The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1930-06-19

E::::? LOT puDilc lit
possibly be sena.
tor" said Bob, seriously, but I've
about come to the conclusion it Is
not desirable after all. Dad, are
politics rotten?
"Been reading the papers a bit,
eh, Bob?" queried dad. "Well, !
can hardly blame you for coming
to such a conclusion with all the
graft and scandal in high places,
yet, Bob, the law is a very highly
respected profession and just be-
cause here and there, now and then,
a man high in public office sells
his birthright for mess of pot.
tage you must not conclude that
all of our vast army of public Off
Gals are crooks, by any means.
America is what she is today as
a nation, largely because of her
type of government; type of gov
eminent which makes possible ire
mendous initiative on the part Of
officials, plus the fact that we still
have vast natural resources easily
exploited and wealth is so compar-
atively easily attainable by fair
means or foul.
Remember how we all enjoyed
the box of sailed nuts the other
evening. They were unusually
fine until you bit into a rancid one
and then you didn't want any more.
1t would have been too bad to have
concluded that you would never
eat sailed nuts again because OF
one bad one to a box.
Lets 60 a little further, Bob.
The strength of American life is the
quality of it's citizenry. Most men
are honorable and honest. Of the
probably more than one hundred
thousand public officials, large
part of the leaders of which have
legal training, there is very small
per cent but that have rendered
their day and time and constituency
thoroughgoing honorable service,
many, at large personal sacrifice.
Here was just now reading a
splendid quotation from Roosevelt
that has an exact bearing on the
point.
elm our history there is now
practically no mention Of any great
financier, of any great business
man, who merely made money for
himself. If at some crisis in the ma
tons history that financier rem
dered a great national service, or If
he identified himself In useful fash
ion with some great movement for
good, whether in art or philan-
thropy or otherwise, then his name
remains. But even under these con-
ditiOns it remains as secondary
value. Americas contribution to
permanent world history has been
made by the statesmen and soldiers
whose devotion to the country
equaled their efficiency, by men Of
science, men of art, men of letters,
by sane and honest refOrmers and
social workers, who did great work
and treated that work as in itself
great reward
1.-THE history of our growth and
development as a nation is largely
the story of the lives of high-mind-
ed men who have devoted them
selves to the service of their fell
lows in some one of the thousand
ramifcations of our public life.
"True, 1t is, my boy, that we have
an oversupply of small fry In the
legal profession, but it is also true
in the other professions. Human
nature Is no different in politics
than in business or medicine or the
other sciences.
"Some one has told us that the
real value of great lives Is to fertil-
lie the imaginations Of our youth.
When you think politics, think of
the great game that Washington
played with his Continental con-
gress; think of the great game that
Lincoln played with millions of hu-
man lives at stake. Think of the
great fascinating game that Herbert
Hoover played to feed the starving
children Of the world. Do not let
your ideals and conclusions be
reached by dwelling too much on
the petty graft and mistakes OF the
greedy and overly ambitious few.
"True American citizenship means
loyal service to God and country.
Boys of sterling quality must be
trained to enter politics-yes, to be-
come fighting politicians; uve-wire
citizens who do their share of the
public work, and Bob, you don't
need to wait until you are sena-
tor. Be a good straight-shootiEg,
hard-hitting politician In school; in
your club; In your camp; yes, In
your gang.
1--WE must recognize that there
are defects in our land and weak
ness in our systems; that our plan
Of things is not perfect; that all
our institutions can be bettered;
and that only by preparation and
cooperation to make America tho
great democracy where there is less
and less fear, more and more conf
dence in each other and a united
hope for even better things, will q
new day come.
"Good and bad politics, Bob, bring
up another point, too, that it is well
to consider. Good politics is simply
loyalty. Everybody likes the fellow
who stands up for his family and
his school, his friends, his team, and
his country-all of that Is not so
hard TO do"
&c. 1929, Western Newspaper Union.)