Montana labor news., 1936-06-25
THE PRESIDENCY
AND RECOVERY
Address of
HON. JAMES E. MURRAY
of Montana
Under the Program, Congress Speaks
printed in the Congressional Record
of March 2, 1880

Mr.. Wheeler. Mr.. President, on
Friday, February "a, 1886, my col
league the junior Senator from Mon
tana (Mr. Murray delivered an adj
dress at Washington, D. c., over the
National Br~oadcasting Company's net
work, under the program, Congress
Speaks. | ask leave to have his ad-
dress printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the address
was ordered to be printed in the Rec
ord, as follows:
VIZ are already in the midst Of a
great campaign. Commotion and ex-
element is apparent on every side. l
wish to speak today on a phase Of this
excitement which l think should be
discussed and considered with calm
ness. I4refer to the appeal to angry
passions that is being made by a po-
litical faction against the personality
Of the President Of the United States.
l realize that I am entering on a
field in which there will be inevitable
controversy. | shall be frank and try
to be fair and judicious, for the ques-
ton as to what constitutes good man
ners and civilized morals is one upon
which nations have waged intermin-
able discussions and even bloody war.
The question | present is this: Are
these personal attacks, this abuse and
vituperation, which reactionary Re
publicans are now enaged in carrying
on, evidence of the fact that the ex-
IRENE right has lost all its good man
ners as well as its good sense? Are
we to understand that politeness and
good breeding have entirely passed
away from those who once assumed
that it was their particular character
istic and that now the line OF demar-
between themselves and So
called radicals and extremists has been
wholly e~radicated?
Now, this decline or decay in good
manners OF those who are described as
the upper crust" or the 400" as
they are known along the Atlantic sea
board, would not be important if it
were not for the fact that it has a
most serious aspect in its relation to
the welfare OF the entire American peo-
pie.
1t is this class, the class described a
few days ago as the Safeguard Of
civilization, that is indulging in the most
unbridled v%ituperation and %scandalously
insulting the President OF the United
States.
We hear a great deal about the
danger of setting class against class,
but no one seems to realize the revolu-
tionary quality of the extraordinary
statement made here in the Capitol a
short time ago by Americas great fl
n%ancier. He claims that it is the leis-
class which constitutes the safe
guard Of our American civilization.
Could there be any holder demand for
privilege than that? In other
we are now to believe that those
who toll in the field, sweat in the fac
risk their lives in the mines, or
engage in other methods OF toll, and
ungrudgingly devote their lives for the
benefit Of their kith and kin and pro-
duce the wealth of this country, are to
be regarded as inferior not only socially
but as factors in our civilization.
But apparently we find that it is
leisure class that is writing an
onymous notes, threatening and abu-
sive letters, and engaging in all man
ner of unrestricted and violent attacks
against the President Of the United
Only a few days ago a retired bust
ness man, living on Park Avenue, New
York City, a member OF one of New
exclusive clubs, was sentenced
to 90 days in jail because he had writ
ten threatening letters to the Presi-
dent of the United States.
No plea was made in court that this
nan was insane. No defense was Of
that the President ever, in any
way, affronted him; and yet, despite
he fact that he has been sentenced to
where he belongs, the exclusive
of which he is a member still
continue to carry him on their lists,
and not one member Of the social set
which he belongs has raised his
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