Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1936-11-01
Landon's St. Louis Speech
Courage, Sacrifice and Industry Of People Them
selves Credited for Better Conditions,
Government for Hindrance
Government for Hindrance
By the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
ST. LOUIS, October 3l.-Followinl
Is the text Of Gov. ALI M. Landon'
tonight at Municipal Audi
forum here:
come to this city OF st. Louis
and to my neighboring State OF
Missouri tonight with deep pleas
ure.
Next Tuesday the American peo-
pie make a fundamental choice.
We must choose the system and
ideals of government under which
We will live for many years to come.
The present administration has
tried to conceal that our form Of
government is an issue in this CAM
paign. 1t has tried to run from its
record instead of on its record.
The present administration has
q record Of broken promises that
has never been explained. 1t has
a record of waste and extravaganza
that threatens us with imitation
and bankruptcy. It has a record
Of trying to supplant our system
of free initiative with what it
calls planned economy"
Now let us examine the claims
on which the President seeks re-
election. He has not revealed his
program for the future. He has
asked for q blanket mandate to
proceed for another four years as
he may see At. And he has tried
to Justify this request on the plea
that he has won recovery for the
Nation.
Two weeks ago, in Chicago. he
said that when he came into office
he found the train of this coun-
try's business and industry in the
ditch. He said he pulled it out Of
the ditch. He said he put it on
the rails and ran it into the shop.
He said he repaired it. He said
that now, as a result Of his efforts,
the train is running again.
Peoples Big Part
in Achievements.
I should like to make a few
comments on this parable of the
derailed train. The President as
sumes that his administration de.
serves all the credit. Surely. the
courage, industry and sacrifices Of
our people had something to do
with getting the train out of the
ditch.
Further, the President fails to
state that after the train got into
the shop it stayed there for nearly
two years. 1t stayed there nearly
two years because the repair work
was entrusted to humble fingers
who were long on theory but short
on practical experience. And it
wasn't this administration which
finally got the train out of the
shop. 1t was the Supreme Court,
when it decided the N. r. A. was
unconstitutional.
Then there is the repair bill,
which is not taken into account.
This bill is large part of the
s25, 100000 spent by this adj
ministration of which sl3.000,000,-
900 has not been paid.
Finally. the train was in the
shop so long that it is far behind
its schedule. 1t is SO far behind
that 100000 unemployed men
and women are still standing along
the tracks, waiting to be carried
to their destination-the destina-
ton of full time work and full
time pay.
The two biggest jobs before the
country today are getting these
100000 unemployed back to
work and stopping the pouring Of
our money through the great po-
litical sieve at Washington. The
two jobs are wrapped up together.
We cannot live forever off tomor-
rows income. We cannot live for.
ever by borrowing from our chill
dren. And We cannot live forever
a united Nation with fifth Of
our working population dependent
upon the Government.
No Future Offered
BY Relief Rolls.
1t is not fair to those on the
relief rolls that they should be
forced to live in world apart
q world in which whatever work
they get comes from the Govern
ment-a world in which their wages
are set at a subsistence level by
the Government. In this isolated
world Of the unemployed there is
neither hope nor opportunity.
There is no future on the relief
rolls.
To ask for reelection on the
basis Of recovery, when 100000
of our fellow citizens are thus
stranded. is shocking.
Now, make no mistake about it.
We in this country are going to
get our train back on schedule.
We are going to pick up the I'M
employed and get them back to
work.
And we are going to do this
without breaking our backs and
the backs of our children with
billions of debt.
And we are going to do this
without abandoning the American