Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1921-04-18
LEGION SHOULD
CARRY ON WORK
OFGRAND ARMY
Beverage Tells Winchester
Men Of Duties Ahead Of
Them.
DENOUNCED

WINCHESTER, Ind, April 18-Tn an
address to the members Of the American
Legion here last night, Albert J. Bev"
eridge, former United States Senator, told
the young veterans that it is their re-
sponsibility to carry on the work which
was upheld for SO many years by the
G. A r.
1T is an inspiring fact" he said, shat
from the first the flag never has fallen
from the hands of American soldiers who
saw service in the field. Before the vets
Grams OF any war had gone to their last
bivouac, the veterans of another took
tiny that guides America, as the heroic
remnant of the Grand Army of the Re-
public moves to its appointed place on
host s Of y young &Rca gRting mem are
here to take the places and uphold the
principles Of the men who saved the Ma
ton.
The men Of the American Legion have
responsibility to carry and duty to
perform, the seriousness of which Is UNI
surpassed in the history OF the republic
or Of the world
STRONG LEADERS
ARE NEEDED.
"Statesmanship Of the highest order
must direct their councils and determine
their policy. Prodigious efforts will be
made-have been made, are being made
to swerVe them from exclusive devotion
to America; they must-they will-resist
these efforts and remain steadfast cham
| piOns Of genuine Americanism, pure and
undefled.
They must-they will-see that their
leaders are strong, calm, steady, wise,
seeing men of the type of Washing
| ton and Marshall and Lincoln-meu who
cannot be influenced by designing fat
terers, seduced by foreign propaganda,
/ swept of their feet by manufactured
emotion-men Of unwavering souls who'll
| ly consecrated to American principles
and traditions and immovably determined
upon pure, unmixed, unauthorized and
exclusive service Of American interests,
American rights and American honor.
Just a the population Of our country
| bership, of the American Legion Is unlike
that OF any other army, veterans OF
any other country. The racial blood OF
our people Is as varied as the foreign
! countries from which it came; the same
is true Of the racial elements of our
American soldiers who fought Germany.
Therefore just as American solidarity
the solidarity OF our own citizens here
at home-is Americas peculiar and
vital problem. "a problem that cOnfronts
no other nation on earth) so the same
! American solidarity of its members is
the peculiar and vital problem of the
American Legion, "a problem that con-
fronts no other body Of veterans on
earth)-
MUST ALLOW
NO DIVISIONS.
Just as racial divisions among eur
citizens will, in the end, disintegTate and
ruin our Nation, so racial divisions In
the legion will disintegrate and ruin IT
and no blacker catastrophe could befall
the United States than the rending
asunder, into mutually hostile camps, Of
this wonderful body of young Americans
whose service % the Republic has crowned
them all with everlasting glory and en-
dowed them, II united. with vast and
/ benefcent influence.
ut is. then, a matter of plain common
sense of sheer logic, that just anything
that tends to unite the racial elements
Of American citizenship into one great,
harmonious people, is good for America,
SO anything that tends to unite the racial
elements Of the membership of the legion
into one great, harmonious army OF
patriotism is good for the legion.
BY the same token, just as anything
that tends to separate into mutually an
tagonistic groups inspired by hatred OF
one another, the racial elements Of Amer
lean citizenship, is bad for America, so
anything that tends to separate the racial
elements Of the membership of the legion
into antagonistic groups, inspired by
hatred of one another, is bad for the
legion.
THE basic policy of the legion. there
fore, is exactly the same as the basic
policy Of the Republic itself Unity, har-a
mony, common purposes, common inter-
ests-these are the watchwords Of our
salvation And these watchwords can
be observed and made alI-powerful for
good, only in one big, simple patriotic
way. That way is exclusive affection for
and service Of America, unweakened and
imprisoned by attachment to or favor
itism for any other country whatever.
Washingtons words are truer today than
ever. Faith of our fathers, glorious
faith, we VIII be true TO thee till DEATH"