The Daily Alaska empire., 1931-05-30
,cnce of our great Republic.
 PrcserUe Higher Qualities

lifv the supreme virtues of nan hood. of valor and sacrifice, so does the Legion seek to preserve, to keep alive those higher quail ties of American citizenship by carrying on a program of re a ] service to the community, state and nation One of the great pur- poses of the Legion as set forth in the preamble of the Legion con- stitution is to safeguard an d transmit to posterity, the princi- pies of justice, freedom and dem- ocracy.' It is by concrete deeds of Americanism SD e ing g the message of good citizenship, train ing youth in citizenship responsi- bilities, helping the disabled and the orphans, laboring for com munity betterment, that the Le- zion fulfills this pledge day by day and year by year.
 On Memorial Day we are fore ibly reminded of the terrible price war exacts in human lives, in hap p.ness and in wealth and the bur dens of sadness it imposes upor all. Warfare, the ruthless slay- ing of human beings in armed conflict between nations, can nev- CT be justified and no right think ing man or woman would ever at tempt to justify it. The mem- bers of The American Legion Late war, hate it bitterly, because te them, war has not been a matter for odle discussion, nor of specu- lative thought, but instead it has been a grim reality, personal ex- perience that the passing years cannot erase.
 War EractS Price
 From every man who served the World War exacted a price Common to all was financial loss and the loss of time that might have been devoted to more pleas ant pursuits of life, but there were
 many who paid the price in shat
 tered health, who will bear living
 wounds of sacrifice to their graves
 There were those who came back
 to homes where sadness had left
 it's dark shadow, to find that wal had taken away from their midst forever a loved one.
 '|The men of The American Le-
 zion know what war means, what
 it demands of each and every citi-
 zen, and as an organization ths
 Legion stands ready to support any sane and practical plan to dc
 away with war, to settle all inter
 national disputes and differences without resort to arms. Thi! brings up subject of vital con.
 cern to the Legion, that of nation. al defense. From our experience
 in the World War, from our ex- iperience in every war that Amer ica has fought, has come the cost
 ly lesson of the value and the tre mendous importance of nationa defense measures. Had we beer
 prepared in the World War it i
 not altogether improbable that W,
 would have been spared the over
 acts which drew us into the mael !strom of that conflict This w
 do know-that had we been ade
 quately prepared the loss of hum an life, of materials and treasur
 would have been far less and W would have been spared mucl misery and human suffering.
 Demands National Defense "The American Legion is no asking that we maintain an arm and ships for offensive purposes 7 Instead it asks that we maintai
 national defense sufficient strong to keep us out of war. To
 )dGy, as never before in the histor
 of our country, the matter of na
 tional defense should comman the attention of every patrioti American citizen. Powerful in fluences are at work, seeking t destroy the nations military pro l lection.
 We see them attacking militar l training in the schools and col 2 leges, fighting the Citizens Mil 2 tary Training Camps, m k n
 every effort to defeat legislation y Congress which would give ot 3 Navy the strength allotted by tf . London Treaty. These things al n vital to our national defense pla n and while there is. yet. time, befoi . an emergency threatens, we shoul . build up a national defense ths = will insure adequate protection s America and American people. t Renelo Allegiance Pledge V.l There is no better time tha D on Memorial Day to rechristen ol : faith in America, to pledge ane e our allegiance to the Flag we loN . and VOW that we will ever upho I and defend the institutions f y which so many brave Americal n have fought ar4 suff-~o1
 and died This day has bee $ designated as the one day in II = year when we pay homage to u h nations heroic soldier dead b e it should likewise s"-ve to remir o Americans one and all that tn l, have solemn obligations to pc l. form in the continued life al ! welfare of the Republic. O