps pride our
selves. a response to an American
suggestion.
IF that is true we owe the world
a peculiar service. If we originals
great practice we must ourselves be
worthy of them. remember not lone
ago attending very interesting meet.
ing which was held in the interest Of
combining Christian missionary effort
mating the rivalry between churches
and agreeing that Christian mission.
aries should not represent this, that OF
the other church, but represent the
general Christian impulse and princi-
pie of theS world. said was thor.
oughly in sympathy with the princi.
pie, but thatI hoped If it was adopted
that the inhabitants OF. the heather
countries would not come to look al
us, because we were not ourselves
united, but divided; that while we
were seeking them to unite, we our.
selves did not set the example.
"My moral from that recollection
is this: We, among other friends OF
liberty are asking the world to unite
in the interest of brotherhood and
mutual service and the genuine ad.
vancement of individual and corpor.
ate liberty throughout the world
therefore we must set the example.
Made an Attempt. 49,. .
II will recall here to some of you
an effort that I myself made some
years ago, soon after assumed the
presidency of the United States to. dc
that very thing. I was urging that
other states Of America unite with
the United States In doing something
which closely resembled the .forma.
ton Of the present League Of Nations
was ambitious to have the Americas
do the thing first and set the example
to the world of what we are now
about to realize. had double OBJ.
ject In 1t, not only my pride that the
Americas should set the example and
show the genuineness Of their princi.
pies. but that the United States should
have a 'ns~ relation to the other
Americas. tssS 4 /. : 81
THE United States upon famou,
occasion warned the governments o1
z Europe that 1t would regard It as ar
unfriendiy act if they tried to over.
i turn free institutions In the western
hemisphere and to substitute Their
own systems of government which al
times were inimical to. free institu.
!. tions: but while the Il United Btafei
undertook of itss own motion .tosbe thu
Tchampion S0f America 4. against sucl
Aggre16ion in Europe II did not: give
my concIuStyes "a asOtAnce that II woult
q :