The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1940-11-04
WILLKIE SUPPORTERS
FIRE PARTING SHOT
Continued from Page One)
pupils in the fourth grade.

mat VIII interest the people OF
Key West, particularly those
who are bent on voting for
Roosevelt tomorrow
81 had my office in the Cham
Der of Commerce room in 1888.
We were given photograph of
Franklin Delano Roosevelt taken
in the Key West navy yard when
he was assistant secretary of the
navy. We mailed the photograph
to him, believing it would recall
pleasant memories to him and
hoping it would enlist his influ-
ence to have the navy yard re-
opened. In the letter ! enclosed
with the photograph, / explained
in detail to him the dire condi-
ton that had been brought about
in Key West by closing the navy
yard and implored him to have
it re-opened even on partly
active basis. I pointed out that
its re-opening would revive bust
ness in Key West, but, even more
than that, it would restore in full
measure the morale of our peo-
pie, which was then at its lowest
ebb since Key West was founded.
Il also pointed out that other
navy yards were to be closed at
the same time Key Vests was to
be closed, but, through political
influence, they had = remained
open, and ours was closed be-
cause we had no pull in Wash
ington'. In view of that fact, l
prayed him to do us a good turn
in our hour of dire distress.
What do you think happened,
Fourth-grader? 1 received
two-line letter from one of his
secretaries, thanking me for
sending the photograph to the
President.
"Fourth-grader, if you have
been reading the papers, you
know that the Hitler conflagra-
ton was smoldering when RooSe-
welt went into office in 1888. But
what did he do to prepare to
Illustrate it if it threatened to
envelope the United States? What
did he do even up to the day
France surrendered?
"The late Arthur Brisbane saw
what was coming. as you saw
what was coming, as everybody
saw what was coming. except
the Democratic politicians in
Washington. who were more
concerned in keeping their po-
litical machine well oiled than
they were in preparing this
country to throttle Germany's
mailman if the occasion arose.
Two or three times week, for
nearly five years, Brisbane ap-
pealed to President Roosevelt to
build thousands of airplanes to
make this country supreme in
the air, but the appeals fell on
deaf ears. 1t was not until Hit
ler's iron horses started to gal
lop into Belgium, Holland and
France that Roosevelt woke up.
It was then, Fourth-grader, and
not till then, that the Key West
navy yard was re-opened, after
having been closed nearly ten
years, seven of those years dur
ing the Roosevelt administra-
tioniii
"One thing in your fulmina
tons pleased me, Fourth-grader:
you condoned the invasion of
Key West by small-time poll
ticians to administer the FERA
at fancy salaries while Key West
ers were put to pulling weeds
and sweeping streets at bread
and-butter wages. rIsKey West
was supposed to be trehabilitat-
ed, but the only thing done along
that line was to rehabilitate the
out : of town = politicians who
swooped down on us like a swarm
of locusts. Some of those out
of-towners threw cocktail parties
while they were here, but our
weed pullers and street-sweepers
couldn't throw anything. except
fit.
"As to the postmastership.
Fourth-grader, ask Claudio Pep
per if every word I said isn't
true, and ask Patrick Henry Can
non, who boom-boomed here on
Saturday night, what I wrote to
him on the day he recommended
F. Joseph Dion for the postmas-
tership. You won't believe me.
Fourth-grader. when l say I
wouldn't accept the postmaster
ship in any circumstance, but it's
the truth just the same. / sug-
gest that you and any other Key
Westers who think the job is a
snap. ask Joe about it.
Finally, Fourth-grader, don't
get angry over politics; bear in
mind that the man you fight in
today's election may be lined up
with yous IN tomorrow's election,
and, above all, know how to lose
A. <n:-l lncA E-:Ia.- IA za&hor