Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1928-05-17
IEXASLAUDED
MADDRESST TO
c. OF {. GROUP
Richardson Says State
Greatest In Annual
Address At Corpus
Christi Thursday
Especial to The Herald)

@A9N L. ~
annual address by President G.. C..
Richardson, of Brownsville, featured
the opening Of the 23rd annual con-
vention of the Texas Commercial
executives association here Thurs
day. The organization, composed Of
secretaries Of chambers Of
from more than 500 towns in Texas,
rs expected to close its business meet
ing Saturday.
In his address Mr.. Richardson
pointed out the great place Texas is
holding in the sun of the world and
indicated the part his fellow-secre-
taries are expected TO play in the
keeping of that place. He told the
meeting that Texas is looking 70 the
delegates to formulate the plans and
carry out the work necessary for
future growth.
Following is the text Of the speech:
This is our t%wenty-third annual
convention. We are told that the
Texas Commercial Executives asso-
citation is the largest organization Of
its kind. Texas is the largest state
In the United States and IL is freely
predicted that within this decade the
growth and prosperity Of this state
will be tremendous and, for this de-
velopment, we need capital and we
need manpower. This growth can not
be done entirely from within our own
boundaries. We must reach out to
other states and TO other nations and
bring in additional capital and added
manpower and Texas Is looking 10
US who are gathered here today to
help formulate the plans and carry
out the important work necessary 70
the future growth Of Texas. This de-
velopment, of course, is not 10 come
about by some great statewide pro-
gram handled by some centralized or
ganization, but by the individual eff
forts of each community-your town
and my town, each striving to make
il a better place in which to live and
to make il more attractive to the
stranger, from a civic as well as COM
mercial standpoint. OF course, some
of our towns will grow faster than
others due to geographic location or
natural resources, but, in the aggre-
gate, if our great state is TO carry
on and take It's place in the sun, II
must be through the individual eff
forts of each town, hamlet and viii
lage.
1t is not enough for us TO boast
that Texas has more agricultural re-
sources than any other state in the
union. That is as il should be because
we have more acres Of land by far
than any other state. We must strive
with continued efforts to make Texas
a power in our nation. not only agri-
culturally but industrially, financial
ly and, If you please. politically.
Texas, today. is attracting favorable
attention of the world, Texas has
had an enormous growth in the last
ten or fifteen years and believe that
this growth is largely responsible to
the fact that our chambers Of COM
merce have learned the art of devel-
oping we'll rounded programs of
work, based on their c~ommunity's
natural advantages, and
geographic location. And, in addition
to this, have stressed better schools
and churches, parks and Fairgrounds.
and municipal improvements.
There are more than four hundred
commercial secretaries in Texas.
This is a wonderful showing. Yet,
| am told that within the past twelve
months more than one hundred sew
enty-five 175) dropped out of the
work. That is something to think
about. OF course, many incompetents
get in the ranks. That probably &C
counts for the large mortality. In
competents don't last long. Many 20
on the theory that q secretary should
rot stay in a town more than a year
or two. ! think this is wrong. Some
Of the best men in the profession
have held their positions for many,
MANY wears. / believe that a man
makes a better secretary, is more use
full to his town, state and himself, TO
serve one community five years than
10 serve five communities in the same
period Of time. | will wager that
every man in this room who has been
secretary in the same town for three
or more years has had several invi-
<~ations to serve some other communi-
". 1t is much more satisfactory for
the Job to seek the man than for the
man to seek the job.
AS commercial secretaries, we all
attend many conventions and public
gatherings. We do il because il is
part of our work-we are paid to do
IL. But this meeting here at Corpus
Christi is our own convention. We
are not here representing our cham
Der Of or any group or any
association. OF course, our organi-
zation back home will indirectly ben
eft by the knowledge we acquire
here, but. again | repeat, this is our
organization.
We are here to study chamber of
work in its broad sense.
for our " benefit, to increase our
personal efficiency, to mix and min
gle with our old friends, to meet
new faces and make new friends. and
TO enable us, when we get back home
10 have the extreme satisfaction Of
knowing that we have spent three
days in an unselfish work and three
a~ssociating with a bunch Of
fine fellows.