Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1919-02-27

text OF PRESIDENT WILSON'S address de-
iivered at his Boston reception to-day
Is as follows:
Governor Coolidge, Mr.. Mayor, Fellow
Citixens:
wonder II you are half as glad to see
heart to see a great body Of my fellow
citizens again. because in some respects
during the recent months I have been
very lonely indeed without your cornrade-
ship and counsel. and tried at every
step Of the work which fell to me to
recall what I was sure would be your
council with regard to the great matters
which were under consideration.
CANNOT REPORT NOW
have not come to report the
results of the proceedings OF the
peace conference: that would be
premature. 1 can say that 1 have re-
ceived very happy impressions from this
conference; the impression that while
there are many differences of judgment,
while there are some divergences of
object. there is nevertheless. a common
spirit and a common realization of the
necessity OF setting UP new standards Of
right In the world.
Because the men who are In confer
American can realize that they are not
the masters OF their people, that they
are the servants of their people and that
the spirit OF their people has awakened
to a new purpose and a new conception
Of their power to realize that purpose,
and that no man dare 60 home from that
conference and report anything less
noble than was expected of It.
PEACE A COMPLEX PROBLEM
The conference seems to you to &C
slowly: from day to day in Paris II
| seems to go slowly; but 1 wonder il
you realize the completely of the task
which 1t has undertaken. 1t seem.
as II the settlements of this war affect
and affect directly, every great, and
sometimes think every small. nation
in the world and no one decision car
prudently be made which is not prop
erly linked in with the great series o,
other decisions which must accompan,
It and must be reckoned in with Ia
Anal result II the real quality ar
| character Of that result is to be prop
erly judged.
What we are doing is to hear tN
! whole case; hear it from the mouti
OF the men most Interested: hear
from those who are officially commit
| stoned to state 1t: hear the rival CLAIM.
hear the claims that AFFECT new natio
| alities; that affect new areas of {
world: that affect new commercial Il
economic connections that have be
! established by the great world Wa.
| through which we have gone, and
have been struck by the moderateness
| Of those who have represented nationa
| claims. l can testify that l have no.
" a D1o nf
have seen earnestness, I have seer
tears como to the eyes of men who
who plead for down-trodden peopl,
they are privileged to speak for; but
they were not the tears of anguish
| they were the tears of ardent hope.
And / don't see how any man car
| fail to have been subdued by these
pleas. subdued to this feeling that hi
was not there to assert an individual
Judgment of his own but to try tc
assist the case OF humanity.
| AMERICA ABOVE SUSPICION
And In the midst of it all every interes
seeks out first Of all. when it reache.
Paris the representatives of the United
States. Why? Because and think l an
stating the most wonderful fact in his
| tory-because there is no nation II
Europe that suspects the motives of tn,
United States.
Was there ever so wonderful a thinf
seen before? Was there ever so moving ;
thing? Was there ever any fact that s,
bound the nation that had won tina
esteem forever to deserve IT,
l would not have you understand tina
the great men who represent the othe
nations there In conference are dis
esteemed by those who know them
Quite the contrary. But you understand
that the nations of Europe have agail
and again FLASHED with one another il
competitive interest. 1t Is impossible 70
men to forget those sharp issues tina
were drawn between them in times past
1t Is impossible for men to believe tina
all ambitions have all Of a sudden bee,
foregone.
EUROPEANS CANNOT FORGET
They remember territory that wa
coveted; they remember rights that
WAS attempted to extort; they remembe
political ambitions which 1t was at
tempted to realize-and, while they be
lieve that men have come into a DIFF
ferent tenn l. they cannot forget thes
things. and 20 they do not resort to on
another for a dispassionate view of tn
matters In controversy. They resort T.
that nation which has won the enyiabl
distinction of being regarded as tn
friend Of mankind. Whenever it is desire
to send small force OF soldiers to 90
cupy piece of territory where 1t 1
thought nobody else will be welcome
they ask for American soldiers. An
where other soldiers would be locke
upon with suspicion and perhaps me
with resistance. the american sodie
. Is welcomed with acclaim.
PROUD OF 2sth DIVISION
have had so many grounds 70
pride on the other side of the waite
that I am very thankful that they ar
not grounds for personal pride, but 10
national pride. II they were ground
for personal pride I'd be the most stuck
up man In the world. And 1t has bee
an INFINITE pleasure to me to see thos
gallant soldiers of ours, of whom tn
constitution of the United States mad
: me the proud commander. You ma
be proud of the 2sth Division, but
,, commanded the 26th Division, and SO
what they did under by direction. An
everybody praises the American sol
dier with the feeling that in pralsin
MIN he Is subtracting from the credl
of no one else
EUROPE EMBRACES OUR IDEAL
have been searching for the fun
damental fact that converted Europ
10 believe In us. Before this wal