Evening star., 1940-02-10
Text of Presidents Address

wv VI 1~0
The tert OF the Presidents nd-
dress to the National Citizenship
Institute OF the American Youth
Congress tollo,DS:
You who are attending this insti-
tute, whose primary aim is to obtain
further knowledge of the democratic
processes of American Government,
are very welcome at the White House
today. The same welcome is open
to all citizens, or prospective citi-
zens, or junior citizens, who believe
in the form of government under
which the United States has been
living with reasonable success for
more than century and half.
In saying this am not denying
to you in anyway the rights of free
assemblage of free petition and of
free speech-nor am precluding the
right of any Americans. old people
or young people. to advocate i'm
provements and changes in the oper-
ations of the Government OF the
United States on one very simple
condition: That all of you conform
to the constitutional processes of
change and improvement provided
in the Constitution itself.
1t is good thing that you young
people are interested enough in Gov
ernment to come to Washington for
a Youth Citizenship Institute-be-
cause one of the hardest problems
| today is the indifference of so many
| people to the details and the facts
of the functioning of their own Gov
ernment.
Many Millions Awakened
To Understanding.
l have said on many occasions
| that the greatest achievement of
| the past seven years in the United
States has been not the saving of
the Nation from economic chaos,
not the great series of laws to avert
destitution and improve our social
standards, but that It has been the
awakening of many millions of
American men and women to an
understanding of the processes of
their own governments. local. State
and Federal. It is a fact that in
every community, large and small.
people are taking greater interest
in decent government. in forward
looking government than ever before
and that the words of Lincoln in
regard to fooling people are in
finitely more true today than they
were in the Cos.
The past 10 years have proved
certain obvious facts-some mega
tive, some positive.
We know that the prosperity of
the 20s can properly be compared
to the prosperity of the Mississippi
bubble days before the bubble burst
when everybody was money mad,
when the money changers owned
the temple. when the Nation as
whole forgot the restraint of decent
ethics and simple morals. and when
the Government in Washington
gave completely free reign to what
they called individual liberty and
the virtual ownership of govern
rnent itself by the so-called best
minds which wholly controlled our
finances and our economics. Dur
ing those 10 years you cannot find
a single statute enacted for the re-
straint of excesses nor for the bet
terment of the permanent security
of the individual. That is straight
from -the-shoulder fact which the
American public fortunately has
not forgotten.
Charges His Facts
Were Misstated.
1t is also simple straight fact that
1890, 1881 and 1882 saw the collapse
and disintegration of the philosophy
of the 20s, followed in February
and the first three days of March,
1888, by an acknowledgment on the
part of those who had been the
leaders that they could no longer
carry on.
Last Monday at press confer
ence repeated certain comparisons
between 1882 and 1899. These facts
were misstated and twisted by many
newspapers and by some politicians
seeking office. Because of this and
because I am on a national hookup,
I repeat the figures.
The national income has increased
from forty billion dollars in 1882
to sixty-eight and one-half billion
dollars in 1939-plus II per cent.
Wages and salaries have increased
from two billion four hundred mil
lion dollars in December, 1882, to
three billion eight hundred and
eighty-eight million dollars in De-
cember, 1939-plus 62 per cent.
Weekly pay rolls increased from
eighty million dollars in December,
1882, to one hundred and ninety
seven million dollars in 1939-plus
145 per cent.
Cash farm income increased from
four billion seven hundred million
dollars in the year 1882 to seven
billion seven hundred million dollars
in the year 1899. And with the ad-
dition of farm benefit payments of
over eight hundred million dollars,
to total of eight and half billion
dollars-plus 81 per cent.
Gain of 28 Per Cent
In N0n.Far Jobs.
Dividends of corporations that
were received by individuals in
creased from two billion seven hun
dred and fifty million dollars to four
billion two hundred and fifty million
dollars-plus IS per cent.
It is true that our population has
gone up or per cent since 1882,
but where twenty-seven million
people were employed In non-agri-
cultural pursuits In December, 1882,