Evening star., 1924-10-23

sciences honored him with gold
medal
Mr.. Coolidge ,esteems the United
States Senate, like the Supreme
Court, a liberty conserving institu-
tion, and, therefore, bulwark of
law and order in this country. He
holds that the Senate protects, mot
merely the rights of the majority
they little need protection--but the
rights of the minority. from what
ever source they may be assailed." ;"
His reading of the history of the
Senate is that of Il story of wisdom
and discretion in action for the exc
cution of the public will. He says
it functions without passion and
without fear. unmoved by clamor, but
most sensitive to the right, the
stronghold of government, according
to law. that the vision of past gen
erations may be more and more the
reality of generations yet to come.
Coolidge is a nationalist. He re-
veres our nationalists from Washing
ton to Roosevelt. He sees in jealous
and vigorous nationalism nothing
prejudicial to intelligent and beneficent
internationalism. He admires the
nationalistic principle that LAY at
the foundation of all Washington's
craftsmanship" He declares that
where even Cromwell faltered, Wash
ington alone prevailed. He wi shed
the people of his country to be great,
but great in their own right. He
resisted the proposal that he should
be set up to rule them. He adopted
the proposal that they should be
organized to rule themselves. He car
rieG these principles through to the
end. He adhered not to the cause
land, but to that of America: and
with patience and greatness sublime
bore the resulting abuse of his coun-
try for his country's good"
Americanism, in Coolidge's inter-
probation, is humanism in govern
ment. II is all for the idea that
the mass is served best by serving
the unit. If the unit prospers. If the
individual feels he has protection and
the open door. the mass prospers ana
there is national tranquility. OF gov
ernment activity affecting individual
initiative and opportunity, Coolidge is
instinctively suspicious and critical
that is to say, he is the poles apart
from socialism. He thinks socialism
approaches human problems-the
problems of society-from diametri-
cally the wrong direction.
Early Advocate Of Woman Suffrage.
Liberalism of sentiment on the part
of Coolidge is evidenced by his early
approval of votes for women. In
this matter-and it was an excellent
test of the spirit of statesmen-he
was in advance of many of his CO.
temporaries on both sides of the
Atlantic. For example. Coolidge IA
vored the franchise for women long
before Herbert Asquith, outstanding
Liberal leader in England, threw his
weight into the scales for this epoch
making reform.
Demagoguery, so far as one can
discover from either the speech or
the acts of President Coolidge, is
alien to his ideas of party expedi-
ency and to his temperament. Dema-
goguery implies insincerity, and no
one acquainted with the President
suspects him of insincerity. His
blood. his deeply religious home life.
the mountains among which he grew
up, the great instructors who minis
tered to his mental and moral de-
veIopment at Amherst, all comhjnod
to make him too serious and too wise
man to set any store by dema-
goguery or trickery of any kind.
So, when Calvin Coolidge, for in
stance, declares his sympathy with
those who work-work with their
hands or with their brains-one
safely may take him at his word. He
himself is a worker. He always has
been poor, and he never has tried to
get rich. His fees as lawyer were
so low as to provoke remark all over
Massachusetts.
Unbounded pride and faith in Amer
lea are part and parcel of Calvin
Coolidge's character. He sees her
steadily marching on To him her
history, her services to freedom are
GLORIOUS" There is" he remarks,
her prosperity There is the wonder
full organization of her Government,
perfected in its ultimate decisions to
reflect the will of the people. There
is her system of education. developed
in accordance with the public schools
established in Massachusetts in 1647.
There is her transportation, superior
to that of any other country. There
is her banking organization. richer
than any other on earth There Is
her commerce., which flows to the
world markets. There iss her indus
trial plant. superior to that of any
other place or time. There is her
a agriculture, vast beyond the magma
tion to comprehend"
CiviIization's Need Of Support.
with all the light that comes from
learning and religion" says Coolidge,
with all the deterrent power of or
ganized society, there is an appalling
amount of vice and crime. Some, say
civilization has failed. Il has not fall
ed, as any one can see who looks at
history. 1t must be supported and
1t cannot be preserved
without effort. and it is not yet done.
The work must go on. AS society
grows more complicated, as civilza-
ton advances, the burden of its sup
port is not less; it is more. 1t was
never so great before as 1t is now"
Mr.. Coolidge affirms that, If he fill
our legions with Gauls and Numidans