The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1919-02-26

found that these were strange mea,
reckless OF danger not only, but
reckless, because they seemed 10
see something that made that dan
ger worth while.
The Europe OF the second year
OF war, the Europe OF the third year
OF the war, was sinking to sort
OF stubborn desperation. They did
not see any great thing to be
achieved even when the war
should be won. They hoped there
would be some salvage; they hoped
that they could clear their territor-
les OF armies; they hoped they
could get set up their IN
dustries afresh. But they
thought it would simply be the re-
sumption OF the old life that Eu-
rope had led-led in fear, led in
anxiety, led in constant suspicious
watchfulness. They never dream
ed that it would be a Europe OF set
tied peace and OF justified hope.
And now, these ideals have
wrought this new magic, that all
the peoples OF Europe are buoyed
up and confident in the spirit OF
hope, because they believe that we
are at the eve OF a new age in the
world, when nations will under
stand one another, when nations
will support one another in every
lust cause, when nations will unite
every moral and every physical
strength to see that right shall
! prevail.
America the Worlds Hope
II America were at this junction
to fail the world what would come
Of it. | don't mean any disrespect
to any other great people when !
say that America is the hope OF the
world; and if she does not justify
that hope, the results are unthink-
able. Men will be thrown back
upon the bitterness OF disappoint-
ment not only, but the bitterness
OF despair. All nations will set up
as hostile camps again the men
at the peace conference will go
home with their heads upon their
breasts, knowing that they have
failed-for they were bidden not
come home from there until they
did something more than sign a
treaty Of peace,
Suppose we sign the treaty Of
peace and that it is the most sat
isfactory treaty OF peace that con
fusing elements OF the modern
world will afford and 60 home and
think about our labors We vii
know that we have left written up
on the historic table at Versailles
upon which Vergcnnes and Benja-
min Franklin wrote their names
nothing but modern scrap oi
paper; no nations united to de-
fend it, 10 great forced combined
to make it good, no assurance Civ
en- to the down-trodden and fearful
people OF the world that they shall
be safe Any man who thinks that
America will take part in giving
the world any such rebuff and dis
appointments as that does not know
America.
Test the Nations Sentiment
! invite him to test the senti.
ments OF the nation. Men have
testified TO me in Europe that oui
men were possessed by something
that they could only call religion.
feryer They we're not like any o.
the other soldiers. They had de.
ciSion, they had a dream and they
were fighting in the dream anC
fighting in the dream they turned
the whole tide OF battle and il
never came back.
One OF our American humorists
meeting the criticism that Ameri
can soldiers were not trained long
enough, Said> 1T takes only hal
as long to train an American sol.
dier as any other, because you only
/ have to train him one way, and he
| did only 60 one way, and he never
came back, until he could do j
when he pleased"
And now do you realize that thi,
confidence we have established
throughout the world imposes
burden upon us-ii you choose tC
call it a burden? 1t is one OF those
| burdens which any nation ough
to be proud to carry. Any mar
who reSiSts the present tides thai
run in the world will lind himsel
thrown upon a shore SO high anC
barren that it will seem as il he
had been separated from his hui
man kind forever.
The Europe that | lett the Other
day was full OF something that il
had never felt ill its heart so ful
before, 1t was full OF hoipe.
We set this nation up to max
men free and we did not confn
our conception and purpose t.
America and now We will max,
men free.
II we did not do that the fame o
America would be gone and all he
powers would be dissipated.
She would have to keep her powe
for those narrow, selfish, proyincia
purposes which seem so dear t.
some minds that have no sweep be
yond the nearest horizon.