The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1937-09-23
American Legion
Convention Now
Underway In N. Y.
LegiOnnaires Again Asked TIC
Fight For Democracy And
For Peace.

annual convention of the American
Legion opened here Monday and will
remain in session through Friday.
During the opening session, with
the high emotion of two decades
ago prevailing, this large organiza-
ton was again called on to fight
for principals-for democracy, for Ii
berty and for peace.
AS President Woodrow Wilson had
cried out to them that 'they must
make the world safe for democracy,
Gov. Herbert Leham, of New York,
summoned them anew to the old
campaign.
I'VE still have a great principle of
democracy and liberty for which we
must fight"
"For God and country he
quoted the legion's constitutional
preamble eve associate ourselves
together to make right the matter of
might; to promote peace and good
will on earth; to safeguard and
transmit to posterity the principles
of justice, freedom and democracy"
Talks On Tolerance
He went on to talk of the quality
Of tolerance; of the old Rhode Island
code-all men might walk as their
consciences persuaded them, every
one in the name of God"
But now, he said, this ancient
right was dying in many places
across the world in the maelstorm
of new born ill will and intolerance. I"
America gasps in horror" he said
in what seemed an echo of the
keynote of Legion Commander
Harry Colmery's denunciation of at
tenpts to foster Nazi principles in
this country-"when it sees great
groups of people abroad prosecuted
solely because of race or religion"
John r. Quinn of California, a
former notional commander, stood
in response to say that democracy
was Sin greater danger today than
when we tried to save it in 1918"
1--WE are hoping and praying that
the emotions revived by this return
to New York"-he spoke of a time
when men here for the first time
saw it slip away from the side of a
troop shop-'will carry us on to vic
tory again in the battle against plots
against democracy today"
!. This, the grand opening of the
convention was one mainly for seri-
Gus exhortation.
Pershing Sends Greetings
To the thousands sitting still and
quiet in the great auditorium, Gen
eral John J. Pershing, the command
der of the A. E. F., the legendary
''Black jack to a million dough-
boys who never saw him, sent his
greetings, after his old men had pre-
sented him-across three thousand
miles of water-with his old colors.
Il shall be with you in spirit"
old Black Jack told them, in words
indistinct across all that space, land
shall join you in your proud march
down the historic avenue as you
swing along to the inspiring aims of
those far away wartime days."
''You may not be as young as you
once were, but am sure that your
hearts will beat as strongly and with
the same patriotic fervor as when
you stopped the enemy at Chateau
Thierry and drove him from the last
stronghold in the Meuse-Argonne.
Outside the hall, and after this
first, grave session was over-there
was such gusty air of playfulness
and lusty celebration as this old city
had not been since Armistice. Two
hundred and thirty thousand more
1egionnaires were outside that hall.
There were drum corps contests,
glee club marathons, receptions, teas,
various musical contests, and there
was, too, the jovial arrival in harbor
Of part of the Atlantic fleet.
Another plea for a vigorous cam
paign for peace came from Secre-
tary of State Cordell Hull, who told
the national commanders dinner
that peace is not only the goal of the
idealist ''but at the same time the
cornerstone of international self
preservation"
Peace Must Always Be Goal
Peace must always be our goal"
said Hull. mot peace for ourselves
alone, but peace throughout the
world, for nations today are so in
terdependent that the repercussions
of war affect neutrals only a few
degrees less than they affect belli-
gerents.
''The dislocation of the whole eco
nomic structure, the artificial ex-
pansion of war industries, the abnor-
NAL prices paid for key products,
the strain on currencies all
these affect nations thousands of
f,r0,,o Tho eoooo - 80