Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-10-29
BY the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
NEW YORK, Oct. 2s.-Follop-
ing Is the prepared teri of Prest-
dent RooseDelts political address
last night in Madison Square
Garden.
Mr.. Chairman and Gov. Leh-
man: No campaign could possibly
be complete without this great
Garden meeting. I have had a
very wonderful day in New York,
all five boroughs. But as you
know, have had an anxious day,
too, because three or four times
during the day I have had to be
In touch with the Department of
State-with Secretary of State
Cordell Hull - because, unfor-
tunately. it seems that another
war has broken out on the other
side of the ocean.
And I am quite sure that all of
you will feel the same sorrow in
your hearts that I feel for the
Italian people and the Grecian
people that they should have been
involved together in conflict.
Tonight it's the second time. T
take up once more the public
duty-the far from disagreeable
duty-of answering major cam
palgn falsifications with facts.
Last week in Philadelphia.
nailed the falsehood about some
fanciful secret treaties, to dry on
on the barn door I nailed that
falsehood and other falsehoods
the way, when I was boy up in
Duchess County, we used to nail
up the skins of foxes and weas-
els.
Tonight am going to nail up
the falsiflcations that have to
do with our relations with the
rest Of the world, and with the
building up of our Army, Navy
and air defense. 1t is a. very
dangerous thing to distort facts
about such things. If repeated
over and over again, it is also
apt to create sense of fear
and doubt in the minds of some
OF the American people.
now brand as false the state
r1ent being made by Republican
campaign orators, day after day
and night after night, that the
rearming Of America was slow,
that it is hamstrung and i'm
peded, that it will nsVer be able
to meet threats from abroad.
Those are the whisperings of
appeasers.
That particular mis-statement
was invented about the time Of
the Republican National Con-
vention. Before that, the re-
sponsible Republican leaders had
been singing an entirely differ
ent song. For almost seven years
the Republican leaders in the
Congress kept on saying that I
was placing too much emphasis
on national defense
Business Leaders of Both
Parties Head Defense Set-up.
And now today these men Of
great vision have suddenly dis
covered that there is a war on
in Europe and another one in
Asia. And so, now, always with
their eyes on the good old ballot
box, they are charging that We
have placed too little emphasis
on national defense.
But, unlike them, the printed
pages of the Congressional Rec
ord cannot be changed or sup
pressed at election time. And,
based on that permanent record
of their speeches and their votes,
I make this assertion-that If
the Republican leaders had been
In control Of the Congress of the
United States during the past
seven years, the important mea-
sures for our defense would not
now be law. and that the Army
and Navy of the United States
would still be in almost the same
condition in which I found them
in 1898.
I make these charges against
the responsible political leader
ship Of the Republican party.
There are millions of patriotic
Republicans who have at all
times been in sympathy with
the efforts of this administra-
ton to arm itself adequately for
defense.
To Washington in the past few
months have come, not two or
three dozen, but several hundred
Of the best business executives
in the United States-Republi-
cans and Democrats alike. Not
holding company lawyers or ex-
ecutives, but men experienced in
actual neutrality-suspicious. of
all the types of machines and
tools and steel that have made
this Nation the industrial leader
Of the world.
Cooperation for Defense
Described as 100 Per Cent.
I asked Mr. Knudsen and Mr..
Stettinius and Mr.. Hartman and
Mr.. Budd and the many others
to serve because I believ they are
certainly among the ablest men
in the country in their own fields.
I do not know their politics. I
do not care about their politics.
All I know is that they are CO.
operating 100 per cent with this
administration in our efforts for
national defense. And this Gov
eminent is cooperating with
them-100 per cent.
All of these men-al of Amer
lean industry and American labor
are doing magnificent and I'M
selfish work. The progress today
proves 1t.
shall have occasion in later
speech to tell more about the
work they are doing and about
the progress which has been
made in our defense.
When the first World War
broke out We were pretty weak,
but by the end of it we were one
of the strongest naval and mill
tary powers in the world. When