Evening star., 1947-06-17

/ ext OF Ium(
Following is the tert OF Presi-
dent Trun,an's address today at
Princeton University, ,1here he
t0as awarded the honorary de-
gree of doctor of la,os:
President Dodds, distinguished
guests, ladies and gentlemen:
| 1t is with great deal of pleasure,
and much pride, that am now able
to count myself as member Of the
Princeton Family. Princeton Uni
yersity has conferred an honor upon
me for which I am deeply grateful.
| I consider it a special privilege to
have received the degree OF doctor
of laws at the final convocation of
the bicentennial year in the pres
ence Of this distinguished company.
On an earlier occasion OF equal
significance in the history of this
university, the President of the
United States, Grover Cleveland,
spoke in 1895 at the Princeton ses-
quicentennial ceremonies. President
Cleveland seized that opportunity to
charge our colleges and universities
with the task of supplying CON
stant stream Of thoughtful, educated
men" to the body politic-men who
were eager to perform public service
for the benefit of the Nation. He
chided our institutions of higher
learning for their lack of interest in
public affairs, and held them re-
sponsible for the disdain with which
many of the best-educated men Of
the day viewed politics and public
affairs.
Task More Important Today.
Happily for us, that attitude on
the part of our universities vanished
long ago. I am certain that no OBJ
server Of the American scene In
recent years has detected any re-
luctance on the part of our educa-
tors to enter the political arena
when their services have been
needed. And CUR schools have made
much progress in supplying the com
slant stream of thoughtful, educated
men" for public service called for
by President Cleveland half cen
tury ago.
That task Is more important today
than at any previous time in our ma
tional history.
In our free society, knowledge and
learning are endowed with public
purpose noble purpose, close to
the heart of democracy. That pur-
pose is to help men and women de-
velop their talents for the benefit of
their fellow citizens. Our advance in
the natural sciences has led to al
most miraculous achievements, but
we have less reason to be proud of
our progress in developing the
capacity among men for cooperative
living. In the present critical stage
of world history, we need, more than
ever before, to enlist all our native
integrity and industry in the con-
duct of our common affairs.
The role of the United States Is
changing more rapidly than in any
previous period of our history. We
have had to assume worldwide re-
sponsibilities and commitments. Our
people have placed their trust in the
Government as the guardian of our
democratic ideals and the instru-
ment through which we work for
enduring peace.
Must Train Future Leaders.
The success of the Governments
efforts in achieving these ends will
depend upon the quality of citizen
ship of our people. 1t will also de-
pend upon the extent to which our
leaders in business, labor, the pro-
fessions, agriculture, and every other |
field, appreciate the role of their
Government and the greatness OF its
tasks.
Our schools must train future
leaders in all fields to understand
and concern themselves with the ex-
panded role of government, and
equally important-to see the need
for effective administration Of the
Governments business in the pub
| lie interest.
L call your attention particularly
to the problem OF effective admin
istration within the Government.
where matters of unprecedented
magnitude and complexity confront
the public servant. II our national
policies are to succeed. they must
be administered by officials with
broad experience, mature outlook,
and sound judgment There is, how
ever, a critical shortage of such men
men who possess the capacity to
deal with great affairs of state.
The Government has recruited
from our academic institutions many
members of its professional staffs-I
geologists, physicists, lawyers, econ
omists, and others with specialized
training. These men are essential
to the conduct of the Government
and the welfare Of the Nation. Butt
we have been much less effective in
obtaining persons with broad under
standing and an aptitude for man
agement. We need men who CAM
turn group of specialists into a
working team and who can combine
imagination and practicability into
sound public program.
Particular Responsibility.
| All large organizations. public or
private. depend on the teamwork
| of specialists. Coordination is
achieved by administrators trained
to assemble the fruits of specialized
knowledge and to, build on that
foundation q sound final decision.
Men trained for this kind Of ad-
ministrative and political leadership
are rare indeed.
IN the task Of finding and train
ing men and women who viii add