Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-07-09
BIZ Associated Press.


New York, July S.-The full text
of President Wilson'S speech at
Carnegie Hall yesterday follows:
'Fellow countrymen:
81 am not going to try this after
o to make you a zeal speech. l
am a bit alarmed to find how many
speeches l have in my system I'M
delivered, but they are all speeches
that come from the mind and /
want to say to you this afternoon
only a few words from the heart.
You have made me deeply happy
by the generous welcome % have
extended to me, but l do not believe
hat the welcome you extend to me
is half as great as hat which l eX-
tend to you. Why, Jerseyman
though / am, this is the first time
L ever thought that Hoboken was
beautiful.
Il have really, though I have
tried on the other side of the water
to oncea it, been the most home
sick man in the American Expedi-
t~ionery Force, and it is with feelings
that it would be vain for me to try
to express that l find myself in this
beloved country again. l do not
say that because l lack in admira-
ton of other countries.
Homesick For America
There have been many things
that softened my inconsistencies. One
of the chief things that softened it
was the very generous welcome that
they extended to me as your repre-
sentative on the other side of the
water. And it was still more soft
ened by the pride that / had in dis
covering that America had at last
convinced the world of her true
character.
II was welcomed because they
had seen with their w eyes what
America had done for the world.
They had deemed her selfish. They
had deemed her devoted to material
interests. And they had seen her
boys come across the water with a
vision even more beautiful than that
which they conceived when they had
entertained dreams of liberty and of
peace.
And then 1 had the added pride
of finding out by personal observa-
ton the kind of men we had sent
over. L had crossed the seas with
the kind of men who had taken
them over, without whom they could
not have got to Europe and then
when l got there l saw hat army
OF men, that army of clean men, that
army of men devoted to the high
interests of humanity, that army
that one was glad to point out and say
THESE are my fellow countrymen.'
Praises Soldiers
1T softens the inconsistencies a
good deal to have so much of home
along with you, and these boys were
constantly reminding me of home.
They did not walk the streets like
anybody else. l do not mean hal they
walked the streets self-assertive-
~. They did not. They walked the
streets as fl they knew hat they be-
longed wherever free men lived, that
they were welcome in the great l.
public of France and were COM
rades with the other armies that
had helped to win the great battle
and to show the great sacrifice. Be-
cause it is a wonderful thing for
this Nation, hitherto isolated from
the large affairs of the world, to
win not only the universal conf
dence of the people of the world,
but their universal affections.
And that, and nothing less than
that, is what has happened. Wher-
ever it was suggested. that troops
should be sem and it was desired
that troops of occupation should ex-
cite no prejudice, no un~easiness on
the part of those to whom they
Were sent, the men who represented
the other nations came to me and
asked me to send American sold
diers. They not only implied, but
they said, that the presence of
American soldiers would be known
not to mean anything except friendly
protection and assistance. Do you
wonder that it made our hearts
swell with pride to realize these
things?