Evening star., 1925-10-06

III liS AHH6ElCdIi LeSlon, at oIIldId
Nebr.. was as follows:
Mr.. Commander and members of the
American Legion:
II is a high privilege TO sit as a
member of this convention. Those
who exercise 1t have been raised to
the rank of n true nobility. 1t is
a mark OF personal merit which did
not come by right of birth but by
right of conquest. No one can ever
question your title as patriors. No
one can ever doubt the place Of affec-
ton and honor which YOU hold for
evermore in the heart of the Nation.
Your right To be here results from
what YOU dared and what YOU diu
and the sacrifices which YOU made
for our common country. II is all
glorious story OF American enter
prise and American NaloI.
The magnitude of the service which
YOU rendered TO your country and to
humanity is beyond estima ton. Sharp
outlines here and there we know
but the whole account of the World
War would be on scale so Stupen-
dous that it could never be recorded
In the victory which was finally
gained by you and your foreign com
rades you represented on the battle
field the united efforts of our whole
people. You were there as the result
of a great reSurgence of the old
American spirit. which manifested
itself in thousand ways-by the
pouring out Of vast sums of money in
credits and charities, by the organi
zation and quiCl>enin- Of every hand
in our ..4..s dad industries. by the
expansion of agriculture until 1t met
the demands of famishing continents,
by the manufacture of an urending
stream Of munitions and supplies. by
the creation of vast fleets OF war and
transport ships. and finally. when
the tide of battle was turning against
our associates. bringing into action
great armed force OF -. and land
of a character that the world had
never seen before which. when ii
finally took it's place in the line. never
ceased 10 advance, carrying the cause
of liberty 10 a triumphant conclusion.
You reaffirmed the position Of this
Nation in the estimation of mankind
You saved civilization from gigantic
reverse. Nobody says now that
Americans can not fight.
Free From Hatreds.
Our people were influenced by
many motives to undertake to carry
on this gigantic conflict, hut We Went
in and came out sinsularly free from
those questionable causes and re
suits which have often cha racterized
other wars. We were not moved by
the age old antasonisms of racial
jealousies and hatreds.
We Were not seeking to crafty the
ambitions of any reigning dynasty.
We were not inspired by trade and
commercial rivalries. We harbored no
imperialistic designs. We feared no
lf,~y- tAI
tory. But the time came when we
were compelled to defend our own
property and protect the rights and
lives of our own citizens. We be-
heved. moreover, that those institu-
tions which we cherish with a SUI
preme affection. and which lie at the
foundation of our whole scheme of
human relationship. the right Of free
dom. of equality. of selfgovernnen mt,
were all in jeopardy. We thought
the question was involved of whether
the people of the earth were to rule
or whether they were to be ruled. We
thought that we were helping to de-
termine whether the principle of
despotism or the principle of liberty
should he the prevailing standard
among the nations. Then. too. our
country all came under the influence
of great wave Of fdealism. The
crusading spirit was aroused. The
cause Of civilization. the cause Of
humanity. made compelling appeal.
No doubt there were other motives.
but these appear to me the chief
causes which drew America into the
World War
Material Gains Impossible.
In a conflict which engaged all the
jor nations Of the earth and lasted
;~L
there could be no expectation Of ma
terial gains. War in its very essence
means destruction. Never before were
contendins peoples so we'll equipped
with every kind of Internal engine
calculate ted TO spread desolation on land
and over the face of the deep. Our
country is only but now riShting it
self and beginning a moderate but
steady recovery from the great econ
onic loss which it sustained. That
tremendous debt must be Hauidated
through the laborious toll of our peo-
pie. Modern warfare becomes more
and more to mean utter loss. destruc-
ton, and desolation of the best that
there is of any people. it's valian
youth and Its accumulated treasure.
If our contrT secured any benefit. II
it met with any gain. ii must have
been in moral and spiritual values.
1t must be not because il made its
fortune but because it found its soul
Others may disa gree with me. but In
spite of some incidental and trihing
difficulties It Is my firm opinion that
America has come out of the war with
stronger determination to live by
the rule Of righteousness and pursue
the course of truth and justice in
both our domestic and foreign rela
tions. No one can deny that we have
protected the rights Of our citizens.
laid a irmer foundation for. our in
stitutions of liberty. and made our
contribution to the cause of civiliza.
tion and humanity. In doing all this
we found that though Of many differ
ent nationalities. our people had a
spiritual bond. They were all Amer
leans.
Firmer Moral Foundation.
When we look over the rest OF the
world in spite of all its devastation,
there is encouragement TO believe it is
on a firmer moral foundation than It
was in 1914. Much of the old despotism
has been swept away. While some Of
it comes creeping back disguised
under new names, no one can doubt
that the general admission of the right
of the people to self government has
MADE tremendous progress IN nearly
every quarter of the globe. In spite
of the staggering losses and the griev-
Gus burden of taxation. there is a
new note Of hope for the individual
TO he more secure in his rights. which
is unmist akably clearer than ever be
fore. With all the troubles that beset
the Old World. the former cloud of
fear is evidently not now so appalling.
1t is impossible to believe that any
nation now feels that it could better
itself by war and it is apparent to me
that there has been a very distinct