The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1919-05-13

PARIS. Saturday. May 1o.-Prssidcnt
Wilson. n his address today to the
French Academy IT Moral and Political
Sciences. eni"r''d strong disclaimer Of
tho idea that the American people were
largely ;natcr!allstS OF dollar worship
pcrs,
II have In recent months one very
deep Sense uf privilege" the President
said. L have been kccnly aware that
:hcr" HAY. h."n times when the peoples
Of t:urup, have not understood the pep
pie Of the United States We have been
TOO often supposed to have been devoted
chiefly II not entirely to material eater
prtscs. We have been supposed IN m"
common phrase, 10 worship the almighty
dollas
I'VE have accumulated wealth. sir: VIC
have devoted ourselves to material on
tcrprises with extraordinary success. but
there has undcrlain al! OF that. all tho
time n common sense of humanity and a
common sympathy with the high prInci-
piles Of justice which has never grown
dim in the field even of enterprise and
il has BEEN my very great JOY in th"s"
recent months to interpret the people or
the United States TO the people Of the
world.
Il have not done more. sir. have not
Suffered in my public capacity my own
privat.. thoughIs have uttered what
! nave known - H. II" thoughts Of the
great people whom r'present. l have
uttered the things that have BEEN stored
up IN their hearts and purpose from the
time Of our birth as nation.
It was at this point that the prcsi-
dent made his declaration that the Amer
ic.,u people who came into the world
consecrat~d TO liberty were ready TO
tAoS~ 1Nt IN, n
Of those whose liberty is threatened
whenever tho cause Of liberty was seen
to be impcrlled.
This is the spirit nt the people OF
the United States" nc continued. and
they have heen privileged To send c.ooh.-
200 men over here to toll YOU so. 1t has
not only been the great privilege to tell
YOU so in words. but TO tell you so in
men and material-thc pouring out OF
their wealth and the Offering OF their
blood
President Wilson alluded to his
studies in the fields Of political scicn-
tific and the attempts hc had made to
put into words Of learning the thoughts
Of nation. the attitude Of people tow
ard publ affairs.
He conunued:
A great many of my colleagues in
American university life got their train
ing. even in political science. as so many
men f., civil circles did. in German uni
vcrsitics> I have been obliged at va
rious times 10 read a great deal OF bad
German. difficult German. awkward Cor
nan and I have been aware that tho
thought was as awkward as the phrase
that the thought was rooted in funda-
mental msconccptinn Of tn" state and
~" political life of peoples And it has
seen PARTON os my effort to dissngaEe
nc thought OF American university
teachers from the misguided instruction
which they had received on this side OF
;hr sea. Their American spirit antlci-
pated most OF them matter OF
course but tho form "f the thought
Some time miSled them. They speak 100
often OF the state as a thing which
would ignore the individual. as a thing
which was privileged 10 dominate tho
fortune Of mon ~ 4 sort Of inherent and
sacred authority.
Now "a m utter democrat T have
never hern abla TO accept that view OF
tho. state. Ny view OF the state is that
il must stop and listen to what I have
10 say. no matter how humble am and
that each man has the right 10 have his
voice heard and his counsel needed in
sofar AS it is worthy OF him.
Il have always. been among those who
believe that tn" greatest freedom ~
speech was tn" greatest safety. because
tf a man is a fool tho bnst thing TO do