Evening star., 1936-06-12
each other, built and rebuilt


have been farmers. His neigh
bors and his friends have been
farmers. Gov. Iandon has known
what 1t means to worry. You worry
when the livelihood of yourself
and those who work for you de-
pends alone upon your judgment
and ability
Gov IAndon knows what 1t
means to combat hidden powers
working under any name. You
have to fight when your independ.
ence and your very existence are
threatened by great combination Of
wealth. Gov. Lsndon as business
man kept his independence. He
met his pay rolls. He made the
business pay. He knows that no
business which does not pay can
long continue TO meet the pay roll.
He knows the various forces which
affect the delicate adjustment OF
business and the balance of which
is essential to our prosperity.
Too Wise to Be Fooled.
Too COura eOus for Fright.
Gov. Landon did not smass great
wealth from his business, but he
earned his living and he earned
a reputation. A reputa tion for
knowing how to work, a reputa-
tion for keeping his word. repu-
tation for being far too intelligent
to be fooled and far TOO courageous
TO be frightened. 1t is not with
out effort that q man can earn his
living and such q reputation; and
such an achievement is suff1cient
for most men in their lifetime
But the tradition OF this country
is not only that its citizens should
work, but that they should also
govern themselves. Gov. Landon
did not wait to assume his respon-
sibilities as q member Of q self
governing community. self-goy-
erning State and self-8overning
Nation. From the time he was old
enough TO assume the simplest duty
OF O citizen-the duty TO voIe-he
informed himself. through contact
and experience, Of the working OF
this machinery Of government,
1t is not therefore. by chance
that Gov. LanoOn received that eH-
perience m both business and gov
ersment which the party and the
country recognize as an essential
Ia
learned the one as he learned the
other. from the ground up, not
with the hope OF iurthering per-
sonsl ambitions but with the pur-
pose Of fulfilling his full duty as Q
citizen Of his country
Gov. IAndon'S initial political
success was based upon the opin-
ion his fellow citizens had formed
Of his knowledge, his reputation
and his character, as shown in
business and OH the smaller stages
Of politics. No one could tell,
when he was first elected Governor
OF Kansas. that that knowledge
and that reputation and character
would be sut1cient 10 allow him to
assume with credit the new re-
Sponsibilities Of high public ONCE.
That he did so, not only adequately
but brilliantly, Ia q part of the
history OF my State He did not
change in character as Governor
from the man who had run for
Governor, or from the successful
businessman interested In local pol
itics Moreover. under the white
light OF merciless publicity that
glares on every presidential csndi-
date. Gov Landon has remained
unchanged, with the same sense
Of proportion which he has always
had. He is still of the people. and
in recent weeks the voice OF acclaim
arising from the rank and file of
men that make up the American
democracy has shown that these
facts are widely appreciated.
Looks Upon Presidency
as No SupermAn Task.
In Kansas, Gov. Lanoon has
made State administration not
complex, but simple. He has not
sought to give the impression that
it Is a task to De assumed only by
super men. 1t is my prediction that
as the standard bearer OF his party
he will be elected to the Presidency,
and he viii meet the multiple
problems OF that office in a similar
spirit, which will create the same
feeling among the citizens Of the
Nation; and the cres ton Of that
feeling will go far towards restor-
ing the essential confidence OF our
citizens in themselves and in their
Government which is the Nations
greatest need today.
Through three and one half
years we have heard much talk Of
emergency. Emergency has been
advanced as an argument for the
breaking Of campaign pledges, for
a reckless spending Of public funds,
for the creation of q bureaucracy.
for the appointment of public ON
cialS for reasons of personal loyalty
rather than merit and for q be-
wildering succession of inconsistent
and imprscticable measures which
have retarded recovery and created
uncertainty. Yet Gov. Landon was
elected to his office at the same
time that the New Deal adminis-
tration was elected to power He
faced in his capacity as q State
executive emergencies OF the same
kind that confronted the National
Executive. He faced also the same
question Of whether he should in
that emergency break the pledges
he had made in his campaign, or
whether he should keep those
pledges. The answers given by the
new President and the new Gov
ernor were different and they we're
in character. For. as we have seen
from the public record OF the two
of them, their characters were diff
ferent
Easy TO Break Contract
Once Habit Is Established.
There is nothing easier than to
break contract, once you have
convinced yourself that contracts
can be broken There La nothing